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bet088 CHRISTMAS can be explosive. Boozy rows at dinner, squabbles over the telly and disputes over gifts are common. One survey suggests the average family has at least five rows on December 25, kicking off at 10am! Thankfully, etiquette expert Jo Bryant has given Natalie Clarke her guide on how to avoid a full-blown festive fallout . . . HAVE a conversation with guests before the 25th. But time it right, as having it too far in advance will make you seem very uptight and over the top. Phoning in a panic on Christmas Eve is no good either. Do it around now. What time will you eat? There may be young children to think of, or elderly relatives who will reach for the Rennies if their dinner is served too late. As host, it is your duty to see if anyone has special dietary needs . You don’t want an angry vegan on your hands if all you’re offering is turkey and pigs in blankets . If you’re the guest, you have less control over the menu. With desserts, however, it’s a bit more relaxed. If you hate Christmas pudding , you can say: “Would you like me to contribute to lunch? Can I bring a pud?” Then you can rock up with your pavlova. IT’S an age-old rule – and a very British one. There is nothing worse than a guest arriving early, because the host may not be ready and could still be up to their elbows in Brussels sprouts . If you are asked to arrive at midday, make sure you get there at noon, or very slightly afterwards. It’s far better to be ten minutes late than ten minutes early. IF you’re going to someone’s house and you don’t know them well, it’s good to phone in advance and ask what you can bring. If the host says, “Nothing”, you should still take something – flowers, chocolates or a plant. It’s good manners. But beware turning up with a scented candle if they would probably prefer a couple of bottles of wine. If you’re the one doing the hosting and know your guests very well, it’s fine to ask if they would mind bringing cheese, chocolates, or whatever. That way, you make sure you end up with sensible contributions and it can help spread the cost. IF you’ve had an awful journey, it’s bad etiquette to go on about it and bring that stress with you. Not only is it rude, but it also makes your hosts feel like inviting you is a burden. Allow time for your journey and, if you are running late, don’t call every 15 minutes with an update of your location. You can always share your location for an hour on Whatsapp. That way, your host will be able to see where you are or choose to ignore you if they are still too busy basting the turkey. CHRISTMAS – and life – is about give and take. Not everyone will want to do the same thing at the same time. For example, you could say: “Some of us are going to church – you’re more than welcome to stay at home if you don’t want to come.” That way, they can knock back the Prosecco while you’re singing hymns . Think of the needs of your other guests, too. Older guests might like an area they can sit quietly, away from the gaming teenagers. As a host, don’t inflict too many activities on guests – but if everyone else is playing Monopoly, don’t be the only one watching telly. Do what the majority is doing. IF there is family tension, I suggest a clever seating arrangement. Put place cards down and say: “Granny, why don’t you sit here? Uncle Bob, what about there?” It should go without saying, avoid sitting people who don’t get on next to each other. You should stick to safe topics when talking, such as highlights of the year, holidays and any great plans for 2025. Don’t hog the conversation and steer clear of the usual hotspots, such as politics. Awkward disccusions are best deflected with humour. Say something like: “It’s Christmas, we don’t want to talk about boring politics, do we?” PEOPLE get too stressed about Christmas lunch. It’s one meal in 365 days and probably isn’t going to be the best meal you eat. Chances are the turkey might be a bit dry, the sprouts overcooked. The point of Christmas is about community and family. You should focus on that, rather than criticising the chef. There are so many elements to the Christmas lunch, so there will be something you like. Try and have a bit of what you like the most – don’t sit there and say “I don’t like it”, or you could end up not being invited back next year. YOU should offer to help out, but in a sensible way. There’s being a help – and there’s being a hindrance. Trying to load someone’s dishwasher when you don’t know where everything goes is a pain. Ferrying plates from the table to the kitchen is probably more useful. Be helpful without commenting, interfering, or getting in the way. If you are staying over, you should be neat and tidy – hang up your towels, don’t hog the bathroom and live by the rules of your host’s house. YOU need to let people enjoy themselves – it is Christmas, after all – but to try to reduce the risk of excess. I suggest sneakily limiting booze and ensuring there is plenty of coffee and water available later in the day. Lecturing people on drinking is never going to feel festive and if you tell someone they’ve had enough, it doesn’t tend to go down too well. WE can all drive off on Boxing Day and think: “Thank God, we got through it.” But it’s probably been hardest for your host, so it’s always worth thanking them a couple of days afterwards. You can send an email, but a thank-you card in the post is a notch up and will have much more impact. IF you don’t get on with a certain relative, I suggest you change your mindset, because they are not going to disappear at Christmas. If there is something your mother-in-law does that really annoys you – asking inappropriate questions about your sex life, perhaps, or laughing hysterically about things that aren’t funny – it will only be amplified after they have had a few wines. Instead, make it seem slightly humorous in your mind, part and parcel of who they are, rather than going to war over it. Awkward conversations are best deflected with humour, too. It’s bad manners to be confrontational and aggressive. IF someone has taken the time and effort to give you something – even if it’s a garish, itchy jumper – it’s churlish to say you don’t like it. As a general rule, you should accept it . If it is an item of clothing and it doesn’t fit, you can discuss getting a different size. And if it’s an incredibly expensive item, you could perhaps have a conversation. We all get a few presents we’re less keen on, so don’t be too fussy. And don’t show off and spend lots of money, either. You could embarrass the other person by giving them something too expensive.Arsenal have kept themselves in the Premier League title race with a superb 2-0 home win over Manchester United . The Gunners ended Ruben Amorim's unbeaten start as Red Devils boss thanks to second-half goals from Jurrien Timber and William Saliba. Three points on the board for Arsenal is a key boost for Mikel Arteta as his team made it four wins in a row across all competitions. MORE: All the latest Arsenal news | Premier League schedule for 2024/25 | Latest Premier League top scorer rankings Consistency has been vital in Arsenal's recent upturn in form and it was a familiar feature which secured their victory over Man United at the Emirates Stadium. Arteta and his coaching staff have placed huge focus on utilising corners and free-kicks to create goals, and both goals in this game came via corners, as the strategy continues to reap rewards. Arsenal have now scored 22 goals from corners in the Premier League since the start of last season - seven more than any other club - as an eye-catching stat. Arsenal have scored 22 goals from corners in the Premier League since the start of last season - seven more than any other club. 📐👑 pic.twitter.com/72NbW4VmFU Timber's goal came direct from a Declan Rice delivery with Saliba's clincher coming via Thomas Partey's knockdown from a Bukayo Saka corner. Rice was asked about Arsenal's secret plans on set pieces at full-time and the England star admitted there is a lot of planning which goes into it. "When you go up for a corner it's a chance to score. To score both of them from corners, (set-piece coach) Nico (Jover) will be buzzing and I'm so happy," he said. "It's more just seeing clips, I know the weight I need to put on the ball, and it's just about repetition. I put a few good balls in and could've had a couple of assists so it was nice to get one." Up next for Rice and Arsenal is a weekend trip to London rivals Fulham on December 8.On June 20, 1979, President Jimmy Carter —sporting a bushy haircut and a wide necktie—invited dignitaries and reporters onto the roof of the White House to watch the installation of thirty-two solar water-heating panels. “A generation from now,” he told them, “this solar heater can either be a curiosity, a museum piece, an example of a road not taken, or it can be just a small part of one of the greatest and most exciting adventures ever undertaken by the American people.” A generation later, one of those panels showed up in a private museum in the offices of an entrepreneur named Huang Ming, in the city of Dezhou, China. In the spring of 2010, I interviewed Ming, who was building a vast fortune by installing pretty much the same solar water heaters across the country. If you’re flying into a Chinese city, look down and you might see one of the devices on every other roof; even back then there were places where ninety-five per cent of homes sported a panel. Ming had built a truly remarkable headquarters—the so-called Sun-Moon Mansion looked like something out of “The Jetsons,” with two sweeping horseshoes of solar panels that resembled the rings of Saturn cut in half. Ming described Carter as a visionary, and shook his head a little ruefully at the path America hadn’t followed. That path—well, it’s truly painful to look back on it now, from the vantage point of an Earth where the poles are melting fast, where Africa may be losing fifteen per cent a year of its G.D.P. per capita because of the effects of warming, and where a senior climate adviser for the current President recently said that we now need “a transformation of the global economy on a size and scale that’s never occurred in human history” to “create a livable future for ourselves and our children.” Jimmy Carter, who was elected in 1976, wasn’t focussed on global warming, though advisers were beginning to warn him about it. Even without the existential impetus of climate change, though, struggling to stay politically afloat during the geopolitical crises that came with the twin oil shocks of the seventies—one caused by OPEC ’s embargo, the other largely by the Iranian Revolution—he sensed how high the stakes really were. The energy crisis, he told Americans early on, using adult language that it’s impossible to imagine an American President using today, was a reminder that “ours is the most wasteful nation on earth.” By 1979, gas-station lines were causing alarm in suburbia, and knocking the edge off his popularity. But, instead of simply drilling more oil wells (America was just a decade removed from the Santa Barbara oil spill and the first Earth Day), he treated the trouble as an opportunity. “All the legislation in the world can’t fix what is wrong with America,” he said. “Too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption.” It was time to act on the realization that “owning things and consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning . . . that piling up material goods cannot fill the emptiness of lives which have no confidence or purpose.” That world view—the very thing Carter has been lauded for in retrospect, amid images of him building houses for the poor, teaching Sunday school, and holding hands with Rosalynn, his beloved wife of seventy-seven years, in the same modest house in which they lived for decades, until her death, in November—was less popular politically. Not unpopular: with a few weeks to go until the 1980 election, he was still well ahead in the polls, before a late surge from Ronald Reagan ended his political career. But not popular enough: that election was the hinge point in our national political life, when we turned our back on the idea of America as a group project that we’d been pursuing since F.D.R. , and instead embraced the vision that government was the problem, that markets took care of all ills, that our job was to look after our own individual selves. Reagan had no qualms about drilling everywhere: the price of gas dropped, cars turned into S.U.V.s, and we started driving the Earth toward the edge of the cliff. It wasn’t just noble sentiments that Carter offered in the leadup to the 1980 election, however. In fact, in the wake of the oil shocks, his main policy proposal was for solar power. His main domestic-policy adviser, Stuart Eizenstat, told him that “a strong solar message and program will be important in trying to counter the hopelessness which polls are showing the public feels about energy. . . . I’m quite convinced Congress and the American people want a Manhattan-type project on alternative energy development.” Carter agreed and started proposing measures designed to make sure that, by the year 2000, a fifth of the country’s energy would come from solar power. He called for spending a hundred million dollars in fiscal year 1980 to create a solar bank. He asked for additional hundreds of millions to fund solar projects and research, and offered a billion dollars in tax credits to homeowners who wanted to put panels on their roofs or install wind-energy systems. He declared May 3, 1978, to be Sun Day, and delivered a speech (in a driving rain—he was characteristically unlucky) from a federal solar-research facility in Golden, Colorado. “The question is no longer whether solar energy works,” he said. “We know it works. The only question is how to cut costs so that solar power can be used more widely and so that it will set a cap on rising oil prices.” He continued, “Nobody can embargo sunlight. No cartel controls the sun. Its energy will not run out. It will not pollute the air. It will not poison our waters. It’s free from stench and smog. The sun’s power needs only to be collected, stored, and used.” Carter was correct. Had we embarked on an enormous project of solar research then and there, we could have cut the costs of renewable energy far faster than we did. There was no single technological breakthrough that finally lowered the cost of solar power below that of fossil fuel in the past decade, just a long series of iterative improvements that could have come much faster had we worked with the vigor of, say, the Manhattan Project. Instead, Reagan immediately cut the budget for solar research by eighty-five per cent and did away with the tax credit for solar panels, decimating the infant industry. His national-security adviser, Richard Allen, told Reagan about a book denigrating solar energy, whose author had claimed that it was “little more than a continuation of the political wars of a decade ago by other means. . . . Where salvation was once to be gotten from the Revolution, now it will come from everyone’s best friend, that great and simplistic cure of all energy ills, the sun.” The culture war against clean energy had begun. And the solar panels on the White House came down. According to the Washington Post , the founder of the company that installed the panels said that Donald T. Regan, Reagan’s chief of staff, called them a “joke.” They rested for a while in a federal warehouse in Virginia, but most were eventually rescued by a small, environmentally minded school in rural Maine, Unity College, where for many years they supplied hot water to the cafeteria. That’s where I found them in 2010; the college handed over one of them, and with three Unity students and a professor I drove south to Washington, D.C., intending to give it to the Obama Administration. (It was also Unity that gave the panel to Ming; he accepted it on behalf of the Chinese people.) It was a splendid road trip: with the group 350.org (which I co-founded), we held rallies along the way, in Boston, New York, and Baltimore, and at each stop we used gallons of water to show that after three decades the panel still worked fine. Our hope was that, if President Barack Obama put it back on the roof, it would mark a symbolic closing of the circle, and would refire interest in the technology. But it turned out the Administration wasn’t interested—a trio of what the Times Green blog called “midlevel White House officials” met with our delegation in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, and refused to accept the gift. They wouldn’t really explain why, which left the students in tears and me with steam coming unproductively out of my ears. Looking back, though, it’s clear why Obama at that moment did not want much to do with anything so closely associated with Carter. Obama was a deep student of political history, and he knew far better than most how crucial that 1980 election had been; the country had chosen to head in a new direction, and that direction still held, though he was doing all he could to soften its edges and sand its corners. (In 2014, his Administration did, in fact, install solar panels on the White House.) Here’s how he put it a few years later, in perhaps the best summation of the past forty years of our political life: “Through Clinton and even through how I thought about these issueswhen I first came into office, I think there was a residualwillingness to accept the political constraints that we’d inheritedfrom the post-Reagan era—that you had to be careful about being toobold on some of these issues. And probably there was an embrace ofmarket solutions to a whole host of problems that wasn’t entirelyjustified.” Only recently, in the Biden Administration, has a President really tried to shrug off that embrace, and with some success. Joe Biden—who was the first senator to endorse Jimmy Carter in his 1976 run for the White House—tried to throw the weight of the federal government behind clean energy, seeking to get us back to work on that group project of building a working society and a working planet. He’s opened the plants and cut the ribbons that Jimmy Carter might have opened and cut in his second term. That we waited forty years means that our planet will be, at the very least, deeply damaged. But Biden’s effort was by far the greatest tribute anyone could pay to the thirty-ninth President. ♦ New Yorker Favorites The best performances of 2024. A professor claimed to be Native American. Did she know she wasn’t ? Kanye West bought an architectural treasure—then gave it a violent remix . Why so many people are going “ no contact ” with their parents. Ina Garten and the age of abundance . How a homegrown teen gang punctured the image of an upscale community . Sign up for our daily newsletter to receive the best stories from The New Yorker .

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Emerson Electric Co. stock underperforms Thursday when compared to competitorsNEW YORK (AP) — No ex-president had a more prolific and diverse publishing career than Jimmy Carter . His more than two dozen books included nonfiction, poetry, fiction, religious meditations and a children’s story. His memoir “An Hour Before Daylight” was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2002, while his 2006 best-seller “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” stirred a fierce debate by likening Israel’s policies in the West Bank to the brutal South African system of racial segregation. And just before his 100th birthday, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation honored him with a lifetime achievement award for how he wielded “the power of the written word to foster peace, social justice, and global understanding.” In one recent work, “A Full Life,” Carter observed that he “enjoyed writing” and that his books “provided a much-needed source of income.” But some projects were easier than others. “Everything to Gain,” a 1987 collaboration with his wife, Rosalynn, turned into the “worst threat we ever experienced in our marriage,” an intractable standoff for the facilitator of the Camp David accords and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. According to Carter, Rosalynn was a meticulous author who considered “the resulting sentences as though they have come down from Mount Sinai, carved into stone.” Their memories differed on various events and they fell into “constant arguments.” They were ready to abandon the book and return the advance, until their editor persuaded them to simply divide any disputed passages between them. “In the book, each of these paragraphs is identified by a ‘J’ or an ‘R,’ and our marriage survived,” he wrote. Here is a partial list of books by Carter: “Keeping Faith: Memoirs of a President” “The Blood of Abraham: Insights into the Middle East” (With Rosalynn Carter) “Everything to Gain: Making the Most of the Rest of Your Life” “An Outdoor Journal: Adventures and Reflections” “Turning Point: A Candidate, a State, and a Nation Come of Age” “Always a Reckoning, and Other Poems” (With daughter Amy Carter) “The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer” “Living Faith” “The Virtues of Aging” “An Hour Before Daylight: Memories of a Rural Boyhood” “Christmas in Plains: Memories” “The Hornet’s Nest: A Novel of the Revolutionary War” “Our Endangered Values: America’s Moral Crisis” “Faith & Freedom: The Christian Challenge for the World” “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid” “A Remarkable Mother” “Beyond the White House” “We Can Have Peace in the Holy Land: A Plan That Will Work” “White House Diary” “NIV Lessons from Life Bible: Personal Reflections with Jimmy Carter” “A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power” “A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety”

BROOKFIELD NEWS, Dec. 02, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Brookfield Office Properties Inc., a subsidiary of Brookfield Property Partners L.P., today announced the reset dividend rate on its Class AAA Preference Shares, Series AA (“Series AA Shares”) (TSX: BPO.PR.A). If declared, the fixed quarterly dividends on the Series AA Shares for the five years commencing January 1, 2025 and ending December 31, 2029 will be paid at an annual rate of 6.164% ($0.38525 per share per quarter). Holders of Series AA Shares have the right, at their option, exercisable not later than 5:00 p.m. (Toronto time) on December 16, 2024, to convert all or part of their Series AA Shares, on a one-for-one basis, into Class AAA Preference Shares, Series BB (the “Series BB Shares”), effective December 31, 2024. The quarterly floating rate dividends on the Series BB Shares have an annual rate, calculated for each quarter, of 3.15% over the annual yield on three-month Government of Canada treasury bills. The actual quarterly dividend rate for the January 1, 2025 to March 31, 2025 dividend period for the Series BB Shares will be 1.63479% (6.6% on an annualized basis) and the dividend, if declared, for such dividend period will be $0.408698 per share, payable on March 31, 2025. Holders of Series AA Shares are not required to elect to convert all or any part of their Series AA Shares into Series BB Shares. As provided in the share conditions of the Series AA Shares, (i) if Brookfield determines that there would be fewer than 1,000,000 Series AA Shares outstanding after December 31, 2024, all remaining Series AA Shares will be automatically converted into Series BB Shares on a one-for-one basis effective December 31, 2024; and (ii) if Brookfield determines that there would be fewer than 1,000,000 Series BB Shares outstanding after December 31, 2024, no Series AA Shares will be permitted to be converted into Series BB Shares. There are currently 11,845,858 Series AA Shares outstanding. The Toronto Stock Exchange (“TSX”) has conditionally approved the listing of the Series BB Shares effective upon conversion. Listing of the Series BB Shares is subject to Brookfield fulfilling all the listing requirements of the TSX and, upon approval, the Series BB Shares will be listed on the TSX under the trading symbol “BPO.PR.B”. Brookfield Office Properties Inc. is a subsidiary of Brookfield Property Partners L.P., one of the world’s largest commercial real estate companies. For more information, please visit Keren Dubon Investor Relations Tel.: (212) 618-3440 Email:How co-writing a book threatened the Carters’ marriage

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Faster, Smarter, and More Affordable – The U.S.-Made GEN3 Model Delivers Endless Hot Water, Exceptional Efficiency, and Adaptable Design for Every Home SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. , Dec. 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- TrutanklessTM (OTC: TKLS), the premier name in residential electric tankless water heaters, proudly announces the launch of its highly anticipated GEN3 model. Known for its innovation and engineering excellence, Trutankless is back with a cutting-edge solution that promises unmatched reliability, efficiency, and performance for every household. The Trutankless GEN3, shipping now from a U.S.-based manufacturing partner, is built to meet the needs of today's homeowners, combining professional-grade durability with advanced technology for a superior user experience. With faster time-to-temperature – reaching the set point in just 15 seconds, twice as fast as previous models – the GEN3 delivers endless hot water with exceptional energy efficiency. Its sleek, compact, wall-mounted design saves up to 9 square feet of space compared to traditional tanks, making it ideal for modern homes. "Our goal with the GEN3 is to redefine what homeowners can expect from a water heater," said Guy Newman , CEO of Trutankless. "We've taken everything our customers love about Trutankless and made it even better, more reliable, more efficient, and more adaptable to modern living, while keeping affordability in focus." The Trutankless GEN3 is packed with features that set it apart: Every Trutankless GEN3 unit is engineered, tested, and built in the U.S. to meet the highest standards of quality. Backed by an industry-leading protection plan for sellers with a 5-year parts warranty and a 2-year full system warranty, GEN3 ensures long-term peace of mind for homeowners. Trutankless has a legacy of innovation, previously recognized as the Best Home Technology Product by the National Association of Home Builders. With GEN3, the brand continues to lead the electric tankless water heater industry, setting new benchmarks in performance and sustainability. The Trutankless GEN3 is available for purchase through authorized dealers and installers. For more information or to find a local installer, visit https://www.trutankless.com/ . About TrutanklessTM TrutanklessTM is a leading innovator in electric tankless water heating technology. Dedicated to providing efficient, reliable, and eco-friendly solutions, Trutankless continues to set the standard for performance and innovation in the residential water heating industry. https://www.instagram.com/trutankless/ https://www.facebook.com/trutankless https://www.linkedin.com/company/trutankless / View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/trutankless-shipping-gen3-redefining-electric-tankless-water-heating-302320061.html SOURCE Trutankless, Inc.NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The largest artificial intelligence data center ever built by Facebook’s parent company Meta is coming to northeast Louisiana, the company said Wednesday, bringing hopes that the $10 billion facility will transform an economically neglected corner of the state. Republican Gov. Jeff Landry called it “game-changing” for his state's expanding tech sector, yet some environmental groups have raised concerns over the center's reliance on fossil fuels — and whether the plans for new natural gas power to support it could lead to higher energy bills in the future for Louisiana residents. Meanwhile, Elon Musk's AI startup, xAI, is expanding its existing supercomputer project in Memphis, Tennessee, the city's chamber of commerce said Wednesday. The chamber also said that Nvidia, Dell, and Supermicro Computer will be “establishing operations in Memphis,” without offering further details. Louisiana is among a growing number of states offering tax credits and other incentives to lure big tech firms seeking sites for energy-intensive data centers. The U.S. Commerce Department found that there aren’t enough data centers in the U.S. to meet the rising AI-fueled demand, which is projected to grow by 9% each year through 2030, citing industry reports. Meta anticipates its Louisiana data center will create 500 operational jobs and 5,000 temporary construction jobs, said Kevin Janda, director of data center strategy. At 4 million square feet (370,000 square meters), it will be the company's largest AI data center to date, he added. “We want to make sure we are having a positive impact on the local level,” Janda said. Congressional leaders and local representatives from across the political spectrum heralded the Meta facility as a boon for Richland parish, a rural part of Louisiana with a population of 20,000 historically reliant on agriculture. About one in four residents are considered to live in poverty and the parish has an employment rate below 50%, according to the U.S. census data. Meta plans to invest $200 million into road and water infrastructure improvements for the parish to offset its water usage. The facility is expected to be completed in 2030. Entergy, one of the nation's largest utility providers, is fast-tracking plans to build three natural gas power plants in Louisiana capable of generating 2,262 megawatts for Meta's data center over a 15-year period — nearly one-tenth of Entergy's existing energy capacity across four states. The Louisiana Public Service Commission is weighing Entergy's proposal as some environmental groups have opposed locking the state into more fossil fuel-based energy infrastructure. Meta said it plans to help bring 1,500 megawatts of renewable energy onto the grid in the future. Louisiana residents may ultimately end up with rate increases to pay off the cost of operating these natural gas power plants when Meta's contract with Entergy expires, said Jessica Hendricks, state policy director for the Alliance for Affordable Energy, a Louisiana-based nonprofit advocating for energy consumers. “There’s no reason why residential customers in Louisiana need to pay for a power plant for energy that they’re not going to use," Hendricks said. "And we want to make sure that there’s safeguards in place.” Public service commissioner Foster Campbell, representing northeast Louisiana, said he does not believe the data center will increase rates for Louisiana residents and views it as vital for his region. “It’s going in one of the most needed places in Louisiana and maybe one of the most needed places in the United States of America,” Foster said. “I’m for it 100%.” Environmental groups have also warned of the pollution generated by Musk's AI data center in Memphis. The Southern Environmental Law Center, among others, says the supercomputer could strain the power grid, prompting attention from the Environmental Protection Agency. Eighteen gas turbines currently running at xAI’s south Memphis facility are significant sources of ground-level ozone, better known as smog, the group said. Patrick Anderson, an attorney at the law center, said xAI has operated with “a stunning lack of transparency” in developing its South Memphis facility, which is located near predominantly Black neighborhoods that have long dealt with pollution and health risks from factories and other industrial sites. “Memphians deserve to know how xAI will affect them,” he said, “and should have a seat at the table when these decisions are being made.” Sainz reported from Memphis, Tennessee. Associated Press writer Matt O’Brien in Providence, Rhode Island, contributed to this report. Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Brook on the social platform X: @jack_brook96

In their final fixture of 2024, Havertz scored the only goal of the game midway through the opening period. Arsenal moved into second place in the Premier League table with a 1-0 win over Ipswich at the Emirates. In their final fixture of 2024, Kai Havertz scored the only goal of the game midway through the opening period. Arsenal’s victory takes them back to within six points of leaders Liverpool, having played one match more than the Reds, and a point clear of Chelsea following their Boxing Day defeat to Fulham. Ipswich, although much improved in the second half, have now lost five of their last six games, and remain just one place off the bottom of the table, three points away from safety. Mikel Arteta’s men have been rocked by Bukayo Saka’s hamstring injury which could keep the England winger, who has nine goals and 13 assists this season, out of action for the next two months. Gabriel Martinelli was handed the unenviable task of filling Saka’s shoes on Arsenal’s right-hand side and the Brazilian was involved in the only goal of the evening. The Ipswich defence failed to deal with Martinelli’s cross, with the ball falling to Leandro Trossard on the opposite side of the area. Trossard fought his way to the byline before fizzing his cross into the box for Havertz to convert from a matter of yards. It was Havertz’s third goal in four matches, his 12th of the season, and no less than the hosts, who at that stage of the match had enjoyed a staggering 91.4 per cent of the possession, deserved. Heading into Friday’s fixture, Arsenal had lost only one of their last 75 Premier League games when they had opened the scoring, and their triumph here rarely looked in doubt following Havertz’s strike. Havertz thought he had doubled Arsenal’s lead with 34 minutes gone when he converted Gabriel Jesus’ cross. But Jesus – handed his third successive start for the first time in a year – strayed into an offside position in the build-up. When referee Darren England blew for half-time, Ipswich had failed to touch the ball in Arsenal’s box, becoming just the second side to do so in the Premier League this season. Nottingham Forest were the other, away at Liverpool, before they went on to inflict Arne Slot’s sole defeat of his tenure so far. And for all of Arsenal’s possession, while they held just a one-goal advantage, Ipswich knew they were still in the game. An encouraging start to the second half for the Tractor Boys ensued, albeit without testing David Raya in the Arsenal goal. Shortly after the hour mark, Gabriel should have settled any growing Emirates nerves when he arrived unmarked to Declan Rice’s corner, but the defender headed wide of Arijanet Muric’s post when it looked easier to score. Martin Odegaard then forced a fine fingertip save from Muric at his near post after a mazy run and shot from the Arsenal skipper. Rice’s stinging goal-bound volley from the following corner was blocked by Dara O’Shea as Arsenal pushed for a game-killing second. Havertz should have tapped home Trossard’s header but he fluffed his lines. And moments later, substitute Mikel Merino’s effort was diverted from danger by a diving Muric. Ipswich looked to catch Arsenal on the counter, but the match ended without them registering a single effort on Raya’s goal. Ipswich fans goaded their opponents with chants of “boring, boring Arsenal”, but it was the Gunners who enjoyed the last laugh as they saw out 2024 with a win which keeps the pressure on Liverpool.Chilliwack council waived fees and development cost charges (DCCs) totalling almost $1.2 million at the Nov. 19 council meeting for an affordable housing project on Spadina Avenue. But before the vote, Coun. Jeff Shields took the opportunity to raise a "big" concern he has about another project, the Trethewey supportive housing and homeless shelter project. "You know this is pretty important what we're doing here as a city," Shields said about "foregoing" almost $1.2 million in fees for the affordable housing project. As housing is not a municipal jurisdiction, waiving the associated fees and DCCs is the city's contribution to these projects. "We have the good people of the United Church that donated a church property worth a fair bit of money in a nice area of town. We have really stepped up and showed our commitment to building housing but now I have this big concern with the other partner in this, which is the provincial government, responsible for building this housing. "As we know we have one sitting over there on Trethewey and we're into the second or third year of it sitting there not done. And I don't have great confidence but I do hope the province is going to do a whole lot better on this one than it did on the last one," the councillor said. Chilliwack has proven "over and over again" that it is willing to commit to this kind of housing, Shields said. "And still we kind of get left out, and left high and dry." The councillor added he hopes the Spadina project won't be a repeat of the stalled Trethewey project. Mayor Ken Popove originally said at a council meeting in September that the delayed Trethewey project got bogged down in litigation, apparently after the builders went broke. City officials were notified by BC Housing that they were working toward a completion date of March 2025 for Trethewey. Mamele'awt Qweesome Housing Society (MQHS), a non-profit urban Indigenous housing society, applied to have the fees waived for the Spadina project under the City of Chilliwack's Community Development Initiatives funding policy, for $31,394 in fees, as well as the development cost charges of $1,183,977. The Spadina project will deliver 64 units of affordable rental housing for seniors and low-income renters earning less than the median income for Chilliwack. The site and structure will be leased and operated by MQHS through a 60-year leasehold. Karen Stanton, director of public safety and social development, told council she did some followup since she knew the building process was a concern, clarifying that the Province/BC Housing was funding the Spadina project and offering operating subsidies as well. "But the project management is undertaken by housing consulting firm, CPA Consultants, who were the consultants on the Paramount project, and the builder is Vanmar Construction." Final approval of the tender for the Spadina project is expected in December, with a tentative plan to break ground in the new year, followed by a 20-month construction period. "If the experience we had with the Paramount is any indication, we should be in good shape," Stanton said. Mayor Popove added a reminder that "it took seven years from inception to buildout for the Paramount. So don't hold your breath."

McGregor must pay $250K to woman who says he raped her, civil jury rulesMURRAY, Ky. — Illinois State was outscored 17-6 over the final 5:15 and dropped a 91-80 Missouri Valley Conference women's basketball game to Murray State on Sunday. The Redbirds fell to 6-6 and the Racers improved to 7-3 in the MVC opener for both teams. Illinois State's Addison Martin helps Shannon Dowell to her feet Sunday after Dowell hit a shot against Murray State. ISU trailed 72-64 in the second half before a Shannon Dowell three-point play capped a 10-2 surge that forged a 74-all tie. Dowell scored 14 points in each half for a game-high 28 points. Addison Martin added 14 points, Elyce Knudsen 12 points and Nevaeh Thomas 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds. The Redbirds lost despite shooting 60 percent (33 of 55) from the floor. ISU fell short in 3-point shooting (4 of 11 for 36.4 percent) and at the free throw line (10 of 18 for 55.6 percent). The Racers hit 46 percent from the field and burned ISU with 13 3-pointers on 32 attempts (40.6 percent). Murray State sank 20 of 23 free throws for 87 percent. Murray State received 25 points from Bradley transfer Halli Poock, 22 points and 11 rebounds from Haven Ford and 21 points from Katelyn Young. The Redbirds committed 17 turnovers, six more than the Racers. ISU returns to CEFCU Arena on Thursday for a 6:30 p.m. conference game with Indiana State. Follow Randy Reinhardt on Twitter: @Pg_Reinhardt Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sports Reporter {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.Rwanda is willing to sign new migrant deals with Donald Trump's US and the EU, its foreign minister has said. Olivier Nduhungirehe revealed Kigali could sign up to similar schemes it negotiated with the UK . And Mr Nduhungirehe rejected claims that the deportation deal with the UK would not have helped to end the Channel migrant crisis. The Rwanda foreign minister said: “If there is any will from another country to discuss this, we will be open to discuss, to see how it can be materialised.” Mr Nduhungirehe said Rwanda had not yet had any direct approaches but said: “We are open to continue contributing to the solution to the migration, if in the days or months or years to come, we have to get into partnership with another country. "So we consider all the conditions, including the facilities.” On Monday, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper published a breakdown of the much-contested claim that the deportation deal had cost taxpayers £715million. The Labour frontbencher said London paid Kigali £290million, splurged £280million on IT, legal and staffing costs, spent £50million on the flights and preparing the airfields, and paid £95million on expanding migration detention centres. Describing how such a scheme would become a deterrent, he told The Telegraph: “We believe that every country should address this issue of migration in a way that will deter migration while treating the migrants in a humane way according to international law. "We are not going to tell other countries what they should do vis-a-vis migration. “We did our part and we are willing to do it again, but for other countries, especially European countries, they should talk among themselves and then find an appropriate solution to the migration aiming at deterrence, but also receiving people who have reached the territory and integrating them according to international law.” The UK paid Kigali £290million for the migrant deportation deal. But only four failed asylum seekers voluntarily moved to the country. Mr Ndhuhngirehe said this infrastructure could be used as part of any future offshoring migrant scheme with another country. “If we get into partnership with any other country, we will discuss the terms and conditions of that partnership and that could be considered at that time,” he said. “We are open to continue contributing to the solution to the migration, if in the days or months or years to come, we have to get into partnership with another country. So we consider all the conditions, including the facilities.” The housing complexes for migrants were designed for mixed accommodation of refugees and local Rwandan workers and their families. Mr Ndhuhngirehe said no decision had been taken on whether those already built will be handed to local residents. “We are still discussing within the government how to use that accommodation, not necessarily to deal with migration now that the MEDP [Migration and Economoc Development Partnership] is being terminated," he said. "They will be used for other purposes. “We are still discussing within the Government on how to use them. We have started implementing the agreement, because part of the money was on development of that infrastructure. “What upset us is the fact that British internal politics somehow turned against Rwanda, while Rwanda was a country that just came to help. “We didn’t really want to interfere in internal British politics, but we understand that with a different approach between different parties, even activists on the issue of migration, it’s not surprising to hear that kind of criticism. “What we believe was not fair is that those criticisms turned against Rwanda while we just intervened to support, in order to contribute to the resolution of this migration crisis.” Ms Cooper claimed the Conservatives ’ flagship policy to end the small boats crisis had failed to stop a “single” boat. The Rwanda flights were grounded by successive legal challenges. After the Supreme Court ruled that the scheme was unlawful in November 2023, Rishi Sunak ’s Government introduced emergency legislation to make clear in UK law that Rwanda is a safe country. The Safety of Rwanda Bill - which was finally approved after intense political wrangling – ordered courts to ignore key sections of the Human Rights Act. It also compelled the courts to disregard other British laws or international rules - such as the international Refugee Convention - which would block deportations to Rwanda. The UK government also signed a new migration treaty with Rwanda, which former Home Secretary James Cleverly said guarantees that anyone sent there would not risk being returned to their home country. Other European nations were watching how the scheme worked, with the intention of then replicating them, sources have told the Daily Express. More than 20,000 migrants have arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel since Sir Keir Starmer became Prime Minister, Home Office data has confirmed. In total, 33,684 have arrived in the UK. Ms Cooper said of the deal: "The result of that massive commitment of time and money was 84,000 people crossed the Channel from the day the deal was signed to the day it was scrapped. “This so-called deterrent did not result in a single deportation or stop a single boat crossing the Channel. For the British taxpayer, it was a grotesque waste of money. "Since the election, we swiftly deployed many of the people who were working on fantasy planning for the Rwanda scheme into working on to actual flights instead, for those who have no right to stay in the UK, helping to deliver nearly 10,000 returns since the election."

Pep Guardiola said Manchester City had to break the habit of losing after snapping a seven-game winless streak by beating Nottingham Forest 3-0 on Wednesday. The English champions' barren run included six defeats, the worst run of Guardiola's managerial career. However, victory came at a cost as defenders Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji had to be replaced due to injuries. "We needed it. The club, the players needed to win – but it is just one game," said Guardiola. "The problems continue with Manu and Nathan." "In general, the most important thing was to break this routine of not winning games and finally we won," he added."But we have to continue." Injury woes have been at the heart of City's struggles in recent months with Ballon d'Or winner Rodri out for the season due to a serious knee problem. Kevin De Bruyne's return to the starting line-up for the first time in nearly three months showed what City have been missing as he helped restore order for Guardiola's men. The Belgian teed up Bernardo Silva for an early opener and then fired home himself to double City's lead. Jeremy Doku rounded off the scoring in the second half as the home side did not suffer a repeat of last week's collapse from 3-0 up to draw 3-3 against Feyenoord in the Champions League. Guardiola dismissed suggestions before the game that there had been a rift with De Bruyne, as he has been carefully managed back from injury problems. "Last season he out injured for many months, and this season as well – I'm so happy he's back," added Guardiola. "He fought a lot," he went on to say. "In respect to his physicality and minutes against Feyenoord was not good, and that's why I decided not to play against Liverpool for the rhythm they play." Neither Akanji or Ake are expected to be fit to face Crystal Palace on Saturday, but Phil Foden could return after missing the Forest match due to bronchitis. (AFP)For the second straight Major League Baseball offseason, a norm-shattering contract has been the talk of the winter , with Juan Soto agreeing with the New York Mets on a $765 million, 15-year deal that's the richest in baseball history. It comes almost exactly one year after the Los Angeles Dodgers forked out a princely sum of $700 million on a 10-year, heavily deferred deal for two-way Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani. They are believed to be the two richest contracts in pro sports history. The way it's going, a contract approaching $1 billion doesn't seem out of the question. But several factors are working against it — at least in the near future. There's reason to believe the megadeals for Ohtani and Soto are unicorns in the baseball world. Both players are uniquely talented, surely, but both also had unusual circumstances propelling their value into the stratosphere. Ohtani is the greatest two-way player in baseball history, capable of improving any team on both sides of the ball. He's also the rare baseball player who has true international appeal . His every move ( like his unexpected marriage announcement ) is followed closely in his native Japan, adding another 125 million potential fans who buy merchandise, watch him play and help fill the Dodgers' coffers. Then there's Soto — a four-time All-Star and on-base machine who won a World Series with the Washington Nationals in 2019. The X-factor for him is he became a free agent at the prime age of 26, which is extremely hard to do under current MLB rules. Players have to be in the big leagues for six years before testing free agency. The precocious Soto debuted at 19 with the Nats, making him part of a rare group of players who reached the highest level of professional baseball as a teenager. That accelerated his free agency timeline. It's rare for players to debut that young, and rarer still for them to develop into stars and test the open market the first chance they get. Two recent examples are Manny Machado and Bryce Harper, who both reached free agency in 2019. Machado signed a free-agent record $300 million contract with San Diego, and Harper overtook him days later with a $330 million contract to join the Phillies. Most players debut in the big leagues from ages 22 to 26, which means free agency comes in their late 20s or early 30s. A typical example is Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who is one of this generation's great players but didn't hit the market until he was 30. Judge played three seasons of college baseball for Fresno State before getting drafted by the Yankees in 2013 at age 21 — already two years older than Soto was when he made his MLB debut. It took a few years for the budding superstar to reach the majors, and he was 25 when he had his breakout season in 2018, smashing 52 homers to earn AL Rookie of the Year honors. By the time he reached free agency after the 2022 season, he had already passed age 30. It's a major factor that led to him signing a $360 million, nine-year deal with the Yankees, which seems downright reasonable these days after the Ohtani and Soto deals. Two major trends are colliding that will make it harder for guys like Soto to hit free agency in their mid 20s. First, MLB teams have been more likely in recent years to take college players early in the draft, betting on more experienced talents. Just 10 high school players were drafted among the top 30 picks in the 2024 draft . Second, teams are more eager to lock up young, premium talent on long-term deals very early in their careers, well before they hit free agency. Sometimes before they even reach the majors. Since Soto, just two players have debuted in MLB before their 20th birthday — Elvis Luciano and Junior Caminero. Luciano hasn't been back to the majors since his 2019 cup of coffee. Caminero is now 21 and has only played in 50 big league games. Among those that debuted at 20: Fernando Tatis Jr. signed a $340 million, 14-year deal with San Diego in 2021, years before reaching the open market. Milwaukee's Jackson Chourio got an $82 million, eight-year deal before even reaching the big leagues. Young stars Corbin Carroll ($111 million, eight years with Arizona), Bobby Witt Jr. ($288 million, 11 years with Kansas City) and Julio Rodriguez ($209.3 million, 12 years with Seattle) also got massive guarantees early in their 20s to forgo an early free agency. The exception and wild card: Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will be a 26-year-old free agent next offseason. Guerrero hasn't been as consistent in his young career as Soto, but a standout 2025 season could position him to threaten Soto's deal. More likely is that the player to pass Soto isn't in the majors yet — and might not even be in pro baseball. When 25-year-old Alex Rodriguez signed his record $252 million, 10-year deal with Texas in 2001, it took over a decade for another player to match that total, when Albert Pujols got $240 million over 10 years from the Angels in 2012. For many players, passing up life-changing money in their early or mid 20s is too enticing, even if it means that they might not maximize their value on the free agent market later in their careers. Soto was determined to test the market. He famously turned down a $440 million, 15-year offer to stay with the Washington Nationals in 2022, betting that he could make even more as a free agent. Not many players would turn down that kind of cash. Then again, that's what makes Soto so unique. And it's also why his $765 million deal could be the industry standard for some time. AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

How co-writing a book threatened the Carters’ marriage

Five types process of motor dipping paint 12-02-2024 10:12 PM CET | Industry, Real Estate & Construction Press release from: ABNewswire 1. PouringWhen pouring, place the stator vertically on the paint dripping tray with one end of the winding facing upward, and use a paint pot or paint brush to pour paint on the upper end of the winding. When the winding gap is filled with paint and begins to seep out from the gap at the other end, turn the stator over and pour paint on the winding at the other end until it is fully poured. 2. Drip leaching Formula. 6101 epoxy resin (mass ratio), 50% tung oil maleic anhydride. Preheating: Heat the winding for about 4 minutes, and control the temperature between 100 and 115 degrees C (measured with a spot thermometer), or place the winding in a drying furnace and heat it for about 0.5 hours. Drip. Place the motor stator vertically on the paint tray, and start dripping paint manually when the motor temperature drops to 60-70. After 10 minutes, turn the stator over and drip paint on the other end of the winding until it is thoroughly soaked. Curing. After dripping, the winding is energized for curing, and the winding temperature is maintained at 100-150 degrees C; the insulation resistance value is measured until it is qualified (20M ohm ), or the winding is placed in a drying furnace for heating at the same temperature for about 2 hours (depending on the size of the motor), and it is taken out of the oven when the insulation resistance exceeds 1.5M ohm . 3. Roller paintThis method is suitable for the varnishing of medium-sized motors. When rolling the paint, pour the insulating paint into the paint tank, place the rotor in the paint tank, and the paint surface should immerse the rotor winding for more than 200mm. If the paint tank is too shallow and the area of the rotor winding immersed in the paint is small, the rotor should be rolled several times, or the paint should be applied with a brush while the rotor is rolled. 4. ImmersionWhen repairing small and medium-sized motors in batches, the windings can be immersed in paint. When immersing, first put a proper amount of insulating paint into the paint can, then hang the motor stator in, so that the paint liquid submerges the stator by more than 200mm. When the paint liquid penetrates all the gaps between the windings and the insulating paper, the stator is lifted up and the paint is dripped. 0.3~0.5MPa pressure is added during the immersion. 5. Vacuum pressure immersionThe windings of high-voltage motors and small and medium-sized motors with high insulation quality requirements can be subjected to vacuum pressure dipping. During dipping, the stator of the motor is placed in a closed paint container and moisture is removed using vacuum technology. After the windings are dipped in paint, a pressure of 200 to 700 kPa is applied to the paint surface to allow the paint liquid to penetrate into all gaps in the windings and deep into the pores of the insulating paper. Image: https://www.mingtengmotor.com/uploads/0801cb33.png Media Contact Company Name: Anhui Mingteng Permanent-Magnetic Machinery & Electrical Equipment Co., Ltd. Email:Send Email [ https://www.abnewswire.com/email_contact_us.php?pr=five-types-process-of-motor-dipping-paint ] Country: China Website: https://www.mingtengmotor.com/ This release was published on openPR.Welcome to the online version of From the Politics Desk , an evening newsletter that brings you the NBC News Politics team’s latest reporting and analysis from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail. In today’s edition, national political reporter Bridget Bowman and senior congressional reporter Scott Wong examine the House GOP's math problem after the final race call of the 2024 elections. Plus, we dive into the latest with Pete Hegseth's embattled bid to lead the Defense Department. Sign up to receive this newsletter in your inbox every weekday here. Democrats flip final House seat of the 2024 elections, narrowing Republicans’ majority By Bridget Bowman and Scott Wong The final race Washington was waiting on from last month’s election has officially been called: NBC News projected Wednesday morning that Democrat Adam Gray defeated GOP Rep. John Duarte in California’s 13th District after weeks of ballot counting. The result means Republicans will control 220 seats to Democrats’ 215 next year. That will leave Republicans with even less margin for error as they try to advance President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda, as they can lose only two votes on legislation if Democrats are united in opposition. Further complicating the math for House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is the fact that Trump has chosen two sitting GOP members for his Cabinet: Elise Stefanik of New York to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and Mike Waltz of Florida to be national security adviser. And Republicans are already going to be down a lawmaker in the new Congress. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., resigned from the House last month after Trump selected him to be the next attorney general. But Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration amid allegations of sexual misconduct. He has said he does not plan to join the next Congress even though he won re-election in November. If the Stefanik and Waltz resignations happen simultaneously, Johnson could be operating with just a one-seat majority: 217 to 215. The special general elections in Florida to replace Gaetz and Waltz won’t take place until April 1. Once Stefanik resigns from Congress, Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul has 10 days to declare a special election in New York, which must occur 70 to 80 days after the proclamation, according to state law . Read more → Pete Hegseth, Trump’s embattled defense pick, vows to fight on By Scott Wong, Frank Thorp V and Rebecca Shabad Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s embattled pick for defense secretary, brushed aside suggestions Wednesday that he would drop out and said he had spoken to Trump, who he said urged him to “keep going, keep fighting.” “I spoke to the president-elect this morning. He said: ‘Keep going, keep fighting. I’m behind you all the way.’” Hegseth told CBS News in the Capitol. “Why would I back down? I’ve always been a fighter. I’m here for the fighters. This is personal and passionate for me.” But his nomination appeared to be in serious jeopardy Tuesday and Wednesday after a series of news reports raised more questions about his treatment of women and his history with alcohol. On Wednesday, Hegseth’s mother, Penelope Hegseth, defended her son on “Fox and Friends” and addressed a 2018 email she wrote amid his divorce that accused him of mistreating women for years. The New York Times published details of the email last week. Hegseth showed no signs of calling it quits, holding a flurry of meetings with lawmakers on both sides of the Capitol and engaging in a media blitz to salvage his nomination, including writing an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal titled: “I’ve Faced Fire Before. I Won’t Back Down.” In response to the allegations, Hegseth referred reporters to an interview he recorded on former Fox News host Megyn Kelly’s SiriusXM show earlier in the day, in which he said he does not have a drinking problem and denied that he raped a woman in Monterey, California, in 2017. “Absolutely not. Absolutely not,” he said when he was asked whether he raped the woman. “I’ve been honest about that encounter, starting with law enforcement. ... I may have been drinking, but I was cognizant of enough to remember every single detail. “I’m not here to say that my conduct was good,” he continued. “Being in a hotel room with someone that’s, you know, not the person you’re with is not OK. I own up to that.” Hegseth also said he is “not going to have a drink at all” if he is confirmed as defense secretary, saying he wants Trump, senators and U.S. troops to know that he can be called 24/7 and will be “fully dialed in.” NBC News reported Wednesday morning that Trump is considering replacing Hegseth amid the opposition to his nomination. Others Trump could tap to lead the Pentagon, sources familiar with the decision-making said, are Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa; Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis; Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn.; and Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., his current pick for national security adviser. Read more → The Trumpification of Joe Biden By Chuck Todd President Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter has earned plenty of criticism — and most of it, even the harsh partisan-tinged kind of criticism, has real merit. There’s no defense of the pardon beyond this one: He’s a father, and what parents wouldn’t use whatever power they had to help their children in crisis? I’m not going to pretend that, facing a similar circumstance, I wouldn’t have made the same decision — do whatever it takes to protect my child even if it means destroying my own legacy. That is what makes criticism of Biden’s decision complicated. There’s a human element to this that’s tragic on so many levels. It truly does meet the definition of “Shakespearean,” an overused description in today’s world that nevertheless is a perfect fit for this event. Now, the question is: How much damage has Biden done under the auspices of protecting his son? Presidential acts are permission slips. Once a president has done something unprecedented, it means there’s a precedent. And once one president tries something and gets away with it, I promise you, a future one will try something similar. Well, welcome to a new precedent. The president has now overturned a jury of fellow American citizens, not some kangaroo court, who convicted his son. And he cleared him of not just the charges he has faced, but also of any future charges he could face from anything he may have done over a 10-year period from 2014 (when Hunter first tried to do business in Ukraine) to now. Who knows whether Donald Trump grants pardons before he leaves office that read almost identical to the Hunter Biden pardon — but that he makes the dates to June 15, 2015 (the day he rode down the escalator), to Jan. 20, 2029, his last day in office? Whatever the chances are, they have surely gone up. More importantly, Biden has now borrowed Trump’s rhetoric to describe what he views as Hunter’s experience with the justice system. What kind of precedent will we have set if both parties accept the premise that whoever’s elected is going to politically prosecute his or her opponents? It’s part of Biden’s rationale for the pardon. And it will surely be Trump’s rationale for future pardons. What’s the general public supposed to think of the justice system now? The leading Republican in the country (Trump) and the leading Democrat in the country (Biden) have both claimed the system is unjust because of politics. Read more from Chuck → ⚖️ Related read: The judge who presided over the California tax fraud case against Hunter Biden called out the president for mischaracterizing and minimizing the charges against his son in announcing why he was pardoning him. Read more → That’s all from the Politics Desk for now. If you have feedback — likes or dislikes — email us at politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com And if you’re a fan, please share with everyone and anyone. They can sign up here .

— BIRTH NAME: James Earl Carter, Jr. — BORN: Oct. 1, 1924, at the Wise Clinic in Plains, Georgia, the first U.S. president born in a hospital. He would become the first president to live for an entire century . — EDUCATION: Plains High School, Plains, Georgia, 1939-1941; Georgia Southwestern College, Americus, Georgia, 1941-1942; Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, 1942-1943; U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland, 1943-1946 (class of 1947); Union College, Schenectady, New York, 1952-1953. — PRESIDENCY: Sworn-in as 39th president of the United States at the age of 52 years, 3 months and 20 days on Jan. 20, 1977, after defeating President Gerald R. Ford in the 1976 general election. Left office on Jan. 20, 1981, following 1980 general election loss to Ronald Reagan. — POST-PRESIDENCY: Launched The Carter Center in 1982. Began volunteering at Habitat for Humanity in 1984. Awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. Taught for 37 years at Emory University, where he was granted tenure in 2019, at age 94. — OTHER ELECTED OFFICES: Georgia state senator, 1963-1967; Georgia governor, 1971-1975. — OTHER OCCUPATIONS: Served in U.S. Navy, achieved rank of lieutenant, 1946-53; Farmer, warehouseman, Plains, Georgia, 1953-77. — FAMILY: Wife, Rosalynn Smith Carter , married July 7, 1946 until her death Nov. 19, 2023. They had three sons, John William (Jack), James Earl III (Chip), Donnel Jeffrey (Jeff); a daughter, Amy Lynn; and 11 living grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. Source: Jimmy Carter Library & MuseumFor the second straight Major League Baseball offseason, a norm-shattering contract has been the talk of the winter , with Juan Soto agreeing with the New York Mets on a $765 million, 15-year deal that’s the richest in baseball history. It comes almost exactly one year after the Los Angeles Dodgers forked out a princely sum of $700 million on a 10-year, heavily deferred deal for two-way Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani. They are believed to be the two richest contracts in pro sports history. The way it’s going, a contract approaching $1 billion doesn’t seem out of the question. But several factors are working against it — at least in the near future. There’s reason to believe the megadeals for Ohtani and Soto are unicorns in the baseball world. Both players are uniquely talented, surely, but both also had unusual circumstances propelling their value into the stratosphere. Ohtani is the greatest two-way player in baseball history, capable of improving any team on both sides of the ball. He’s also the rare baseball player who has true international appeal . His every move ( like his unexpected marriage announcement ) is followed closely in his native Japan, adding another 125 million potential fans who buy merchandise, watch him play and help fill the Dodgers’ coffers. RELATED COVERAGE Shortstop Willy Adames and San Francisco Giants finalize $182 million, 7-year contract Nolan Arenado open to switch from third base to first and leaving Cardinals for a team he approves Baltimore Orioles finalize deals with Tyler O’Neill and Gary Sánchez Then there’s Soto — a four-time All-Star and on-base machine who won a World Series with the Washington Nationals in 2019. The X-factor for him is he became a free agent at the prime age of 26, which is extremely hard to do under current MLB rules. Players have to be in the big leagues for six years before testing free agency. The precocious Soto debuted at 19 with the Nats, making him part of a rare group of players who reached the highest level of professional baseball as a teenager. That accelerated his free agency timeline. It’s rare for players to debut that young, and rarer still for them to develop into stars and test the open market the first chance they get. Two recent examples are Manny Machado and Bryce Harper, who both reached free agency in 2019. Machado signed a free-agent record $300 million contract with San Diego, and Harper overtook him days later with a $330 million contract to join the Phillies. Most players debut in the big leagues from ages 22 to 26, which means free agency comes in their late 20s or early 30s. A typical example is Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who is one of this generation’s great players but didn’t hit the market until he was 30. Judge played three seasons of college baseball for Fresno State before getting drafted by the Yankees in 2013 at age 21 — already two years older than Soto was when he made his MLB debut. It took a few years for the budding superstar to reach the majors, and he was 25 when he had his breakout season in 2018, smashing 52 homers to earn AL Rookie of the Year honors. By the time he reached free agency after the 2022 season, he had already passed age 30. It’s a major factor that led to him signing a $360 million, nine-year deal with the Yankees, which seems downright reasonable these days after the Ohtani and Soto deals. Two major trends are colliding that will make it harder for guys like Soto to hit free agency in their mid 20s. First, MLB teams have been more likely in recent years to take college players early in the draft, betting on more experienced talents. Just 10 high school players were drafted among the top 30 picks in the 2024 draft . Second, teams are more eager to lock up young, premium talent on long-term deals very early in their careers, well before they hit free agency. Sometimes before they even reach the majors. Since Soto, just two players have debuted in MLB before their 20th birthday — Elvis Luciano and Junior Caminero. Luciano hasn’t been back to the majors since his 2019 cup of coffee. Caminero is now 21 and has only played in 50 big league games. Among those that debuted at 20: Fernando Tatis Jr. signed a $340 million, 14-year deal with San Diego in 2021, years before reaching the open market. Milwaukee’s Jackson Chourio got an $82 million, eight-year deal before even reaching the big leagues. Young stars Corbin Carroll ($111 million, eight years with Arizona), Bobby Witt Jr. ($288 million, 11 years with Kansas City) and Julio Rodriguez ($209.3 million, 12 years with Seattle) also got massive guarantees early in their 20s to forgo an early free agency. The exception and wild card: Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will be a 26-year-old free agent next offseason. Guerrero hasn’t been as consistent in his young career as Soto, but a standout 2025 season could position him to threaten Soto’s deal. More likely is that the player to pass Soto isn’t in the majors yet — and might not even be in pro baseball. When 25-year-old Alex Rodriguez signed his record $252 million, 10-year deal with Texas in 2001, it took over a decade for another player to match that total, when Albert Pujols got $240 million over 10 years from the Angels in 2012. For many players, passing up life-changing money in their early or mid 20s is too enticing, even if it means that they might not maximize their value on the free agent market later in their careers. Soto was determined to test the market. He famously turned down a $440 million, 15-year offer to stay with the Washington Nationals in 2022, betting that he could make even more as a free agent. Not many players would turn down that kind of cash. Then again, that’s what makes Soto so unique. And it’s also why his $765 million deal could be the industry standard for some time. ___ AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlbFEATURED: Equity Group, DEG launch German Desk to boost East African trade

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