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After a recount in House District 57 was finalized earlier this week, Democrat Scott Rosenzweig maintained his lead over incumbent Rep. Marty Malone, R-Pray, ultimately winning with three fewer votes than originally tallied. The initial vote tally had Rosenzweig ahead by 20 votes. After the recount, Malone gained two votes in Park County while Rosenzweig lost one, making the final difference a mere 17 votes. The Gallatin vote counts remained the same. The final vote count was 3,802 to 3,785 in favor of Rosenzweig. House District 57 occupies parts of Gallatin and Park Counties, stretching from east Bozeman, up past Clyde Park and all the way out to Cooke City, but excluding downtown Livingston. The district was redrawn as a part of the once-in-a-decade redistricting process to account for population changes and this was the first time the new district was on the ballot. This was the only recount in the state this cycle and they are for legislative races in Montana. State code stipulates that the state will pay for the recount if the margin of victory is equal to or less than 0.25%. Candidates can request a recount if the margin is between 0.25% and 0.5%, but they have to fund the effort. If the original margin following Election Day was 19 instead of 20 votes, the state would have had to pay, but that singular vote pushed the margin to 0.26%, requiring the candidate to foot the bill. Malone said he has not yet received a final cost for the effort, but believes it will come out to roughly $5,200. He had supporters and other legislators contribute money to help pay for the effort which included hiring an attorney. Both men won in their home counties, but Rosenzweig's lead in Gallatin proved too wide for Malone to overcome. Rosenzweig is a resident of East downtown Bozeman and received roughly 2.5 votes in Gallatin County for Malone's one. Malone, a resident of Pray, received 2,891 votes compared to Rosenzweig's 1,766 in Park County. "I intend to represent everyone who did or did not vote for me or did not vote [at all]," Rosenzweig said following the recount. The Associated Press originally the race the morning after election day for Malone, but later retracted its call. Roughly 99.9% of the race calls AP issued were accurate in 2024. "Accuracy is paramount to everything we do at AP and we regret the error," a spokesperson for the outlet said in an email. This race was always projected to be one of the closest of the cycle, something that Rosenzweig, a former satellite communications executive, told residents while door knocking. Many residents that Rosenzweig spoke to were not aware of the deep purple hue of their home district or that the boundaries had changed. The Democrat, who had a paid staffer from the Montana Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee assigned to his race, said he knocked over 2,000 doors. Residents of Bridger Canyon, the road that connects downtown Bozeman to the Bridger Bowl ski resort, said they had not had any political canvassers come by that cycle, even in a year when . "It's the short strokes," Rosenzweig said between doors on a bright summer evening. "It still actually seems to matter." When Rosenzweig told him he was a Democrat canvassing, one resident said "Cool! Like Baucus," referring to Montana's longest serving Senator, Democrat Max Baucus. Another resident thanked him for showing up. What residents in House District 57 were acutely aware of was skyrocketing property taxes. Rosenzweig said property taxes was the topic he heard about most on the doors. Rosenzweig had a permanent smile plastered across his face, even as he tells voters about his plan to lower their property taxes. "We need to balance things so that property tax homeowners only experience relatively minor increases," Rosenzweig said. He wants to see the Legislature do this by not shifting the tax burden too heavily on any one class of property whether its residential, commercial, agricultural or otherwise. "Everyone should handle a reasonable increase," Rosenzweig added. "What happened last year was not reasonable." He has been assigned to the House appropriations committee. Malone served two terms in the statehouse and was vice chairman of the agriculture committee in the 2023 session. Before that he worked as an MSU extension agent. He blamed his loss on redistricting and late night new voter registration in Gallatin County. "I didn't make the district, I'm just running in it," Rosenzweig said earlier this year. In a year where Democrats lost resoundingly statewide, often by double digit margins, the party hung their hat on some key legislative wins. Rosenzweig's victory in House District 57 is another big win for the party. "As Mr. Tester said, he's gonna go home and farm and I guess I'll go home and ranch," Malone said.betfred reviews 。

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Former Boise State coach Chris Petersen still gets asked about the Fiesta Bowl victory over Oklahoma on the first day of 2007. That game had everything. Underdog Boise State took a 28-10 lead over one of college football's blue bloods that was followed by a 25-point Sooners run capped by what could have been a back-breaking interception return for a touchdown with 1:02 left. Then the Broncos used three trick plays that remain to not only force overtime but win 43-42. And then there was the by Boise State running back Ian Johnson — shortly after scoring the winning two-point play — to cheerleader Chrissy Popadics that was accepted on national TV. That game put Broncos football on the national map for most fans, but looking back 18 years later, Petersen sees it differently. “Everybody wants to talk about that Oklahoma Fiesta Bowl game, which is great how it all worked out and all those things,” Petersen said. “But we go back to play TCU (three years later) again on the big stage. It's not as flashy a game, but to me, that was an even better win.” Going back to the Fiesta Bowl and winning, Petersen reasoned, showed the Broncos weren't a splash soon to fade away, that there was something longer lasting and more substantive happening on the famed blue turf. The winning has continued with few interruptions. No. 8 and third-seeded Boise State is preparing for another trip to the Fiesta Bowl, this time in a playoff quarterfinal against No. 5 and sixth-seeded Penn State on New Year's Eve. That success has continued through a series of coaches, though with a lot more of a common thread than readily apparent. Dirk Koetter was hired from Oregon, where Petersen was the wide receivers coach. Not only did Koetter bring Petersen with him to Oregon, Petersen introduced him to Dan Hawkins, who also was hired for the staff. So the transition from Koetter to Hawkins to Petersen ensured at least some level of consistency. Koetter and Hawkins engineered double-digit victory seasons five times over a six-year span that led to power-conference jobs. Koetter went to Arizona State after three seasons and Hawkins to Colorado after five. Then when Petersen became the coach after the 2005 season, he led Boise State to double-digit wins his first seven seasons and made bowls all eight years. He resisted the temptation to leave for a power-conference program until Washington lured him away toward the end of the 2013 season. Then former Boise State quarterback and offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin took over and posted five double-digit victory seasons over his first six years. After going 5-2 during the COVID-shortened 2020 season, he left for Auburn. “They just needed consistency of leadership,” said Koetter, who is back as Boise State's offensive coordinator. “This program had always won at the junior-college level, the Division II level, the I-AA (now FCS) level.” But Koetter referred to “an unfortunate chain of events” that made Boise State a reclamation project when he took over in 1998. Coach Pokey Allen led Boise State to the Division I-AA national championship game in 1994, but was diagnosed with cancer two days later. He died on Dec. 30, 1996, at 53. Allen coached the final two games that season, Boise State's first in Division I-A (now FBS). Houston Nutt became the coach in 1997, went 4-7 and headed to Arkansas. Then Koetter took over. “One coach dies and the other wasn't the right fit for this program,” Koetter said. “Was a really good coach, did a lot of good things, but just wasn't a good fit for here.” But because of Boise State's success at the lower levels, Koetter said the program was set up for success. “As Boise State has risen up the conference food chain, they’ve pretty much always been at the top from a player talent standpoint,” Koetter said. “So it was fairly clear if we got things headed in the right direction and did a good job recruiting, we would be able to win within our conference for sure.” Success didn't take long. He went 6-5 in 1998 and then won 10 games each of the following two seasons. Hawkins built on that winning and Petersen took it to another level. But there is one season, really one game, no really one half that still bugs Petersen. He thought his best team was in 2010, one that entered that ranked No. 3 and had a legitimate chance to play for the national championship. The Colin Kaepernick-led Wolf Pack won 34-31. “I think the best team that I might've been a part of as the head coach was the team that lost one game to Nevada,” Petersen said. "That team, to me, played one poor half of football on offense the entire season. We were winning by a bunch at half (24-7) and we came out and did nothing on offense in the second half and still had a chance to win. “That team would've done some damage.” There aren't any what-ifs with this season's Boise State team. The Broncos are in the field of the first 12-team playoff, representing the Group of Five as its highest-ranked conference champion. That got Boise State a bye into the quarterfinals. Spencer Danielson has restored the championship-level play after taking over as the interim coach late last season during a rare downturn that led to . Danielson after leading Boise State . Now the Broncos are 12-1 with their only defeat to top-ranked and No. 1 seed . Running back Ashton Jeanty also was the . “Boise State has been built on the backs of years and years of success way before I got here,” Danielson said. "So even this season is not because of me. It’s because the group of young men wanted to leave a legacy, be different. We haven’t been to the Fiesta Bowl in a decade. They said in January, ‘We’re going to get that done.’ They went to work.” As was the case with Danielson, Petersen and Koetter said attracting top talent is the primary reason Boise State has succeeded all these years. Winning, obviously, is the driving force, and with more entry points to the playoffs, the Broncos could make opportunities to keep returning to the postseason a selling point. But there's also something about the blue carpet. Petersen said he didn't get what it was about when he arrived as an assistant coach, and there was some talk about replacing it with more conventional green grass. A poll in the Idaho Statesman was completely against that idea, and Petersen has come to appreciate what that field means to the program. “It's a cumulative period of time where young kids see big-time games when they're in seventh and eighth and ninth and 10th grade and go, ‘Oh, I know that blue turf. I want to go there,’” Petersen said. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up . AP college football: andBENGALURU : Lam Research has announced the winners of its annual Lam Systems Engineering Challenge, a premier competition for aspiring engineers across India. The grand finale, hosted at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru, saw a team from IIT Delhi clinch the top spot. Nakshat Pandey, Dhruv Joshi, Reeshabh Kotecha, and Vansh Ramani were awarded the first prize, receiving ₹5 lakh in cash along with exclusive internship opportunities at Lam Research. Teams from IIT Delhi and BITS Pilani secured the second and third positions, respectively, as the competition celebrated innovation, technology, and teamwork among engineering students. The challenge, held from October to November 2024, tested over 650 teams from 153 universities on their ability to tackle complex systems engineering problems. Participants applied interdisciplinary skills—spanning material sciences, firmware, hardware, and business strategy—to design and build functional prototypes during the final round. Hosted in collaboration with T-Works, India’s largest prototyping centre, and IISc Bengaluru, the competition is the first of its kind to focus on semiconductor manufacturing systems. Judges evaluated projects on design integration, cost optimisation, hardware implementation, and overall project management. This year’s challenge drew participation from over 2,500 students, underscoring India’s growing talent in advanced systems engineering and semiconductor technology.

BENGALURU : Lam Research has announced the winners of its annual Lam Systems Engineering Challenge, a premier competition for aspiring engineers across India. The grand finale, hosted at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru, saw a team from IIT Delhi clinch the top spot. Nakshat Pandey, Dhruv Joshi, Reeshabh Kotecha, and Vansh Ramani were awarded the first prize, receiving ₹5 lakh in cash along with exclusive internship opportunities at Lam Research. Teams from IIT Delhi and BITS Pilani secured the second and third positions, respectively, as the competition celebrated innovation, technology, and teamwork among engineering students. The challenge, held from October to November 2024, tested over 650 teams from 153 universities on their ability to tackle complex systems engineering problems. Participants applied interdisciplinary skills—spanning material sciences, firmware, hardware, and business strategy—to design and build functional prototypes during the final round. Hosted in collaboration with T-Works, India’s largest prototyping centre, and IISc Bengaluru, the competition is the first of its kind to focus on semiconductor manufacturing systems. Judges evaluated projects on design integration, cost optimisation, hardware implementation, and overall project management. This year’s challenge drew participation from over 2,500 students, underscoring India’s growing talent in advanced systems engineering and semiconductor technology.

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“I believe Capital Goods, Infra, EMS, Hospitals, Pharma, Tourism, Auto, New Energy, E-com, Jewellery etc. are good themes to play at current valuations,” says Amnish Aggarwal , Director - Institutional Equities, PL Capital - Prabhudas Lilladher . In an interview with ETMarkets, Aggarwal said: “We have cut our base case 12-month NIFTY target to 27,381 from 27,867 earlier) and recommend selective buying on dips for long-term gains” Edited excerpts: We have witnessed a volatile November as markets keep moving from bullish and bearish phases. What is your call on markets? Amnish Aggarwal: November has been a rollercoaster for the markets, with the NIFTY down 6% since mid-October, driven by FII outflows, geopolitical uncertainty, and a strong dollar. Inflation, especially food inflation, has also pressured demand, particularly in urban areas, with October CPI at 6.2%. I remain cautiously optimistic on markets. Political stability post-state elections gives the government momentum for reforms and increased capex, which should drive growth. Rural demand remains steady, and I expect a boost from the festival and wedding seasons. However, inflation remains a challenge, and with CPI high, we likely won’t see rate cuts from the RBI until after the budget. I believe Capital Goods, Infra, EMS, Hospitals, Pharma, Tourism, Auto, New Energy, E-com, Jewellery etc. are good themes to play at current valuations. 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We have cut our base case 12-month NIFTY target to 27,381 from 27,867 earlier) and recommend selective buying on dips for long-term gains. Market might be down by about 8-10% from the highs in terms of benchmark levels. But, are you getting any bargain buys at current levels? Amnish Aggarwal: Absolutely, with the market down around 8-10% from its highs, the correction has opened up attractive entry points in specific stocks. We have added Lupin, Polycab India, Aster DM Healthcare, DOMS Industries and Triveni Turbine to our high conviction picks. You Might Also Like: Strategy to avoid risky speculation when investing Lupin: Lupin is gaining from higher US and India sales and margins led by better product mix and cost optimization. Lupin saw remarkable turnaround in profitability with ~2x jump in EBITDA over FY23-24. Polycab India: Polycab’s revenue growth in the wires and cables segment will continue to be healthy, with stability in commodity prices, pick-up in government spending, continued investments by private players and robust real estate offtake. Aster DM Healthcare: We believe that margins will improve in India hospitals aided by gross margin expansion, healthy ARPOB, occupancy scale up, faster ramp up in its Whitefield new unit and bed additions. You Might Also Like: Stock-level steep correction: An opportunity for contrarian bets? DOMS Industries: DOMS has a diversified stationary & arts material portfolio and has outlined a capex plan of Rs 450 crore over 2 years to expand capacity in writing instruments, watercolor pens, markers and highlighters. We expect revenue/PAT CAGR of 26%/28% over FY24-FY27E. Triveni Turbine: The company is well positioned for sustained growth led by global energy transition and generation gap fuelling demand for its industrial and API turbines, and healthy order book of Rs 1800 crore with robust export/domestic inquiries. Trump pledges 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, and deeper tariffs on China. Do you see any impact for India Inc.? Amnish Aggarwal: The 25% tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and deeper tariffs on China will likely play in India’s favour, as global companies seek alternatives to China. India stands to benefit significantly in sectors like electronics manufacturing, textiles, chemicals, and engineering, with FDI in manufacturing already increasing by 20% last year. Trump’s foreign policy and stable crude oil prices (around $70–$75 per barrel) can further support India, particularly with reduced geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and Russia-Ukraine conflict. That said, higher tariffs could push up the cost of raw materials and intermediate goods, impacting sectors that are reliant on imports like electronics and auto. Still, India is well-positioned to take advantage of the global shift in manufacturing, especially in IT, defence, and GCC sectors. Is there any beaten-down theme that is now attractive as the risk-to-reward ratio is more comfortable? Amnish Aggarwal: The Capital Goods and Engineering sector is now attractive, as its risk-to-reward ratio has become more comfortable. In Q2 FY25, Capital Goods sector reported more than 19% EBIDTA growth YoY and saw 9 rating upgrades. We have increased overweight on the sector from 280 basis points to 420 basis points, post sharp correction in key stocks. PL’s model portfolio includes stocks like ABB, Siemens, Polycab India, L&T and Bharat Electronics from this sector. We have also turned equal weight on L&T given attractive valuations. There is too much chatter about FIIs taking out money but they have been consistent buyers in debt. How do you think investors should read that? Amnish Aggarwal: The fact that FIIs have been consistent buyers in debt despite pulling out funds from equities suggests a shift in investment strategy, likely driven by concerns over market volatility and inflationary pressures. This trend indicates that foreign investors are favouring the relative safety and stable returns offered by debt instruments, particularly in the current environment where equity markets are facing corrections. With India's government bonds becoming a part of Bloomberg and JP Morgan bond indices, and soon to be a part of FTSE Russell index by Feb 2025, the outlook for India’s debt markets remains positive. For investors, this should be seen as a sign to diversify their portfolios. While equity markets may present attractive opportunities over the long term, given the recent pullback, debt investments offer a safer haven, especially as interest rates begin to stabilise. In light of a strong dollar and its global repercussions, how do you see currency movements affecting Indian investments? Amnish Aggarwal: A strong US dollar can have mixed effects on Indian investments. On one hand, a stronger dollar often leads to capital outflows from emerging markets like India, as investors seek safety in dollar-denominated assets, potentially putting pressure on the Indian rupee. This depreciation of the rupee can lead to higher costs for imports, especially for commodities and oil, resulting in inflationary pressures that could affect domestic consumption and corporate profitability. On the other hand, a weaker rupee can provide a competitive advantage to Indian exporters, such as those in IT services, pharmaceuticals, and auto components, as their products become cheaper in global markets, boosting their earnings. However, companies with dollar-denominated debt might face higher repayment costs, which could strain their financials. It will all boil down to how India manages its fiscal and current deficits. (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by experts are their own. These do not represent the views of the Economic Times) (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel )None

Stock up on these popular board games for your next get-togetherHOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Texans didn’t need to see what Baltimore’s Derrick Henry is doing this season to be reminded of just how dangerous he can be. He ran all over the Texans for years while playing in the AFC South for the Tennessee Titans. Henry and the Ravens (10-5) visit AFC South champion Houston (9-6) on Wednesday, looking for a win to keep their AFC North title chances alive. Baltimore has clinched a playoff berth for a third straight season but needs wins in its last two games and one loss by the Steelers to capture the division. Henry, who ranks second in the NFL with 1,636 yards rushing, has had some of his greatest success against the Texans. Four of the 30-year-old’s six career 200-yard rushing games have been against Houston, including a career-high 250 in the season finale in the 2020 season to surpass 2,000 yards. “You talk about fast, explosive, physical — he’s looking probably the best he’s looked in his career,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “He’s found that fountain of youth ... he’s a great player. It’s fun to see guys rebound and bounce back the way that he’s done this year.” Dealing with Henry along with all the challenges that quarterback Lamar Jackson presents makes the top-ranked Ravens one of Houston’s more difficult matchups. “You talk about MVP, (Jackson’s) definitely the MVP in my mind just for what he’s doing not only in the run game but also throwing the football,” Ryans said. “The accuracy, the decision-making, like, he’s playing unbelievable ball right now, so it’s going to be a really tough challenge for us this week.” Another challenge for the Texans is moving on after Tank Dell sustained a season-ending knee injury in Saturday’s loss to Kansas City. His injury is another blow to a receiving group that already was without star Stefon Diggs, who tore his ACL in Week 8. “The position we’re in, it’s not a lot of times where you can sulk in your feelings for very long,” quarterback C.J. Stroud said. “You’ve got to just keep rolling. I think that’s a testament to just life in general. Everybody has stuff on their plate. Everybody is going through something. And just because we’re in this position, doesn’t mean you get to feel sorry for yourself.” Houston will rely on Stroud to keep the passing game rolling despite the loss of Dell, who ranks second on the team with 667 yards receiving. Baltimore coach John Harbaugh has been impressed with Stroud’s growth in Year 2 and knows that dealing with him will be difficult for his team, which ranks 31st in the NFL by allowing 254.9 yards passing a game. “He’s just a supertalented guy... he’s surrounded with some good weapons, and he gets the ball out quick,” Harbaugh said. “He handles pressure well, he can move, he’s athletic, scrambles and makes plays.” Missing out Jackson is a big fan of Beyoncé, though he didn’t know the title of his favorite song of hers, saying it was “To the left,” which is just the first lines of her hit “Irreplaceable.” And he doesn’t think playing in Wednesday’s game should stop him from seeing her halftime show on Christmas . “I’m going to go out there and watch,” he said. “First time seeing Beyoncé perform, and it’s at our game — that’s dope. I’m going to go out and watch. Sorry Harbaugh, sorry fellas." He later clarified that he was kidding about sneaking out at halftime to get a glimpse of Queen Bey. “I was just thinking about just seeing Beyoncé for the first time,” he said. “Not saying it like that; no disrespect, because I know how people can take things. Next question.” Metchie’s moment Houston receiver John Metchie could have a chance for a big game with Dell out. Metchie is playing in his second NFL season after missing his entire rookie year while undergoing cancer treatment. He has just 182 yards receiving this season, with his best game coming against Detroit, when he had a career-high 72 yards receiving and his only NFL TD. Stroud is looking for Metchie and fellow reserve Xavier Hutchinson to help make up for Dell’s absence against the Ravens. “Those guys have another opportunity to show who they are and I know that they can do it,” Stroud said. “I see them in practice do it every week. So, I’m excited for them and it’s a good opportunity for them to step up.” Record watch Jackson is up to 6,023 yards rushing for his career. The NFL record for a quarterback is 6,109 by Michael Vick, so Jackson could break it with a big game on Wednesday. Jackson also leads the NFL in passer rating and is in the conversation for his third MVP. Although it sounds like that’s a discussion he’d rather not get involved in. “No other choice but to hear it,” Jackson said. “They (are) tagging me in it. You don’t (have) to tag me. You can talk about it all you want, but you want to tag me to get like clickbait because you know sometimes I (will) say something back like, ‘That was stupid.’ It is what it is. I don’t care, though. I really don’t care about the talk.” ___ AP Sports Writer Noah Trister in Owings Mills, Maryland, contributed to this report. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl Kristie Rieken, The Associated Press

UN discusses Syria with Iran, US, Russia, Turkey: SpoxST. THOMAS, Virgin Islands (AP) — Javohn Garcia scored 16 points as McNeese beat Illinois State 76-68 on Friday. Garcia also contributed seven rebounds for the Cowboys (3-2). Brandon Murray shot 4 of 10 from the field and 5 for 7 from the line to add 13 points. Sincere Parker shot 4 for 8 (2 for 5 from 3-point range) and 3 of 4 from the free-throw line to finish with 13 points. Ty Pence led the way for the Redbirds (3-2) with 14 points and six rebounds. Malachi Poindexter added 13 points for Illinois State. Logan Wolf had 11 points. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .

The Christmas tradition has become nearly global in scope: Children from around the world track Santa Claus as he sweeps across the earth , delivering presents and defying time. Watch Santa's location in the live feed of the NORAD tracker above. Each year, at least 100,000 kids call into the North American Aerospace Defense Command to inquire about Santa’s location. Millions more follow online in nine languages, from English to Japanese. On any other night, NORAD is scanning the heavens for potential threats, such as last year’s Chinese spy balloon. But on Christmas Eve, volunteers in Colorado Springs are fielding questions like, “When is Santa coming to my house?” and, “Am I on the naughty or nice list?” “There are screams and giggles and laughter,” said Bob Sommers, 63, a civilian contractor and NORAD volunteer. Sommers often says on the call that everyone must be asleep before Santa arrives, prompting parents to say, “Do you hear what he said? We got to go to bed early.” NORAD’s annual tracking of Santa has endured since the Cold War, predating ugly sweater parties and Mariah Carey classics. The tradition continues regardless of government shutdowns, such as the one in 2018, and this year. Here’s how it began and why the phones keep ringing. It started with a child’s accidental phone call in 1955. The Colorado Springs newspaper printed a Sears advertisement that encouraged children to call Santa, listing a phone number. A boy called. But he reached the Continental Air Defense Command, now NORAD, a joint U.S. and Canadian effort to spot potential enemy attacks. Tensions were growing with the Soviet Union, along with anxieties about nuclear war. Air Force Col. Harry W. Shoup picked up an emergency-only “red phone” and was greeted by a tiny voice that began to recite a Christmas wish list. “He went on a little bit, and he takes a breath, then says, ‘Hey, you’re not Santa,’” Shoup told The Associated Press in 1999. Realizing an explanation would be lost on the youngster, Shoup summoned a deep, jolly voice and replied, “Ho, ho, ho! Yes, I am Santa Claus. Have you been a good boy?” Shoup said he learned from the boy’s mother that Sears mistakenly printed the top-secret number. He hung up, but the phone soon rang again with a young girl reciting her Christmas list. Fifty calls a day followed, he said. In the pre-digital age, the agency used a 60-by-80 foot plexiglass map of North America to track unidentified objects. A staff member jokingly drew Santa and his sleigh over the North Pole. The tradition was born. “Note to the kiddies,” began an AP story from Colorado Springs on Dec. 23, 1955. “Santa Claus Friday was assured safe passage into the United States by the Continental Air Defense Command.” In a likely reference to the Soviets, the article noted that Santa was guarded against possible attack from “those who do not believe in Christmas.” Some grinchy journalists have nitpicked Shoup’s story, questioning whether a misprint or a misdial prompted the boy’s call. In 2014, tech news site Gizmodo cited an International News Service story from Dec. 1, 1955, about a child’s call to Shoup. Published in the Pasadena Independent, the article said the child reversed two digits in the Sears number. “When a childish voice asked COC commander Col. Harry Shoup, if there was a Santa Claus at the North Pole, he answered much more roughly than he should — considering the season: ‘There may be a guy called Santa Claus at the North Pole, but he’s not the one I worry about coming from that direction,’” Shoup said in the brief piece. In 2015, The Atlantic magazine doubted the flood of calls to the secret line, while noting that Shoup had a flair for public relations. Phone calls aside, Shoup was indeed media savvy. In 1986, he told the Scripps Howard News Service that he recognized an opportunity when a staff member drew Santa on the glass map in 1955. A lieutenant colonel promised to have it erased. But Shoup said, “You leave it right there,” and summoned public affairs. Shoup wanted to boost the morale of the troops and the public alike. “Why, it made the military look good — like we’re not all a bunch of snobs who don’t care about Santa Claus,” he said. Shoup died in 2009. His children told the StoryCorps podcast in 2014 that it was a misprinted Sears ad that prompted the phone calls. “And later in life he got letters from all over the world,” said Terri Van Keuren, a daughter. “People saying ‘Thank you, Colonel, for having, you know, this sense of humor.’” NORAD’s tradition is one of the few modern additions to the centuries-old Santa story that have endured, according to Gerry Bowler, a Canadian historian who spoke to the AP in 2010. Ad campaigns or movies try to “kidnap” Santa for commercial purposes, said Bowler, who wrote “Santa Claus: A Biography.” NORAD, by contrast, takes an essential element of Santa’s story and views it through a technological lens. In a recent interview with the AP, Air Force Lt. Gen. Case Cunningham explained that NORAD radars in Alaska and Canada —- known as the northern warning system — are the first to detect Santa. He leaves the North Pole and typically heads for the international dateline in the Pacific Ocean. From there he moves west, following the night. “That’s when the satellite systems we use to track and identify targets of interest start to kick in every single day,” Cunningham said. “A probably little-known fact is that Rudolph’s nose that glows red emanates a lot of heat. And so those satellites track (Santa) through that heat source.” NORAD has an app and website, www.noradsanta.org , to track Santa on Christmas Eve from 4 a.m. to midnight, Mountain Standard Time. People can call 1-877-HI-NORAD to ask live operators about Santa’s location from 6 a.m. to midnight, Mountain Time.Prime Gaming members get Star Wars: Bounty Hunter, DREDGE, and 16 more games in December

Trump tariffs will hit California hard — and his voters harderA Japanese professor and lawyer said Monday they have together submitted a letter of complaint against Hyogo Gov Motohiko Saito and the head of a public relations company, alleging a violation of election law during the gubernatorial race. Hiroshi Kamiwaki, professor at Kobe Gakuin University, and lawyer Nobuo Gohara said Saito paid the manager of PR agency Merchu Inc for services in the lead-up to the Nov 17 race. Saito was reelected despite earlier losing the position after abuse of power allegations surfaced. Kamiwaki and Gohara accused Saito and the head of the firm of engaging in bribery. The Public Offices Election Law prohibits offering money, goods, property benefits or positions to voters or those participating in election activities. Saito reclaimed his position as governor of the western Japan prefecture but has come under renewed scrutiny following the company's disclosure in a blog post on Nov. 20 that it was in charge of public relations operations across his campaign. The blog post by the manager of the Hyogo-based PR agency has fueled speculation that Saito paid the firm, which could constitute a vote-buying offense. Saito has insisted he paid the company to produce posters and to perform other activities permitted under the law. However, Kamiwaki said during an online press conference, "There is no doubt that the payment was made for the reelection campaign and constitutes a violation of the election law."