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fortune gems how to withdraw The black and whites reached their fourth consecutive triumph in the great atmosphere of the "Belgrade Arena", which welcomed the current European champions. There were also fans of the visiting team in the stands who caused minor problems before the start, but in the end, it was the host who took the victory on the field. The key part of the game was the end of the first half when Vanja Marinković scored three three-pointers and turned the score in favor of Partizan. After the match, Panathinaikos coach Ergin Ataman had some inappropriate comments, while Željko Obradović expressed his pride in the performance of his players. Frank Nilikina warned his teammates that the fourth victory in a row must not make them overconfident, while Carlik Jones was especially pleased that the entire New Belgrade hall chanted "MVP, MVP". You could follow the match live via our blog. Podeli:

Neel Kamal writes about sustainable agriculture, environment, climate change for The Times of India. His incisive and comprehensive reporting about over a year-long farmers' struggle against farm laws at the borders of the national capital won laurels. He is an alumunus of Chandigarh College of Engineering and Technology. Read More 9 reasons to eat beetroot daily How to grow Kiwi from seeds in the balcony garden ​10 street foods to enjoy in Jaipur​ Sitaphal benefits: 10 reasons to have custard apple 10 foods that are typically loved in Mumbai How to make perfect street style Bhel Puri at home 10 golden rules families should have for happier homes 10 most delicious ways to cook Palak (spinach) Japanese mom turns simple dishes into adorable food art How to make delicious Soybean Pulao at homeWASHINGTON (AP) — The House shut down Democrats' efforts Thursday to release the long-awaited ethics report into former Rep. Matt Gaetz , pushing the fate of any resolution to the yearslong investigation of sexual misconduct allegations into further uncertainty. The nearly party-line votes came after Democrats had been pressing for the findings to be published even though the Florida Republican left Congress and withdrew as President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general. Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., was the sole Republican to support the effort. Most Republicans have argued that any congressional probe into Gaetz ended when he resigned from the House. Speaker Mike Johnson also requested that the committee not publish its report, saying it would be a terrible precedent to set. While ethics reports have previously been released after a member’s resignation, it is extremely rare. Shortly before the votes took place, Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill., who introduced one of the bills to force the release, said that if Republicans reject the release, they will have “succeeded in sweeping credible allegations of sexual misconduct under the rug.” Gaetz has repeatedly denied the claims. Earlier Thursday, the Ethics panel met to discuss the Gaetz report but made no decision, saying in a short statement that the matter is still being discussed. It's unclear now whether the document will ever see the light of day as lawmakers only have a few weeks left before a new session of Congress begins. It's the culmination of weeks of pressure on the Ethics committee's five Republicans and five Democrats who mostly work in secret as they investigate allegations of misconduct against lawmakers. The status of the Gaetz investigation became an open question last month when he abruptly resigned from Congress after Trump's announcement that he wanted his ally in the Cabinet. It is standard practice for the committee to end investigations when members of Congress depart, but the circumstances surrounding Gaetz were unusual, given his potential role in the new administration. Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., the committee chairman, said Wednesday that there is no longer the same urgency to release the report given that Gaetz has left Congress and stepped aside as Trump's choice to head the Justice Department. “I’ve been steadfast about that. He’s no longer a member. He is no longer going to be confirmed by the Senate because he withdrew his nomination to be the attorney general,” Guest said. The Gaetz report has also caused tensions between lawmakers on the bipartisan committee. Pennsylvania Rep. Susan Wild, the top Democrat on the panel, publicly admonished Guest last month for mischaracterizing a previous meeting to the press. Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing and said last year that the Justice Department’s separate investigation against him into sex trafficking allegations involving underage girls ended without federal charges. His onetime political ally Joel Greenberg , a fellow Republican who served as the tax collector in Florida’s Seminole County, admitted as part of a plea deal with prosecutors in 2021 that he paid women and an underage girl to have sex with him and other men. The men were not identified in court documents when he pleaded guilty. Greenberg was sentenced in late 2022 to 11 years in prison.

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Stocks closed higher on Wall Street, giving the market its fifth gain in a row and notching another record high for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% Friday. The Dow added 1%, and the Nasdaq composite tacked on 0.2%. Retailers had some of the biggest gains. Gap soared after reporting quarterly results that easily beat analysts’ estimates. EchoStar fell after DirecTV called off its purchase of that company’s Dish Network unit. European markets closed mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. Crude oil prices gained ground. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below. Stocks rose on Wall Street in afternoon trading Friday, keeping the market on track for its fifth straight gain. The S&P 500 was up 0.2% and was solidly on track for a weekly gain that will erase most of last week's loss. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 333 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite was essentially flat with a gain of less than 0.1% as of 3:07 p.m. Eastern. Markets have been volatile over the last few weeks, losing ground in the runup to elections in November, then surging following Donald Trump's victory, before falling again. The S&P 500 has been steadily rising throughout this week to within close range of its record. “Overall, market behavior has normalized following an intense few weeks,” said Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide, in a statement. Several retailers jumped after giving Wall Street encouraging financial updates. Gap soared 10.8% after handily beating analysts' third-quarter earnings and revenue expectations, while raising its own revenue forecast for the year. Discount retailer Ross Stores rose 1.5% after raising its earnings forecast for the year. EchoStar fell 2.4% after DirecTV called off its purchase of that company's Dish Network unit. Smaller company stocks had some of the biggest gains. The Russell 2000 index rose 1.8%. A majority of stocks in the S&P 500 were gaining ground, but those gains were kept in check by slumps for several big technology companies. Nvidia fell 3.3%. Its pricey valuation makes it among the heaviest influences on whether the broader market gains or loses ground. The company has grown into a nearly $3.6 trillion behemoth because of demand for its chips used in artificial-intelligence technology. Intuit, which makes TurboTax and other accounting software, fell 5.6%. It gave investors a quarterly earnings forecast that fell short of analysts’ expectations. Facebook owner Meta Platforms fell 0.8% following a decision by the Supreme Court to allow a multibillion-dollar class action investors’ lawsuit to proceed against the company. It stems from the privacy scandal involving the Cambridge Analytica political consulting firm. European markets closed mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. Crude oil prices rose. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.41% from 4.42% late Thursday. In the crypto market, Bitcoin hovered around $99,000, according to CoinDesk. It has more than doubled this year and first surpassed the $99,000 level on Thursday. Retailers remained a big focus for investors this week amid close scrutiny on consumer spending habits headed into the holiday shopping season. Walmart, the nation's largest retailer, reported a quarter of strong sales and gave investors an encouraging financial forecast. Target, though, reported weaker earnings than analysts' expected and its forecast disappointed Wall Street. Consumer spending has fueled economic growth, despite a persistent squeeze from inflation and high borrowing costs. Inflation has been easing and the Federal Reserve has started trimming its benchmark interest rates. That is likely to help relieve pressure on consumers, but any major shift in spending could prompt the Fed to reassess its path ahead on interest rates. Also, any big reversals on the rate of inflation could curtail spending. Consumer sentiment remains strong, according to the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index. It revised its latest figure for November to 71.8 from an initial reading of 73 earlier this month, though economists expected a slight increase. It's still up from 70.5 in October. The survey also showed that consumers' inflation expectations for the year ahead fell slightly to 2.6%, which is the lowest reading since December of 2020. Wall Street will get another update on how consumers feel when the business group The Conference Board releases its monthly consumer confidence survey on Tuesday. A key inflation update will come on Wednesday when the U.S. releases its October personal consumption expenditures index. The PCE is the Fed's preferred measure of inflation and this will be the last PCE reading prior to the central bank's meeting in December.Second Lieutenant Madison Marsh was crowned Miss America in 2024. (USAF via SWNS) By Dean Murray Miss America Madison Marsh - also a U.S. Air Force 2nd lieutenant - has reflected on her year in the role. A potential Top Gun-style aviator, with a coveted place to train as a fighter pilot, the 23-year-old has had a busy 12 months since winning the title in January. The Arkansas native has spent months traveling the country inspiring women and advocating for military careers while pursuing her Master’s degree in public policy at Harvard University . However, in an interview this month, Madison has reaffirmed her heart is in the Air Force. Speaking about her early dream to be an astronaut, it was the positive influence of the Air Force that eventually enamored her to the military branch. (Miriam Thurber/USAF via SWNS) Madison said: "The thing that started it all was actually space camp. And I got to see the stars for the very first time, like without any light pollution and started talking to these people about space camp ended up going. "When I met these astronauts, I had heard so much about the military and how almost all of them were retired military fighter pilots, test pilots and I knew that was something that I wanted to do. "You know, my goals have kind of changed over the past couple of years because my entire path in entering the military started because I wanted to be an astronaut, and now I no longer want to be an astronaut. "So it always left me with the question of why am I staying? Because if that dream has changed, what am I here for? And ultimately, it was because of the people that I've gotten to have. "People are the most important thing in my entire life. And the fact that the Air Force, wherever I've gone, I have found family and friends and people that are going to take care of me. 2nd Lt. Madison Marsh, crowned Miss America 2024, poses at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Miriam Thurber/USAF via SWNS) "And to be honest, I don't really feel like that in any other job or role that I've gotten to have. The Air Force and the people in it are always going to have my back. And I think that's such a beautiful thing. "When looking at a mission that is so much bigger than yourself and also having that family component of people that are always going to have your back." From a young age, Madison had a love of science and a dream to be a pilot and astronaut. Her parents encouraged her dreams, sending her to Space Camp when she was 13 years old where she met astronauts and fighter pilots. Around that time, she learned about the United States Air Force Academy. At 15 years old, she started flying lessons earning her pilot’s license two years later and then began to work towards her goal of becoming a cadet. (Miriam Thurber/USAF via SWNS) Madison was crowned Miss Colorado in May 2023, just before graduating from the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) and commissioning as an Air Force Officer. Currently, she is in a master’s degree program at the Harvard Kennedy School through the Air Force Institute of Technology’s Civilian Institution Programs. However, Miss America still has the option to attend undergraduate pilot training once she completes her studies. Madison also honors her mother Whitney, who died from pancreatic cancer in 2018, when Madison was just 17 years old. She dedicates her time in the spotlight to raising awareness about pancreatic cancer, both through the founding of the Whitney Marsh Foundation and through supporting the PanCAN charity's initiatives.

AAP FACTCHECK – Fake news headlines about celebrity and company boycotts of states Donald Trump won in the US election are being shared on social media as if they’re authentic. The headlines, however, can be traced back to articles published by self-described satire websites SpaceXMania and Esspots. Facebook posts claim US pop superstar Taylor Swift, who endorsed the president-elect’s opponent Vice President Kamala Harris, is boycotting “red states”. Other posts claim fellow pop superstar Beyonce Knowles is also snubbing states that weren’t won by her preferred candidate, Harris. However, the headline about Swift and the one about Knowles were initially published on self-described “satire” websites. AAP FactCheck previously reported that Pakistani content creator Muhammad Shabayer Shaukat ran both websites. Mr Shaukat said at the time his articles – most of which are generated by artificial intelligence (AI) – were deliberately celebrity- and politics-focused in order to drive user engagement and generate ad revenue using a network of social media pages he also operated. Stories published on his websites and Facebook pages are labelled “SATIRE”. Neither Swift nor Knowles have publicly announced any boycott of states based on which presidential candidate won them in the election. Knowles isn’t currently touring, and Swift only has dates in Canada remaining on her Eras tour . The final US performance of the tour was in Indianapolis on November 3, two days before the election. Facebook posts , however, feature headlines from the fake articles about Swift’s supposed “Blue States Only” tour, and others share incorrect headlines about Knowles, without satire labels. Other fake articles published on Mr Shaukat’s websites and Facebook pages are being shared as authentic news in posts about Barbara Streisand , Robert de Niro and Bruce Springsteen , and “movie stars” in general , emigrating from the US. Facebook posts about Target relocating its stores from states won by Trump and other posts claiming fuel prices had fallen in Republican-leaning states were initially published by Mr Shaukat with satire labels. AAP FactCheck , Reuters Fact Check , PolitiFact and AFP Fact Check have previously debunked posts referencing Mr Shaukat’s articles without any label or mention that they were fake. All information, text and images included on the AAP Websites is for personal use only and may not be re-written, copied, re-sold or re-distributed, framed, linked, shared onto social media or otherwise used whether for compensation of any kind or not, unless you have the prior written permission of AAP. For more information, please refer to our standard terms and conditions .

Tottenham joins list of top Premier League teams to lose at Bournemouth as fans jeer Postecoglou Manchester City, Arsenal, and now Tottenham. The list of top Premier League teams beaten at Bournemouth this season is growing. Steve Douglas, The Associated Press Dec 5, 2024 3:20 PM Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message Bournemouth's Dean Huijsen celebrates scoring the opening goal during the English Premier League soccer match between AFC Bournemouth and Tottenham Hotspur in Bournemouth, England, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024. (Adam Davy/PA via AP) Manchester City, Arsenal, and now Tottenham. The list of top Premier League teams beaten at Bournemouth this season is growing. Dean Huijsen took advantage of Tottenham’s weakness at set pieces to head home a 17th-minute winner in Bournemouth’s 1-0 victory on Thursday. After the game, some Spurs fans appeared to vent their frustration at manager Ange Postecoglou when he went over to the away contingent following his team's insipid display. “They are pretty disappointed, rightly so, and I got some pretty direct feedback as to how we are going,” the Australian coach said, “and that's fair enough.” Bournemouth climbed to ninth — a point and a place above Tottenham in the standings — and underlined its penchant for surprising high-profile visitors to Vitality Stadium. Man City’s remarkable four-game losing run in the Premier League started with a 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth, while fellow title contender Arsenal’s first loss of the season also came at the Vitality, 2-0 on Oct. 19. This was Spurs' sixth defeat of the campaign. They now have as many wins as losses, highlighting the inconsistency blighting their season, and their seven away results so far make remarkable reading: aside from a 3-0 win at Manchester United and a 4-0 thrashing of Man City, Tottenham has lost four and drawn the other at relegation candidate Leicester. “We've got to get out of this space we're in at the moment where we're just not able to get a real grip on our season,” Postecoglou said. An inability to defend set plays continues to hurt Postecoglou’s team. A week after Roma scored twice from them in a 2-2 draw in the Europa League, Huijsen roamed free in the area at a corner and headed home unmarked. Postecoglou said in May said he “wasn’t interested” about his side’s fallibility while defending set pieces, and said after losing 1-0 to Arsenal in September — after a goal from Gabriel at a corner — that “it’s my burden to carry and I’m happy to do that.” “We started well and conceded a really poor goal," Postecoglou said after the Bournemouth game. “It’s a difficult place to come when giving the opposition the opportunity to play in the manner they want.” IWOBI DOUBLE Alex Iwobi scored goals early and late in the game to lead Fulham to a 3-1 win over Brighton. The Nigeria winger intercepted a stray pass out from the back by Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen and slotted into an unguarded net for the opener in the fourth minute and curled home Fulham’s clinching goal in the 87th. Carlos Baleba equalized for Brighton in the 56th before Brighton midfielder Matt O’Riley – a former Fulham academy player – deflected the ball into his own net from a corner to put the home side back in front. Fulham climbed to sixth in the standings, a point and a place behind Brighton. ___ AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer Steve Douglas, The Associated Press See a typo/mistake? Have a story/tip? This has been shared 0 times 0 Shares Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message Get your daily Victoria news briefing Email Sign Up More Soccer Napoli out of Italian Cup as Tijjani Noslin scores hat trick in 3-1 win for Lazio Dec 5, 2024 2:40 PM Messi and Inter Miami to open Club World Cup against Egyptian club Al Ahly Dec 5, 2024 12:41 PM Trump addresses Club World Cup draw through prerecorded video Dec 5, 2024 11:32 AMMeta to build new USD10B AI data centre

f you grew up in the 1980s or '90s, it's very likely that you came of age with , party favors, stickers, beach towels, and all manner of rainbow-splashed products. The company, which at one point brought in an estimated $66 million, was immediately recognizable for its bright pops of color and cuddly, big-eyed animal characters, with fantastical illustrations featuring dolphins, unicorns, puppies, and kittens. But the storied brand has also seen its share of troubles, which are laid out in a new four-part docuseries, , premiering on Prime on Dec. 5. Executive produced by Mary Robertson, Lisa Kalikow, Eli Holzman, and Aaron Saidman, and directed by Arianna LaPenne (who is also co-executive producer), features never-before-seen footage and more than 20 interviews with former Lisa Frank, Inc. employees, journalists, and even Frank’s ex-husband and the company’s former president and CEO, James Green. (Frank herself was not interviewed for .) Tracing the rise, fall, and attempts at the rebranding of , works to understand the woman at the center of it all—the notoriously private Lisa Frank—whom the docuseries outlines as an extreme figure prone to emotional highs and lows and as a toxic, little-seen manager capable of making threats and outbursts. And yet, as former senior designer and product development lead (1987-2002) Rondi Kutz told filmmakers, working for Frank was like having "a parent you wanted to please." Below, we break down the allegations of a “grueling work environment” where anyone could be fired at any time, lawsuits, and controversies behind Lisa Frank and Lisa Frank, Inc., a brand that defined the look and feel of late 20th century childhood. Behind the multicolored, whimsical designs is a real person: The titular artist graduated from the Cranbrook Kingswood School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, in 1972 and later attended the University of Arizona, where she studied art. Also in the 1970s, when she was in her mid-20s, Frank founded the children's jewelry company Sticky Fingers. Later, Sticky Fingers became Lisa Frank Inc. and jumped on the burgeoning 1980s sticker collecting craze. In 2015, an artist and fashion designer named Carly Mark (who is interviewed for the series) emailed Frank, hoping to interview her. Much to her surprise, Frank responded, telling Mark about her upbringing in the Detroit suburbs and how in college she’d visit the Native American reservations to purchase kachina dolls, then resell them at a profit. Meanwhile, a former college friend of Lisa’s named Evan Eglin describes Frank as someone who knew how to "wheel and deal." After the ‘80s sticker collecting trend wore down, Lisa Frank, Inc. began to place a focus on the back-to-school market, placing their characters and designs on folders, trapper keepers, pens, pencils, and stationery. By the 1990s, Lisa Frank, Inc. landed deals with big box retailers like WalMart and Target. However, with market success came massive pressure to produce more. Former employees interviewed for the series describe working 12-hour days at $8.25/hr, just over minimum wage. While Frank lived in a large house with a staff and flew a 12-seat private jet, employees said they were "scrounging" to get by. James Green is Lisa Frank’s ex-husband and former president and CEO of Lisa Frank, Inc. Green began working for Lisa Frank in 1982 as the company's first full-time artist and became Frank’s right hand, assuming a leadership role in the company. As a highly decorated airbrush artist, Green was deeply involved in the company’s art direction and had a lot to do with building the brand. In 1992, James Green was promoted to the company’s president and CEO. Also in 1992, Green and Frank got married, and Frank gifted Green 49% of the company in shares. The couple had two sons: Hunter and Forrest Green. Former Lisa Frank, Inc. employees tell filmmakers that in terms of management, they mainly answered to Green—especially after the couple had children. They say Green’s management style could be erratic; he could be friendly and upbeat one day and highly critical the next. In one issue of the company newsletter , Green railed against employee disloyalty, writing: "Being optimistic is simply a choice. Be positive. Negative people make positive people sick. If you want the relationship to make your career, allow this advice. Be loyal. Bosses will forgive carelessness, stupidity, tardiness, and a temper tantrum. These can be corrected. But disloyalty is a true character flaw. You cannot and will not be trusted. Respect the boss' time... and do not tread on his turf. Keep the boss informed. The boss should be informed about what you are doing, where you are, whom you are talking to and why... These principles will serve you well." Former employees also tell filmmakers how the company ran like a “rainbow gulag,” with workers being admonished or even fired for leaving the premises early. In response, Green tells filmmakers that these allegations are "a crock of sh-t." He adds: "I'm telling you, I wasn't some kind of tyrant. The tyrant was on the other side,” meaning Frank. Green continued to deny having a temper in the workplace. Responding to an allegation that he once flipped the critique table, where designers would put their work for review, he said: "I hope to god I did" flip the table. "Probably because there was a bunch of horsesh-t on it." Then, he backtracked: "I was young. I was under an enormous amount of pressure. When you have a business worth $200 million or more, you have to keep it alive and flowing." In much of the series, Green takes responsibility for nearly all of Lisa Frank, Inc.’s success, telling filmmakers how he designed the company’s famous rainbow logo. "I am the real Lisa Frank. I'm the man behind the Lisa Frank brand. It was a huge lie, and I created it. I created the monster,” he says. Anything visual or marketing-oriented, Green claims to have designed it. "I built the brand around this persona of Lisa Frank... Everything I wrote was about her. That was just part of the marketing strategy to get people to love Lisa Frank." Green also claims that Frank’s only role was to “sell the product... That was her main focus. Sales. Then she would work in product development." He also calls their marriage “a bad business decision.” Rhonda Rowlette was an Executive Vice President at LFI from 1984 to the mid-2000s. Around the office she was known as “the enforcer,” due to her literal enforcement of Green’s workplace rules. "I'd say it's probably pretty accurate," she tells filmmakers in response to her nickname. Rowlette was also known for how many people she fired over the years, a number she estimates to be in the hundreds. One former employee alleged to filmmakers that he’d been fired from LFI because he was a diabetic, and therefore couldn’t stay late at the office because he needed to stick to a specific eating schedule. Rowlette responded to the allegation, telling filmmakers that she didn’t remember that firing. "That's illegal. We didn't do anything illegal that I knew of." Rowlette, however, did admit to firing people for "their attitude" or "not working when we asked them to work." Rowlette herself was eventually fired by Frank, who was convinced she was having an affair with Green. (Both Green and Rowlette firmly denied ever having had an affair with each other.) After she was fired by Frank, Rowlette sued for $2 million plus damages, claiming it was what she had been promised as a severance were she ever to retire or be fired. Frank and Rowlette settled, but the contents were sealed. Likewise, the docuseries reveals how a 51-year-old LFI accountant in the finance dept had a heart attack and died at his desk. "The perfect Lisa Frank employee would go above and beyond in any way. I think they like to push people to see how far they could push them," says Rondi Kutz, who also says employees thought their phones might be tapped. Kutz, who worked for LFI for 15 years, told filmmakers her final straw came after her husband got into a horrific accident the same day she was supposed to attend the New York Toy Fair with Frank. When she called Frank to tell her she couldn’t attend, Frank allegedly "screamed" at her, telling her it was her husband's fault for getting in the accident. After Kutz’s husband came home in a wheelchair, Kutz, who needed to spend less time in the office, would repeatedly be told that her work at LFI was suffering. By 2005, Green and Frank were not getting along. Frank was publicly criticizing her husband and one day, ran out of the office crying. No one knew what was wrong. Later that year, Frank filed for divorce from Green and fired him from the company. During the divorce, Frank allegedly urged company employees to pick a side, leading workers to fret over the status of their jobs if they chose wrong. “She turned everybody against me,” Green told filmmakers, which Frank denied in a lawsuit against Green. In that lawsuit, Frank provided affidavits to make the case that Green was mismanaging the company and that he should be removed as CEO. Frank also claimed that Green and Rowlette were colluding behind her back to sell the company and that they had given instructions to leave Frank out of the loop. Green denied any collusion on camera. "Collusion? There's no collusion. Lisa knew this was all going down, so how could there be collusion?" Meanwhile, Rowlette tells filmmakers Frank wanted to sell the company. “She was aware of every step we took." Ultimately, Green was pushed out, forced to sell his 49% back to Frank, and lost all ownership of the art he’d created while at the company. "I lost my titles, I lost my business, I lost my building, I lost everything else... She owns everything. She owns my life's work,” he told filmmakers. The couple’s oldest son, Hunter, also spoke to filmmakers, and stood up in defense of his father, recalling how theirs was never a happy home and that he is currently estranged from Frank, whom he described as kind and generous to strangers but cruel to those closest to her. "I felt like my mom was making it impossible for me to see my dad," Hunter said of the divorce and custody process. "It seemed like she was trying to get him thrown in jail. She said he would abuse me. None of that happened. My dad never abused me." Green also denied ever hurting his children, saying "I only loved them. I took the best care I could of them." Hunter also backed up Green’s claim that he was the creative director and primary artist on everything Lisa Frank, Inc. "I love my dad more than I love myself. I would take a bullet for my dad. I don't talk to my mom... There is no Lisa Frank without James Green." Employees describe LFI as “directionless” following Green’s removal, with Frank heavily criticizing designs she’d claimed to like only days prior. The company laid off numerous workers and failed to replace them. By 2015, a new art director named James (who did not provide his last name to filmmakers) was brought in to revitalize the brand. He only stayed at LFI for about six months. James told filmmakers how deserted the once-thriving Tucson office looked, comparing it to a "zombie apocalypse” full of "dusty, creepy characters." He also called the office environment "old-school” and a place where you "don't talk until you're talked to." He added, "Everything was closely guarded by Lisa... There wasn't a lot of creative freedom at all. I believe Lisa just wanted to fall back on some of her previous legacy characters... I believe Lisa stood in her own way." By the mid 2010s, LFI had ceased manufacturing (the factory closed in 2013), though they were still licensing out the art to other producers. In 2016, a small, New Jersey-based vegan makeup company called Glamour Dolls reached out to LFI to do a collaboration; the two companies signed a licensing agreement and launched a Kickstarter campaign, which immediately went viral. Even though LFI was no longer manufacturing, the 2010s saw a massive wave of ‘90s nostalgia, which Glamour Dolls planned on leaning into. Glamour Dolls’ two co-founders, Peter Georgotas and Jessica Romano, spoke to filmmakers about how the deal ultimately ruined their reputations and company, with Romano eventually having to file for bankruptcy. Initially, everything seemed great between the two brands. Frank herself joined Romano and Georgotas at Kickstarter’s headquarters. However, Romano said “the tone changed” as soon as she started showing Frank some decorative ideas for a leopard-print makeup brush. From then on, Frank allegedly demanded that she only be in touch with Georgotas. Upon launching the Kickstarter campaign, Glamour Dolls hired influencer Kandee Johnson to announce the collaboration, which was set to feature products like an eyeshadow palette trapper keeper and unicorn-top nail polishes. Because campaign donors were promised a certain timeline delivery, Georgotas and Romano wanted to start producing products ASAP in order to get orders out. But they claimed to filmmakers that Frank micromanaged every aspect of the process, to the point where customers started to complain and harass Romano, who was the face of Glamour Dolls. "We felt like if we didn't do what Lisa wanted, we were going to lose everything," Georgotas said. Georgotas also alleged to filmmakers that Frank started asking him for personal favors, including organizing a two-week trip to Greece for Forrest Green’s high school graduation (Georgotas is of Greek descent). "Lisa told me it was also going to be a business trip, and this is how big companies did things,” he said. During the trip, Georgotas said he waited on Frank hand and foot out of fear that she would terminate the licensing agreement if things didn’t go well, booking himself $100 AirBnBs while Frank stayed in a hotel suite costing about $5,000 per night. Meanwhile, Romano theorized to the filmmakers that Frank might have been dragging her feet on production so that they'd have to renew the licensing agreement, the terms of which she changed “significantly.” "We kept finding money to give to her, but we were eating cereal for dinner," Romano said. In the end, LFI terminated the contract and denied stonewalling Glamour Dolls. LFI also sent emails to the Kickstarter backers blaming Glamour Dolls for the production delays. In 2020, the makeup brand Morphe launched a collab with LFI using what appeared to be the original product designs ideated by Glamour Dolls, who filed a lawsuit in federal court for breach of contract, defamation, and fraud. Frank filed a counterclaim, alleging repeated breaches of its licensing agreement with LFI. Frank also alleged that Glamour Dolls’ updates to Kickstarter backers resulted in customers believing that LFI had defrauded or cheated them. Frank also claimed in court documents that she was "very uncomfortable with the Kickstarter campaign" because she didn't want Lisa Frank fans to think that LFI was in need of money. She also denied that she demanded Romano be removed from the project. The case is currently ongoing. In September 2024, a judge dismissed seven of Glamour Dolls' counts against Lisa Frank, Inc. and some of its claims for breach of contract and defamation. Glamour Dolls’ claims that Lisa Frank, Inc. breached the contract by filing to provide artwork for one of the products, and defamed Glamour Dolls by saying it had "completely failed to live up to our agreement," are set to move forward at trial. Amina "Tasselfairy" Mucciolo is an artist and influencer whom Lisa Frank started following on Instagram in 2018. At first, Mucciolo was delighted for the follow and ensuing positive interactions; as a child, they’d been heavily inspired by Frank’s neon-rainbow style. As an adult, Mucciolo gained a significant social media following for their own color-filled personal aesthetic and home design. However, in September 2019, Mucciolo noticed the news about a forthcoming Lisa Frank pop-up in partnership with Hotels.com taking place in the building directly across from Mucciolo’s home. Speaking to producers, Mucciolo recounted how friends assumed they were involved because the color-splashed pop-up room looked so similar to Mucciolo’s home, which had been featured in and . Regarding whether LFI had stolen Mucciolo’s interior designs, Hotels.com told , "Suggestions that our design was based on anything other than Lisa Frank and her artwork are simply not true." Green currently lives in Mexico, where he owns a coffee shop and a bar. He has an art studio. He sells T-shirts. "My art is still my salvation," he says. Lisa Frank, Inc. has since collaborated with Crocs and Casetify, and they even did the art for an issue of PAPER Magazine with K-pop superstars BTS on the cover. As of November 2023, there have been about the old Lisa Frank factory in Tucson reopening. Lisa Frank, Inc. even shared a TikTok captioned, “'We're baaaack.” Frank’s only statement to filmmakers is as follows: "I have loved art and have been an artist ever since childhood. Lisa Frank, Inc. is the result of that passion. I'm incredibly grateful for the amazing artists and team members who helped bring my vision to life. I'm so excited about the future, as the next generation takes the helm. Stay tuned -- the best has yet to come!"AP News Summary at 11:51 a.m. EST

Meo shot 4 for 7 (2 for 3 from 3-point range) and 3 of 6 from the free-throw line for the Chanticleers (3-4). Battle went 6 of 10 from the field (1 for 3 from 3-point range). Noah Amenhauser shot 5 of 7 from the field and 2 for 3 from the line to finish with 12 points. The Spartans (2-8) were led in scoring by Brit Harris, who finished with 12 points and two steals. Karmani Gregory added 11 points and two steals for South Carolina Upstate. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .

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It’s that time of year when proposed budget numbers get floated for towns and school boards to consider, with details now being presented in workshops for the weeks ahead. That includes Londonderry, where the budget work is underway to study all things in the school district and where money can be best spent while striving to keep taxpayers and their wallets happy. Superintendent Dan Black presented his hundreds of pages outlining his fiscal 2026 budget proposal before the school board at a meeting on Nov. 26, an early look at some numbers and how money might be spent in the most fiscally responsible way possible. Black’s proposed $89,116,875 number is a responsible one, he said at the meeting. That number does not include any warrant articles that may appear on the ballot next March. How to bring full-day kindergarten to town remains a priority, officials said. In addition to kindergarten, it’s also a hope to convince voters to approve a plan that includes bringing the district’s school administrative offices to a new location so as not to have to continue to pay to lease space on Kitty Hawk Landing. Last year, a warrant article had asked voters to approve a $34.2 million project to expand Moose Hill, but failed to pass at the polls. Now updated plans for how to move forward will be proposed to voters at the polls next March, a more pared down project that could cost less. Black said the proposed numbers are less than last year, but still maintain the quality of education in Londonderry for its students. “It’s a very solid plan,” Black said at the meeting. The superintendent said he is optimistic about how voters will receive the updated Moose Hill full-day kindergarten and SAU office plan. Black said the budget numbers he put forward showed ways to find efficiency with personnel, shifting programs and staff and making sure all district goals remain intact. There have been “tough” decisions made, the superintendent added. In addition to the proposed operating budget, warrant articles could include several requests that appear every year including money to support buildings and grounds, technology, equipment, and money for vehicles/machinery. Black said he remained very hopeful voters will support the budget and the Moose Hill, full-day kindergarten plan along with a new SAU location project. “I’m planning for a positive vote,” Black said at a recent meeting. And if it didn’t pass, Black said that would be a conversation for next year’s budget process. School board officials along with administration and budget committee members will continue workshops in the weeks ahead prior to finalizing numbers by Jan. 7. Meetings to follow include a public hearing on the budget on Jan. 14; Feb. 7 is the annual Deliberative Session at Londonderry High School and voters head to the polls on March 11. ldnews@unionleader.com

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CONWAY, S.C. (AP) — Joshua Meo and Jordan Battle both scored 13 points as Coastal Carolina beat South Carolina Upstate 73-51 on Saturday. Meo shot 4 for 7 (2 for 3 from 3-point range) and 3 of 6 from the free-throw line for the Chanticleers (3-4). Battle went 6 of 10 from the field (1 for 3 from 3-point range). Noah Amenhauser shot 5 of 7 from the field and 2 for 3 from the line to finish with 12 points. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.WASHINGTON (AP) — The House shut down Democrats' efforts Thursday to release the long-awaited ethics report into former Rep. Matt Gaetz , pushing the fate of any resolution to the yearslong investigation of sexual misconduct allegations into further uncertainty. The nearly party-line votes came after Democrats had been pressing for the findings to be published even though the Florida Republican left Congress and withdrew as President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general. Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., was the sole Republican to support the effort. Most Republicans have argued that any congressional probe into Gaetz ended when he resigned from the House. Speaker Mike Johnson also requested that the committee not publish its report, saying it would be a terrible precedent to set. While ethics reports have previously been released after a member’s resignation, it is extremely rare. Shortly before the votes took place, Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill., who introduced one of the bills to force the release, said that if Republicans reject the release, they will have “succeeded in sweeping credible allegations of sexual misconduct under the rug.” Gaetz has repeatedly denied the claims. Earlier Thursday, the Ethics panel met to discuss the Gaetz report but made no decision, saying in a short statement that the matter is still being discussed. It's unclear now whether the document will ever see the light of day as lawmakers only have a few weeks left before a new session of Congress begins. It's the culmination of weeks of pressure on the Ethics committee's five Republicans and five Democrats who mostly work in secret as they investigate allegations of misconduct against lawmakers. The status of the Gaetz investigation became an open question last month when he abruptly resigned from Congress after Trump's announcement that he wanted his ally in the Cabinet. It is standard practice for the committee to end investigations when members of Congress depart, but the circumstances surrounding Gaetz were unusual, given his potential role in the new administration. Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., the committee chairman, said Wednesday that there is no longer the same urgency to release the report given that Gaetz has left Congress and stepped aside as Trump's choice to head the Justice Department. “I’ve been steadfast about that. He’s no longer a member. He is no longer going to be confirmed by the Senate because he withdrew his nomination to be the attorney general,” Guest said. The Gaetz report has also caused tensions between lawmakers on the bipartisan committee. Pennsylvania Rep. Susan Wild, the top Democrat on the panel, publicly admonished Guest last month for mischaracterizing a previous meeting to the press. Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing and said last year that the Justice Department’s separate investigation against him into sex trafficking allegations involving underage girls ended without federal charges. His onetime political ally Joel Greenberg , a fellow Republican who served as the tax collector in Florida’s Seminole County, admitted as part of a plea deal with prosecutors in 2021 that he paid women and an underage girl to have sex with him and other men. The men were not identified in court documents when he pleaded guilty. Greenberg was sentenced in late 2022 to 11 years in prison.

By Zoe Sottile , Josh Campbell and Artemis Moshtaghian , CNN Mysterious flying objects overhead. Concern and confusion. And calls for military intervention. This isn't the plot of "War of the Worlds," but rather the result of numerous possible drone sightings in the US in recent weeks. The flying objects have been spotted over residential neighborhoods, restricted sites and critical infrastructure. The sightings have put intense pressure on federal agencies to provide more information about the aircraft, as officials have urged calm and emphasized there is no evidence suggesting the sightings pose a security threat. The Biden administration has not identified "anything anomalous or any national security or public safety risks over the civilian airspace in New Jersey or other states in the Northeast," White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters Monday. "We assess that the sightings to date include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircrafts, helicopters, and even stars that were mistakenly reported as drones," Kirby said. While the FBI is still checking out 100 or so tips, none of them appear nefarious, he said. "I can't rule out the fact that we might find some sort of illegal or criminal activity, some nefarious activity, (but) all I can do is tell you that right now we see none of that," Kirby said. The US is sending drone detection and tracking systems to two military facilities in New Jersey, according to three defense officials Monday. The systems are in the process of moving to Picatinny Arsenal, a US military research facility, in northern New Jersey and Naval Weapons Station Earle in central New Jersey, the officials said. Drones have been spotted near Picatinny Arsenal and over President-elect Donald Trump's golf course in Bedminster, according to military officials and state lawmakers. The sightings prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to issue temporary flight restrictions over the properties. "Several instances of unidentified drones entering the airspace" were also reported above Naval Weapons Station Earle, a US Navy base south of Middletown, although no direct threats were identified. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy received a briefing from the FBI on Sunday night regarding the drone sighting investigation around Naval Weapons Station Earle, he said in a post on X. "We are ready to assist the federal government in getting to the bottom of this," Murphy said. Reported drone activity prompted at least one airport - New York's Stewart International Airport - to temporarily close its runways for about an hour on Friday night. At around the same time, airspace above Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio was restricted because of drone activity while authorities monitored the situation, base spokesperson Bob Purtiman told CNN affiliate WHIO. The base closed its air space for several hours over the weekend, but the Pentagon says it is "not necessarily seeing any connection" to the drone sightings in New Jersey and elsewhere. "There are thousands of drones flown around the US on a daily basis," Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Monday. "So as a result, it's not that unusual to see drones in the sky, nor is it an indication of malicious activity or any public safety threat. And so the same applies to drones flown near US military installations." Wright-Patterson includes operations dedicated to monitoring cyber threats and the 655th Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Group, which oversees 14 intelligence squadrons around the country. CNN reached out to the Air Force for comment. The House Intelligence Committee is expected to receive a classified briefing about the mysterious drones over New Jersey on Tuesday afternoon, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. The FBI and DHS said in a joint statement Thursday there is "no evidence at this time that the reported drone sightings pose a national security or public safety threat or have a foreign nexus." Despite reassurances from federal officials, local politicians continue to press for more information and resources to investigate the sightings. In Morris County, New Jersey, officials have called for the "federal government to marshal all federal resources at its disposal, including the military, to end the unauthorized flight of drones over our county and other parts of New Jersey." Trump raised his own questions about the drone sightings during a wide-ranging news conference at Mar-a-Lago on Monday. "The government knows what is happening. Look, our military knows where they took off from," Trump said. "If it's a garage, they can go right into that garage. They know where it came from and where it went, and for some reason they don't want to comment." When asked whether he had been briefed on the government's intelligence regarding drones, Trump responded, "I don't want to comment on that." Kirby said Monday that the administration has and will continue to make "a very good faith effort to be as open and direct" as possible. "What we're not going to do is speculate, and we're not going to hypothesize - we're not going to, we're not going to provide content that we can't be sure is accurate," he said. The FBI and New Jersey State Police urged the public in a joint statement Monday not to shoot at suspected drones, warning of potentially deadly consequences if manned aircraft are mistakenly targeted. Pilots of manned aircraft are being hit in the eyes with lasers pointed by individuals on the ground mistaking them for drones, the statement said. Drones, a broad term for unmanned aerial vehicles, are widely owned across the United States. Around 792,000 drones are registered with the FAA, nearly evenly divided between commercial and recreational use. They are used in various industries, including photography, agriculture and law enforcement. There remains significant confusion about the exact nature of the sightings and how many are cases of "mistaken identity," as suggested by Mayorkas and Kirby. Here's more on what we know and don't know about the reported sightings. Where have the drones been seen? Drone sightings have been reported in at least six states - New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Ohio - while arrests have been made in connection with drone operation near restricted areas in Massachusetts and California. The sightings began 18 November near Morris County, New Jersey, according to the FAA. There had been drone sightings every night since then, Republican New Jersey Assembly member Paul Kanitra told CNN's Sara Sidner on Friday. Unnerved residents have frequently reported seeing drones hovering overhead, sometimes traveling in clusters. Democratic Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey posted videos to his X account showing what appeared to be a cluster of drones flying over the Round Valley Reservoir on Thursday night. But Saturday, he acknowledged most of the aircraft he initially thought were drones were "almost certainly planes," he posted on X. Representatives from the federal agencies investigating the sightings have briefed local officials behind closed doors, stating the possible drones sometimes appear to fly in a coordinated pattern and can remain in flight for up to six hours, according to Montvale, New Jersey, mayor Mike Ghassali. "This has gone too far," said New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Saturday, adding last month she "directed the New York State Intelligence Center to actively investigate drone sightings and coordinate with federal law enforcement to address this issue." Hochul announced Sunday that federal authorities are deploying a new "state-of-the-art drone detection system" to the state. Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said he's asking the DHS to deploy special detection systems that use 360-degree technology to detect drones. New York State Police said Friday afternoon in a post on X they had received "numerous reports of drone sightings over the past 24 hours" and they were investigating the reports. "We have no evidence at this time that any of the reported sightings pose a public safety threat." Staten Island Borough president Vito Fossella said the drones, often seen flying at night, have been spotted hovering over critical infrastructure, including Port Liberty New York near the Goethals Bridge, the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and Fort Wadsworth, one of the oldest military installations in the country. Connecticut State Police announced Friday they have deployed a drone detection system to assist in the investigation of unauthorized drone sightings reported over Fairfield County. The governors of Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Virginia said they were aware of the sightings and that state police were involved. Two men were arrested Saturday night on trespassing charges after a drone came "dangerously close" to Logan International Airport in Boston, police said in a statement. Last week, a Chinese citizen who is a legal permanent resident of the US was criminally charged after allegedly taking unauthorized drone footage at Vandenburg Space Force Base in California as SpaceX was launching "a National Reconnaissance Office payload," according to a criminal complaint. Yinpiao Zhou was arrested 9 December at San Francisco International Airport, preparing to board a flight to China, the US Attorney's Office for the Central District of California said. He was charged with failure to register his drone and violation of national defense airspace. CNN reached out to Zhou's assigned public defender for comment Monday. He has not entered a plea and is held at the Santa Rita Jail without bond, according to records from the Alameda County Sheriff's Office. When asked by CNN whether they believed the Vandenburg incident was connected to the Northeast US drone sightings, a spokesperson for the prosecutor's office said, "We don't allege that in our complaint." What are the aircraft? The FBI and DHS have said they believe most of the drone sightings are cases of "mistaken identity," with members of the public misidentifying small, legally operating manned aircraft as drones. Some of the sightings may also be commercial drones, Mayorkas told CNN's Wolf Blitzer Friday. "We know of no threat or nefarious activity," Mayorkas said. "If we learn of any cause for concern, we will be transparent in our communication of it." Some of the more recent sightings might be due to copycats flying their drones as the phenomena get more news coverage, former FBI supervisory special agent Tom Adams told CNN Friday. He said there are often innocent explanations for the sightings as well. "I can tell you from my firsthand experience conducting operations for the FBI, as well as investigations into the suspected sighting of drones at critical infrastructure, it was fairly common for planets, crewed aircraft and even low Earth orbit satellites to be misidentified as drones at night," Adams said. At a news briefing on Saturday, an FBI official reiterated the sightings were largely manned aircraft mistaken for drones. The official noted similar flight approach patterns from nearby airports matched the visual sightings reported to tip lines. The FBI official said the tip line has received 5,000 tips, but fewer than 100 have led to leads "deemed worthy of further investigative activity." No evidence supporting "large-scale UAS activity" has been found, the official said, using the acronym for "unmanned aircraft system". There's been a "slight overreaction" to the reports, the FBI official said. Still, "we can't ignore the sightings that have been there, and we are concerned about those just as much as anybody else is," the official added. An official with the Department of Defense, however, was less confident about the nature of the sightings. "We don't know if it's malicious, if it is criminal. But I will tell you that it is - it is irresponsible," the official said. "Here on the military side, we are just as frustrated with the irresponsible nature of this activity." The Pentagon shut down speculation the drones may originate from a foreign entity or adversary on Wednesday, hours after US Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a New Jersey Republican, told Fox News the drones were from "a mothership" from Iran that is "off the East Coast of the United States of America." "There is not any truth to that," deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said Wednesday. "There is no Iranian ship off the coast of the United States, and there's no so-called mothership launching drones towards the United States." The FBI is leading the investigation into the sightings alongside the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, while the US Coast Guard is assessing jurisdictional responses. On Sunday, US Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota said the US government needs to be more transparent about the reported sightings. "One, we need a briefing for the members of the Senate to figure out what's going on here," the Democrat said during an appearance on CBS' "Face the Nation." "Two, we need more transparency." Despite federal officials' assurances the drones don't pose a public safety threat, Belleville, New Jersey, mayor Michael Melham has said he has received guidance police should call the county bomb squad and local fire departments should wear hazmat suits if they encounter a downed drone. "We just don't know what these things are, so we are being cautious," Melham said. Why shooting at drones may not be the answer In contrast to federal officials' pleas for calm regarding the sightings, Trump has urged the Biden administration to either release any information it has about the mysterious sightings or shoot the drones out of the sky. "Mystery Drone sightings all over the Country. Can this really be happening without our government's knowledge. I don't think so! Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down!!!" Trump posted on Truth Social. US Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who sits on the Senate's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, similarly said Thursday the aircraft "should be shot down, if necessary, because they're flying over sensitive areas." Blumenthal clarified Monday in a CNN interview that he believed most drones could be forced down with "electronic jamming" rather than destroying them in the air. But shooting down unidentified aircraft poses its own problems. "It's not as though anyone can just take down a drone in the sky. That in and of itself would be dangerous," Mayorkas told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. Similarly, a source familiar with the national investigation into the aircraft told CNN shooting them out of the sky would be "beyond risky," posing an unnecessary risk to people on the ground and legal challenges. The source noted the government has various strategies that can be deployed if a drone poses an imminent threat, but so far, the mysterious flights have not been deemed threatening. "Blowing it out of the sky is the last resort," the source said. Who regulates drones? Part of the challenge in monitoring drone activity stems from the fact regulation of the skies is almost entirely under federal jurisdiction, according to the chief executive of a company tracking unauthorized drone flights. "The laws that regulate aircraft are not built to empower police to deal with the drones," Axon chief executive Rick Smith told CNN News Central Friday, "so if your local state fair has a drone coming towards it that police believe might be dangerous, right now there's nothing they can do about it." FAA regulations allow operators of recreational drones to fly up to 400 feet above the ground in airspace not controlled by FAA air traffic controllers. The FAA does grant waivers on a case-by-case basis to those wanting to operate drones in more congested airspace or at higher altitudes. Missy Cummings, one of the Navy's first female fighter pilots, thinks there would be a different level of action from authorities if people were in danger from the possible drone sightings. "I think if this were a legitimate threat, we would be seeing different kinds of action," Cummings, a professor at George Mason University, told CNN's Fredricka Whitfield Sunday. "People don't want to hear this, but probably a significant number are manned aircraft, although I do think that they are legitimately seeing drones," Cummings said. CNN's Samantha Waldenberg, Sam Fossum, Betsy Klein, Annie Grayer, Edward-Isaac Dovere, Andy Rose, Hanna Park, Brad Lendon, Oren Liebermann and Travis Nichols contributed to this report. - CNNMeo, Battle net 13 to help Coastal Carolina down South Carolina Upstate 73-51By Funto Omojola, NerdWallet Mobile wallets that allow you to pay using your phone have been around for well more than a decade, and over those years they’ve grown in popularity, becoming a key part of consumers’ credit card usage. According to a “state of credit card report” for 2025 from credit bureau Experian, 53% of Americans in a survey say they use digital wallets more frequently than traditional payment methods. To further incentivize mobile wallet usage, some credit card issuers offer bonus rewards when you elect to pay that way. But those incentives can go beyond just higher reward rates. In fact, mobile wallets in some ways are becoming an essential part of activating and holding a credit card. For example, they can offer immediate access to your credit line, and they can be easier and safer than paying with a physical card. From a rewards perspective, it can make a lot of sense to reach for your phone now instead of your physical card. The Apple Card offers its highest reward rates when you use it through the Apple Pay mobile wallet. Same goes for the PayPal Cashback Mastercard® when you use it to make purchases via the PayPal digital wallet. The Kroger grocery store giant has a co-branded credit card that earns the most when you pay using an eligible digital wallet, and some major credit cards with quarterly rotating bonus categories have a history of incentivizing digital wallet use. But again, these days it’s not just about the rewards. Mobile wallets like Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and PayPal can offer immediate access to your credit line while you wait for your physical card to arrive after approval. Indeed, most major issuers including Bank of America®, Capital One and Chase now offer instant virtual credit card numbers for eligible cards that can be used upon approval by adding them to a digital wallet. Additionally, many co-branded credit cards — those offered in partnership with another brand — commonly offer instant card access and can be used immediately on in-brand purchases. Credit cards typically take seven to 10 days to arrive after approval, so instant access to your credit line can be particularly useful if you need to make an urgent or unexpected purchase. Plus, they allow you to start spending toward a card’s sign-up bonus right away. As issuers push toward mobile payments, a growing number of merchants and businesses are similarly adopting the payment method. The percentage of U.S. businesses that used digital wallets increased to 62% in 2023, compared to 47% the previous year, according to a 2023 survey commissioned by the Federal Reserve Financial Services. Wider acceptance is potentially good news for the average American, who according to Experian has about four credit cards. While that won’t necessarily weigh down your wallet, it can be hard to manage multiple cards and rewards categories at once. Mobile wallets offer a more efficient way to store and organize all of your workhorse cards, while not having to carry around ones that you don’t use often. They can also help you more easily monitor your spending and rewards, and some even track your orders’ status and arrival time. Plus, paying with a digital wallet offers added security. That’s because it uses technology called tokenization when you pay, which masks your real credit card number and instead sends an encrypted “token” that’s unique to each payment. This is unlike swiping or dipping a physical card, during which your credit card number is more directly accessible. And again, because a mobile wallet doesn’t require you to have your physical cards present, there’s less chance of one falling out of your pocket or purse. More From NerdWallet Funto Omojola writes for NerdWallet. Email: fomojola@nerdwallet.com. The article Activating Your Credit Card? Don’t Skip the Mobile Wallet Step originally appeared on NerdWallet .

MONTOGMERY, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama man who detonated a homemade explosive device outside the state attorney general's office was sentenced to nine years in federal prison on Thursday. Kyle Benjamin Douglas Calvert, 27, plead guilty in August to the charge of malicious use of an explosive device. Calvert admitted to constructing the bomb out of nails, firecrackers and screws, and then blowing it up outside Republican Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office in the early morning hours of Saturday, Feb. 24, prosecutors said. No people were hurt, and nearby buildings in downtown Montgomery were not damaged. Remnants of the bomb were not discovered until the following Monday, according to a statement from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Law enforcement arrested Calvert two weeks later. “Acts of violence like this one against our public institutions endanger public servants and entire communities, and they must not be tolerated,” said U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland. Calvert's attorneys did not respond to an emailed request for comment on Thursday. Prosecutors said that Calvert had placed stickers reflecting a wide range of political ideologies around the area, some of which included the phrase, “Support your local antifa.” But Calvert said he does not have any “affiliation with antifa" in his plea deal.

In the final days before Romania’s parliamentary elections this weekend, the governing parties’ leaders both quit, pollsters gave up on projecting the results and the nation’s top court cast serious doubt on the integrity of the voting process. And the stakes couldn’t be higher. Sunday’s parliamentary contest pits the pro-European establishment against far-right insurgents and will help to determine whether a critical NATO member and Ukrainian ally lurches closer to Moscow. It takes place in an atmosphere of scarcely believable chaos and confusion. Romania is in the middle of three consecutive weekend ballots for both a new parliament and a new president. Events spun off the rails in the first round of the presidential election on Nov. 24, when a Russia sympathizer with barely any public profile emerged as the shock winner. Calin Georgescu reported zero spending on a campaign that was mainly driven by social media videos on TikTok recorded from his living room. His victory sparked fears that Romania’s democratic process had been hacked by the Kremlin. In the country’s biggest political crisis since the communist regime collapsed over three decades ago, the constitutional court has ordered a recount of the presidential ballots, but it won’t have the fresh results until Sunday night and there is mounting speculation that it may order a rerun. As voters prepare to return to the polls on Sunday, there are major questions hanging over the process that they simply do not have answers to. The prospect of a far-right surge has sent hundreds to take the streets in freezing temperatures. In Bucharest, demonstrators chanted “We want freedom, not fascism.” For all the concerns about Russian interference, there’s also deep frustration, especially outside the major cities, with the mainstream candidates who were ejected in the first presidential ballot. Romania’s two most established parties, the Social Democrats and the Liberals, have governed in coalition for the past three years and the country has suffered rising inequality and rampant inflation. The vote puts 19 million Romanians at the heart of the struggle between the democratic institutions of the European Union and Russia’s expansionary ambitions. To the north, Romania borders Ukraine, where the Russian army has been fighting for almost three years to restore what President Vladimir Putin says is his country’s historic territorial rights. To the east is Moldova, where a pro-Western president survived another election earlier this month amid widespread reports of Kremlin interference. Putin’s ally Viktor Orban governs Hungary to the west. Romania, too, an EU member, could soon have a pro-Russian president and a far-right government, if the next two weeks of voting break in their favor. Many Romanians only began to learn after the vote about 62-year-old Georgescu, the agricultural engineer who languished in the single digits in polls just weeks before the election. A one-time ally of ultranationalist Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, Georgescu has denounced military support for Ukraine, called for a quick end to the war and cast doubt on the benefits of the country’s NATO membership. “I do not want to leave NATO, I do not want to leave the European Union,” he said on Tuesday, pushing back against his characterization by the local media. “I am a Romanian — I have no connection with Russia, I’m not a legionnaire, I’m not an antisemite.” Some of the comments collide with previous statements, in which he laid blame for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine with NATO — and raised the prospect of leaving the military alliance if it didn’t guarantee peace. In 2020, Georgescu praised Putin as one of the worlds few true leaders. The alarm deepened after Georgescu said he had no campaign funding — and that supporter financing had been donated. The claim raised hackles from critics who pointed out that the candidate’s high-resolution videos, including some with sweeping landscape shots — featuring him on horseback, performing judo moves, dipping into a mountain lake — could only have been produced by professionals. An investigation by local news website G4media suggested the effort was artificially amplified by foreign interference. Georgescu’s profile was heavily promoted by a volunteers who were prompted to spread posts in exchange for “undisclosed rewards,” the website reported. A similar scheme took place during the vote in Moldova. Romania’s Supreme Defense Council, which includes top government and intelligence officials, issued a statement Thursday saying that one candidate — it didn’t name Georgescu — benefited from “massive exposure and preferential treatment.” The panel cited Russian influence operations that aimed to shift public opinion in Romania — and accused TikTok of failing to label the candidate’s videos as election material as required by Romanian law. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who has frequently misled the media over previous disinformation campaigns, said Friday that allegations of Russian interference in Romanian elections are unfounded and unsupported, according to the Interfax news agency. TikTok said it was “categorically false” to claim that it treated Georgescu’s account differently from other candidates. Adding to the sense of a country spinning out of control, Social Democrat Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu resigned his party’s leadership while his coalition partners, the Liberals, ousted their leader. After pollsters completely missed Georgescu’s victory last week, they’ve opted not to release any further surveys, so voters, candidates and officials are all essentially flying blind ahead of Sunday’s vote. Before the voluntary polling blackout, the ultranationalists tied to another candidate George Simion, had been making steady gains and were running second place behind the Social Democrats. Now though, no one is really sure where they stand. “The situation is very fluid,” said Remus Stefureac, the director of research firm INSCOP. He predicted that Romania’s pro-European would still get between 50% and 60%, enabling them to form a government, but without much conviction. “In a background of increased social tensions, a sovereign movement can get a temporary boost,” he said. ——— (With assistance from Slav Okov and Demetrios Pogkas.) ©2024 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.