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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau returned home Saturday after his meeting with Donald Trump without assurances the president-elect will back away from threatened tariffs on all products from the major American trading partner. Trump called the talks “productive” but signaled no retreat from a pledge that Canada says unfairly lumps it in with Mexico over the flow of drugs and migrants into the United States. After the leaders’ hastily arranged dinner Friday night at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, Trudeau spoke of “an excellent conversation” but offered no details. Trump said in a Truth Social post later Saturday that they discussed “many important topics that will require both Countries to work together to address.” For issues in need of such cooperation, Trump cited fentanyl and the “Drug Crisis that has decimated so many lives as a result of Illegal Immigration," fair trade deals "that do not jeopardize American Workers” and the U.S. trade deficit with its ally to the north. Trump asserted that the prime minister had made “a commitment to work with us to end this terrible devastation” of American families from fentanyl from China reaching the United States through its neighbors. The U.S., he said, “will no longer sit idly by as our Citizens become victims to the scourge of this Drug Epidemic.” The Republican president-elect has threatened to impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico as one of his first executive orders when he takes office in January. U.S. customs agents seized 43 pounds of fentanyl at the Canadian border last fiscal year, compared with 21,100 pounds at the Mexican border. On immigration, the U.S. Border Patrol made 56,530 arrests at the Mexican border in October alone and 23,721 arrests at the Canadian border between October 2023 and September 2024 — and Canadian officials say they are ready to make new investments in border security. Trudeau called Trump after the Republican's social media posts about the tariffs last Monday and they agreed to meet, according to a official familiar with the matter who was not authorized to publicly discuss detail of the private talks. The official said other countries are calling Canadian officials to hear how about how the meeting was arranged and to ask for advice. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, after speaking with Trump on the telephone, said Thursday she was confident a tariff war with Washington would be averted. At the dinner that was said to last three hours, Trump said he and Trudeau also discussed energy, trade and the Arctic. A second official cited defense, Ukraine, NATO, China, the Mideast, pipelines and the Group of Seven meeting in Canada next year as other issues that arose. Trump, during his first term as president, once called Trudeau “weak” and “dishonest,” but it was the prime minister who was the first G7 leader to visit Trump since the Nov. 5 election. "Tariffs are a crucial issue for Canada and a bold move was in order. Perhaps it was a risk, but a risk worth taking,” Daniel Béland, a political science professor at McGill University in Montreal. Trudeau had said before leaving from Friday that Trump was elected because he promised to bring down the cost of groceries but now was talking about adding 25% to the cost of all kinds of products, including potatoes from Prince Edward Island in Atlantic Canada. “It is important to understand that Donald Trump, when he makes statements like that, he plans on carrying them out. There’s no question about it,” Trudeau said. “Our responsibility is to point out that he would not just be harming Canadians, who work so well with the United States, but he would actually be raising prices for Americans citizens as well and hurting American industry and business,” he added. The threatened tariffs could essentially blow up the North American trade pact that Trump’s team negotiated during his first term. Trudeau noted they were able to successfully renegotiate the deal, which he calls a “win win” for both countries. When Trump imposed higher tariffs as president, other countries responded with retaliatory tariffs of their own. Canada, for instance, announced billions of new duties in 2018 against the U.S. in a response to new taxes on Canadian steel and aluminum. Canada is the top export destination for 36 U.S. states. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian (US $2.7 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border each day. About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, and 85% of U.S. electricity imports are from Canada. Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for and investing in for national security. Canada is one of the most trade-dependent countries in the world, and 77% of Canada’s exports go to the U.S. ___ Gillies reported from Toronto.AP Business SummaryBrief at 4:07 p.m. EST
By Stephanie Lai and Hadriana Lowenkron, Bloomberg News Donald Trump says he is selecting venture capitalist David Sacks of Craft Ventures LLC to serve as his artificial intelligence and crypto czar, a newly created position that underscores the president-elect’s intent to boost two rapidly developing industries. “David will guide policy for the Administration in Artificial Intelligence and Cryptocurrency, two areas critical to the future of American competitiveness. David will focus on making America the clear global leader in both areas,” Trump said Thursday in a post on his Truth Social network. Trump said that Sacks would also lead the Presidential Council of Advisors for Science and Technology. In Sacks, Trump is tapping one of his most prominent Silicon Valley supporters and fundraisers for a prime position in his administration. Sacks played a key role in bolstering Trump’s fundraising among technology industry donors, including co-hosting an event at his San Francisco home in June, with tickets at $300,000 a head. He is also closely associated with Vice President-elect JD Vance, the investor-turned-Ohio senator. Sacks is a venture capitalist and part of Silicon Valley’s “PayPal Mafia.” He first made his name in the technology industry during a stint as the chief operating officer of PayPal, the payments company whose founders in the late 1990s included billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk and investor Peter Thiel. After it was sold to eBay, Sacks turned to Hollywood, where he produced the 2005 satire Thank You for Smoking. Back in Silicon Valley, he founded workplace communications company Yammer, which was bought by Microsoft Corp. in 2012 for $1.2 billion. He founded his own venture capital firm, Craft Ventures, in 2017 and has invested in Musk-owned businesses, including SpaceX. Sacks said on a recent episode of his All-In podcast that a “key man” clause in the agreements of his venture firm’s legal documents would likely prevent him from taking a full-time position, but he might consider an advisory role in the new administration. A Craft spokeswoman said Sacks would not be leaving Craft. In his post, Trump said Sacks “will safeguard Free Speech online, and steer us away from Big Tech bias and censorship.” Protecting free speech is a keen interest of Sacks. He regularly speaks about “woke” interests that try to muzzle unpopular opinions and positions. The new post is expected to help spearhead the crypto industry deregulation Trump promised on the campaign trail. The role is expected to provide cryptocurrency advocates a direct line to the White House and serve as a liaison between Trump, Congress and the federal agencies that interface with digital assets, including the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Trump heavily campaigned on supporting crypto, after previously disparaging digital assets during his first White House term, saying their “value is highly volatile and based on thin air.” The president-elect on Thursday said Sacks would “work on a legal framework so the Crypto industry has the clarity it has been asking for, and can thrive in the U.S.” During the campaign, Trump spoke at a Bitcoin conference, accepted crypto campaign donations and met with executives from Bitcoin mining companies and crypto exchanges multiple times. Trump’s desire to give priority to the digital asset industry is also reflected in his close allies and cabinet selections, including his Commerce secretary pick, Howard Lutnick, and Treasury secretary nominee Scott Bessent. On the AI front, Sacks would help Trump put his imprint on an emerging technology whose popular use has exploded in recent years. Sacks is poised to be at the front lines in determining how the federal government both adopts AI and regulates its use as advances in the technology and adoption by consumers pose a wide array of benefits as well as risks touching on national security, privacy, jobs and other areas. The president-elect has expressed both awe at the power of AI technology as well as concern over the potential harms from its use. During his first term, he signed executive orders that sought to maintain US leadership in the field and directed the federal government to prioritize AI in research and development spending. As AI has become more mainstream in recent years and with Congress slow to act, President Joe Biden has sought to fill that void. Biden signed an executive order in 2023 that establishes security and privacy protections and requires developers to safety-test new models, casting the sweeping regulatory order as necessary to safeguard consumers. A number of technology giants have also agreed to adopt a set of voluntary safeguards which call for them to test AI systems for discriminatory tendencies or security flaws and to share those results. Trump has vowed to repeal Biden’s order. The Republican Party’s 2024 platform dismissed Biden’s executive order as one that “hinders AI Innovation, and imposes Radical Leftwing ideas on the development of this technology.” Sacks can be expected to work closely with Musk, the world’s richest person and one of the president-elect’s most prominent supporters. Musk is also a player in the AI space with his company xAI and a chatbot named Grok — efforts which pit him against Silicon Valley’s giants — and he stands to wield significant influence within the incoming administration. The appointment won’t require Sacks to divest or publicly disclose his assets. Like Musk, Sacks will be a special government employee. He can serve a maximum of 130 days per year, with or without compensation. However, conflict of interest rules apply to special government employees, meaning Sacks will have to recuse himself from matters that could impact his holdings. Sacks’s Craft Ventures is known more for enterprise software investing than for crypto, but it has made a few crypto investments, including BitGo and Bitwise. Still, Sacks has firm opinions on the sector. Speaking last month on All-In, Sacks praised a bill on crypto regulation that had passed in the U.S. House but not the Senate earlier this year. The Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act would regulate certain types of digital assets as a commodity, regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. “The crypto industry basically wants a really clear line for knowing when they’re a commodity and they want commodities to be governed, like all other commodities, by the CFTC,” he said on the November podcast. He also disparaged some of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s positions on crypto under its chair, Gary Gensler. “The days of Gensler terrifying crypto companies,” he said. “Those days are about to be over.” Earlier this week, Trump nominated crypto advocate Paul Atkins to lead the SEC. With assistance from Zoe Ma, Bill Allison, Sarah McBride, Anne VanderMey and stacy-marie ishmael. ©2024 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Christmas is filled with traditions, and one of the favorites at Christ Community Church is the congregation singing “Silent Night” by candlelight. “Christmas does play a big part in this story,” said Pastor Todd Hertz, spokesman for the church, which has a main campus on Randall Road in the South Elgin/St. Charles area and satellite locations in Aurora, Streamwood, DeKalb and Huntley. “Christmas has always been very special. We have a lot of traditions.” This year was particularly special because it’s the church’s 40th anniversary and the final time founding Pastor Jim Nicodem, who is retiring next year, will lead the “Silent Night” rendition. The six couples who helped establish nondenominational Christ Community were part of a prayer group that decided they wanted a different kind of church experience, Hertz said. Church felt irrelevant to their lives and wasn’t a place they felt they could invite others to attend; they wanted something they could enjoy, he said. “The thinking was how can we reach people for Christ? How can we introduce people to Christ in a way that doesn’t feel old and stuffy?” Hertz said. The new church made its debut on Dec. 16, 1984, with the organizers deliberately choosing the holiday season because studies show that people are more open to attending services at that time of year, Hertz said. One of Christ Community Church’s many Christmas traditions is to place a large tree in the atrium of its main South Elgin/St. Charles campus church and surround it with a holiday train that runs continuously. (Christ Community Church) “It was a strategy to launch at Christmas. I think it had a lot to do with the growth,” Hertz said. Nicodem was chosen as their first pastor. He and his family lived on the East Coast, but Nicodem was familiar with the area because he graduated from Wheaton College. Getting the word out was done by going door to door to tell people about the new venture, passing out pamphlets, and inviting family and friends to attend. They had 150 people at the first service, Hertz said. It grew quickly from there, and they began holding services at a St. Charles movie theater that was part of a shopping center anchored by a Kmart store. It didn’t take long for it to become known as the “Kmart” church and the “blue light special” church, the latter a nod to the store’s practice of announcing special sales by turning on a blue light,Hertz said. Within five years, the church had 700 members. It was time to build its own meeting place. Forty acres of land — a former alfalfa field — at Bolcum and Randall Roads were purchased in 1990. An extension campus in DeKalb followed in the early 1990s, and now there are locations in Aurora, Streamwood and Huntley as well. Attendance at the St. Charles/South Elgin church is about 2,500 weekly with another 1,300 congregants worshipping at the other locations, Hertz said. This year, Christ Community’s Christmas services culminated in a teaching series looking at the life of Jesus through the eyes of Mary, his mother, including the nativity story, he said. “This series has been really impactful for the people in the church. I think whenever we lead up to Christmas, we want to focus on Jesus,” Hertz said. The series has provided a different perspective that created a lot of excitement among the congregation, he said. Christmas traditions are special because “they tie us back to when we were young, to our families, to really good memories,” Hertz said. “I think they are really important, especially in hard times like the last several years. We’ve had political division and wars and things like that. I think these traditions do something to comfort us,” he said. For 40 years, Nicodem has been part of those traditions. He will step down in May but will stay involved in the church, Hertz said. Well-known Christian singer Steven Curtis Chapman, seen here performing at the GMA Dove Awards in 2016, will help Christ Community Church in South Elgin celebrate its 40th anniversary with a concert on Feb. 21 (Wade Payne/Invision/AP) “He’s handing the leadership to two other pastors on staff. He’s ready to let new voices lead,” he said. And Christ Community will celebrate its anniversary from February through March with 40 days for 40 years. Among the events planned are comedy club featuring Christian comic Jaron Myers and a Feb. 21 concert by well-known Christian singer Steven Curtis Chapman, who has 59 Gospel Music Association Dove Awards, five Grammy awards and an American Music Award. (Tickets go on sale Jan. 1.) The church also commissioned a documentary film about its founding that’s to premiere at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles in the spring. Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.Exclusive Poll: 74% Are Very or Somewhat Concerned About Big Tech's Power
Mumbai: Leaders of all political parties organised a silent march on Saturday in Beed to denounce the brutal murder of Santosh Deshmukh, the sarpanch of Massajog village in Beed, and sought justice for his family. The march is scheduled to begin at 10.0 am from Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Chowk in Beed and will proceed to the District Collector’s office. Several prominent leaders are expected to participate in this silent protest. Beed, Maharashtra: A protest will be held in the city on 28 December to seek justice for Sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh. Thousands of people from across the state, representing all parties, will participate. The demand is to apprehend the accused in Santosh Deshmukh's murder and give... pic.twitter.com/QQVRP2fV8G BJP MLA Suresh Dhas met with Beed’s newly appointed Superintendent of Police Navneet Kawat on Friday and requested him to solve the case at the earliest. “The investigation is under the CID IG, and the police department is providing support. Personally, I am satisfied with their efforts. We hope that the ‘mastermind’ will soon be caught. I have shared all the information with the SP, including details about the movements of the suspects and where they have been spotted,” said Dhas. Dhas has also directed his criticism at Minister Dhananjay Munde in this case. He accused a key individual, referred to as the 'mastermind,' of exerting influence over police appointments in Beed. Dhas claimed that several members of the Beed police force are closely linked to the 'mastermind,' raising concerns about the impartiality of the ongoing investigation. Responding to the accusations, Munde stated that efforts are being made to target him politically and socially, describing it as a deliberate attempt to sideline him. On this, Dhas sarcastically remarked, “Dhanubhau, you can happily keep your Guardian Minister position to yourself. Our child has died, and we are fighting for justice for them.” NCP (SP) MLA Sandeep Kshirsagar has urged Munde to hand over the main accused, Valmiki Karad, to the police. He further stated that the public in Beed is visibly upset over the case, and this anger will not subside until Munde resigns.At just 17 years old, Yevan David captivated a packed press conference in Colombo with the poise of a seasoned professional. For Sri Lankan sports fans accustomed to cheering for international stars in the Premier League, NBA and Formula 1, Yevan is a breath of fresh air – a homegrown talent poised to make history as Sri Lanka’s first Formula 1 driver. Displaying a maturity beyond his years, Yevan navigated a barrage of questions with ease, balancing his youthful enthusiasm with the professionalism expected of a rising star. “It’s an honour to represent Sri Lanka on the global stage,” he said, his voice filled with pride. “Carrying the Sri Lankan flag and showcasing our heritage in the world of motorsport is something I’ll always cherish.” Yevan’s journey began at six years old, inspired by the exploits of Lewis Hamilton, the joint record-holder for seven Formula 1 World Championships. “When I started racing, it was just a dream,” Yevan reflected. “Watching drivers like Hamilton gave me the belief that maybe, one day I could follow in their footsteps.” He took his first laps in a go-kart at Bandaragama in Sri Lanka before training in Singapore, where his skills quickly set him apart. “I remember the thrill of driving for the first time and from there, it just grew,” Yevan shared. With over a decade in karting, Yevan transitioned to Formula 4 this year, marking a pivotal moment in his career. Competing in Spanish F4, F4 UAE and Euro Formula Open, he took on legendary circuits like Monza, Zandvoort and Spa-Francorchamps. “The leap from karts to cars was massive,” he admitted. “But with every race, I found my rhythm and to end the season with wins was surreal.” Standing atop the podium at Monza, the home of Ferrari, was a defining moment. “Winning at Monza was unforgettable,” Yevan said. “Hearing the national anthem and holding the Sri Lankan flag was a moment of immense pride. It wasn’t just my victory; it was for everyone supporting me back home.” Another breakthrough came at Zandvoort in Eurocup 3. “It was my debut on the track and everything felt new,” Yevan recounted. “Despite the challenges, I scored a rookie podium. That weekend was a turning point for me – it gave me the confidence to believe I could compete at the highest levels.” Yevan’s pride in his heritage is evident in the lion emblem on his helmet, paired with Ferrari’s signature red – a nod to the team he and many Sri Lankans, admire. “The colours and the lion represent where I come from,” Yevan explained. “It’s a reminder of my journey and the support of an entire nation.” Beyond racing, Yevan remains grounded, balancing his demanding career with academics as he prepares for his A-Level exams. A fan of Sri Lankan music sensation Yohani, he is every bit a teenager at heart. “I love coming back to Sri Lanka,” he said. “Visiting my family and reconnecting with my roots always gives me renewed energy.” While Yevan draws inspiration from motorsport legends, his childhood was also deeply influenced by superheroes, particularly Batman. As a child, he wore a Batman cape everywhere – whether at the racetrack, during karting events, or even in school. “I loved Batman because he was all about using his intellect and skill rather than superpowers,” Yevan shared with a laugh. “In a way, that’s how I see myself in racing – working hard, learning and relying on my skills to get better.” The cape has since been replaced by his racing suit, but his Batman story has become a beloved anecdote among his family, friends and growing fan base. Yevan’s remarkable rise has not gone unnoticed on social media. With over 50,000 followers across Instagram, TikTok and other platforms, he’s emerging as a motorsport influencer. His Instagram, where he shares behind-the-scenes glimpses of his life on and off the track, is particularly popular. “Social media is a great way to connect with fans, especially those in Sri Lanka,” Yevan said. “It’s incredible to see the support coming from people back home and all over the world. Their messages motivate me to keep pushing harder.” In addition to racing content, Yevan often shares motivational posts and interacts with fans through Q&A sessions. “I want to inspire the next generation of athletes, no matter their sport,” he said. Next year, Yevan will step up to Formula 3, the gateway to Formula 1. “Racing in F3 means more opportunities to compete on F1 tracks and weekends,” Yevan said. “It’s another step toward fulfilling my dream of racing in Formula 1. The journey is long, but I’m ready for it.” Supported by Sportline Management and a dedicated team of coaches and engineers, Yevan credits his success to a collective effort. “What might look like my dream is the result of countless hours from so many people – my family, my team and everyone supporting me,” he said. Yevan aims to inspire aspiring athletes in Sri Lanka. “I hope my journey inspires others to dream big,” he said. “If we can get more representation from our region, it will be amazing for the sport globally.” Looking ahead, Yevan is optimistic about Sri Lanka’s motorsport future. “Having someone like Uncle Dilantha (Malagamuwa) pave the way has been inspiring. His advice and encouragement mean a lot to me,” Yevan revealed. Racing runs in Yevan’s family – his father Yohan and grandfather Nirmal Ranasinghe were both involved in motorsport. “Their passion laid the foundation for mine,” Yevan said. “My father has been my mentor since day one, guiding me through the challenges and celebrations alike.” Despite the high-pressure world of racing, Yevan remains unfazed. “Racing is not just about speed; it’s about precision, mental strength and resilience,” he explained. “Every race teaches me something new and that’s what keeps me going.” As Yevan prepares to compete in F3 next season, he carries the weight of a nation’s dreams on his shoulders. Yet, he remains humble and focused, determined to make his mark in the fiercely competitive world of Formula 1. “To represent Sri Lanka on the global stage is an honour,” Yevan said. “I’m proud of my roots and I hope to make everyone back home proud as I chase my dream of becoming a Formula 1 driver.” Yevan is not just a racing prodigy; he’s a symbol of Sri Lanka’s potential on the world stage – a young jet-setter ready to conquer the circuits of Formula 1 with skill, determination and the unwavering support of a proud nation.Rising Cybersecurity Insurance Demands Create New Opportunities for Technology Service Providers, Says Info-Tech Research Group
Trump names David Sacks as White House AI and crypto czarSIPPING a glass of chilled fizz this Christmas morning, I will not only feel full of festive cheer, but also a little bit smug. That’s because this is the 17th time I’ve successfully managed to cut my mother-in-law, Rene, out of our celebrations. While other women will be run ragged, pandering and panicking, I’ll be blissfully relaxed at home, with my husband Brian, 52, our two sons, my parents and my sister Anneliese, 53. I’ll do nothing more strenuous than peel some vegetables, munch chocolate and unwrap presents, free of festive tension. This is the exact opposite of what the day would be like if Rene was on the scene. And it’s the reason why, during 18 years of marriage , my family has spent Christmas Day with her only once. READ MORE IN FABULOUS That was eight years ago and I am still suffering from a mild form of “seasonal PTSD ”. The barbed remarks started early in the day. “Do you often eat chocolate for breakfast?” she scoffed. The slurs didn’t end until we went to bed, when she commented: “That Christmas pudding wasn’t the best”. At the end of the day, close to tears, I swore I would never put myself through the ordeal again. Most read in Fabulous And now, at 51, I certainly won’t be swayed. I know I’m not alone, either. Mumsnet is filled with posts from women my age who are dreading having to deal with the mother-in-law this Christmas. Unsurprisingly, to me, a US study found that both men and women have more conflict with the mother-in-law than with their own mums. I don’t feel an ounce of guilt that my mother-in-law doesn’t get to see her grandchildren on the big day. She’ll see them at some point over the festive period, when we’ll go and stay for a couple of days. During that time, I’ll insist on taking long walks to get rid of those Christmas excesses — when in fact it’s to dodge seeing her. And she will spend Christmas itself with my husband’s brother, his lovely wife Chrissy and their daughters — so it isn’t as though she’ll be alone. I remember the very first Christmas in 1997 after Brian and I started dating . We didn’t spend it together because we had only been seeing each other for six months. But I was horrified when he rang me on Christmas Day to say Rene had prepared roast beef and not a traditional turkey . It’s the one time of year that I’m a stickler for convention and this seemed very wrong. Christmas is all about family and I wish I could see my grandsons I immediately knew that I didn’t want to spend a single Christmas with his family. They don’t really do presents either — most years, they would all give each other Lottery scratch cards — and while I’m not materialistic, I spend hours trawling the shops for the perfect gift for my loved ones. My mother-in-law has only ever bought me one present — a pot of anti-wrinkle cream. This year, I’m bracing myself for hair dye, because she recently asked why I have more grey hairs than Chrissy, her other daughter-in-law, despite being ten years younger. So you can understand why I feel a twinge of terror at the thought of spending Christmas with Rene at the helm. I’ve been with Brian, who works in marketing, for 26 years and festivities aside, my mother-in-law and I are yet to see eye-to-eye on anything. “Highlights” of her behaviour include asking if she could wear black to our wedding and then telling me she didn’t gain a daughter, but lost a son. She has a photo album titled My Family and while my husband and sons, who are 18 and 14, feature, I’m nowhere to be seen. She has even carefully selected wedding photos where I’m missing. For me, Christmas is a special time, not an occasion I want ruined. And Rene has a unique ability to make me feel the size of a gnat. On Christmas morning, we open stockings at my parents’ house in Dorset and have a lovely smoked salmon breakfast, and lots of chocolate, before slowly opening presents. Late afternoon, we’ll have turkey and all the trimmings — including my mother’s bread sauce, best in the world — at my sister’s house. This is followed by quizzes and party games. Brian is lovely about me wanting to be at my parents’. He gets on brilliantly with his in-laws. But eight years ago, Rene, who is a widow, was set to be alone at Christmas. Brian’s brother was away and even I acknowledged that we should go to her house, six hours from ours in London . I even prepared the meal, but the level of interference was off the scale, with petty remarks about timings and how rapidly the water was boiling for the Brussels. Her lips pursed at the taste of the chicken — “too dry” — and stayed that way up until she had eaten her last scrap of Christmas pudding with brandy butter. She made snide comments about what I’d gifted my boys, then aged ten and six. Their noisiness brought nothing but sighs. I felt like I couldn’t do anything right, most of my efforts were followed by a “Chrissy wouldn’t do it like that”. I told Brian never again. It doesn’t cause rows — he loves my family . Despite everything, my boys love Granny. She’s wonderful with them and I make sure they see plenty of her. But I worry about karma. I tried hard to do things in a way Mel would appreciate, but it’s never enough If the boys marry, they could assume their partners get to choose where to spend Christmas, as that’s their normal. I suspect it will be with their wives’ mums and it will serve me right. But in the meantime, I’ll enjoy my mother-in-law-free Christmas Day. And I wish all the luck in the world to the women who aren’t as lucky as I am. Rene, 81, says: “Christmas is all about family and I wish I could see my grandsons. The one Christmas I did spend with them was magical. “Mel doesn’t think I thought it was special, but it was. READ MORE SUN STORIES “I tried hard to do things in a way Mel would appreciate, but it’s never enough. “And the only reason I bought her anti-wrinkle cream is because I saw it in her bathroom, so thought she’d like it.”Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso has offered his verdict on Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League home win against Inter Milan. Speaking to Sky Sport via FCInterNews, the highly-rated Spanish manager highlighted Die Werkself’s great desire to take three points against the Nerazzurri. In all fairness, Leverkusen deserved three points. They were the better team, though it takes nothing away from Inter’s commendable defensive effort. However, Simone Inzaghi’s charges were atypically quiet in attack, failing to create clear-cut chances. Indeed, it was a rare occasion to see the reigning Scudetto holders finish the game without an attempt on target. On the other hand, Leverkusen showed a genuine ambition to score, though they left it late to beat Yann Sommer. Nordi Mukiele netted a 90th-minute winner, taking advantage of havoc inside Inter’s six-yard box to catapult the Germans to victory. Leverkusen’s performance naturally pleased Alonso, who seems on track to get his team back on the rails after a stuttering start. Bayer Leverkusen Boss Congratulates Inter Milan After Pivotal Champions League Win “I think we played a very mature and complete match,” Alonso said. “Against a team like Inter, managing emotions is crucial because they are a dangerous side with multiple playmakers controlling the game. “It required a significant mental effort, but we successfully dictated the play, created many opportunities, and conceded just one.” Scoring late has been a common theme for Leverkusen under Alonso’s stewardship. Indeed, Die Werkself scored more goals in second-half stoppages last season than any other team across Europe’s top-five leagues. Xabi Alonso explained Leverkusen’s unique ability to grab last-gasp winners. “Yes, we respect Inter a lot, but we wanted the victory,” he stated. “We played our game with maturity and determination, and I believe our win was well-deserved. “I always try to instill this mindset in my team: to attack until the very end.”
By MICHELLE L. PRICE WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An online spat between factions of Donald Trump’s supporters over immigration and the tech industry has thrown internal divisions in his political movement into public display, previewing the fissures and contradictory views his coalition could bring to the White House. The rift laid bare the tensions between the newest flank of Trump’s movement — wealthy members of the tech world including billionaire Elon Musk and fellow entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and their call for more highly skilled workers in their industry — and people in Trump’s Make America Great Again base who championed his hardline immigration policies. The debate touched off this week when Laura Loomer , a right-wing provocateur with a history of racist and conspiratorial comments, criticized Trump’s selection of Sriram Krishnan as an adviser on artificial intelligence policy in his coming administration. Krishnan favors the ability to bring more skilled immigrants into the U.S. Loomer declared the stance to be “not America First policy” and said the tech executives who have aligned themselves with Trump were doing so to enrich themselves. Much of the debate played out on the social media network X, which Musk owns. Loomer’s comments sparked a back-and-forth with venture capitalist and former PayPal executive David Sacks , whom Trump has tapped to be the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar.” Musk and Ramaswamy, whom Trump has tasked with finding ways to cut the federal government , weighed in, defending the tech industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. It bloomed into a larger debate with more figures from the hard-right weighing in about the need to hire U.S. workers, whether values in American culture can produce the best engineers, free speech on the internet, the newfound influence tech figures have in Trump’s world and what his political movement stands for. Trump has not yet weighed in on the rift. His presidential transition team did not respond to questions about positions on visas for highly skilled workers or the debate between his supporters online. Instead, his team instead sent a link to a post on X by longtime adviser and immigration hard-liner Stephen Miller that was a transcript of a speech Trump gave in 2020 at Mount Rushmore in which he praised figures and moments from American history. Musk, the world’s richest man who has grown remarkably close to the president-elect , was a central figure in the debate, not only for his stature in Trump’s movement but his stance on the tech industry’s hiring of foreign workers. Technology companies say H-1B visas for skilled workers, used by software engineers and others in the tech industry, are critical for hard-to-fill positions. But critics have said they undercut U.S. citizens who could take those jobs. Some on the right have called for the program to be eliminated, not expanded. Born in South Africa, Musk was once on an a H-1B visa himself and defended the industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. “There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent,” he said in a post. “It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley.” Trump’s own positions over the years have reflected the divide in his movement. Related Articles National Politics | Trump threat to immigrant health care tempered by economic hopes National Politics | In states that ban abortion, social safety net programs often fail families National Politics | Trump vows to pursue executions after Biden commutes most of federal death row National Politics | Elon Musk’s preschool is the next step in his anti-woke education dreams National Politics | Trump’s picks for top health jobs not just team of rivals but ‘team of opponents’ His tough immigration policies, including his pledge for a mass deportation, were central to his winning presidential campaign. He has focused on immigrants who come into the U.S. illegally but he has also sought curbs on legal immigration , including family-based visas. As a presidential candidate in 2016, Trump called the H-1B visa program “very bad” and “unfair” for U.S. workers. After he became president, Trump in 2017 issued a “Buy American and Hire American” executive order , which directed Cabinet members to suggest changes to ensure H-1B visas were awarded to the highest-paid or most-skilled applicants to protect American workers. Trump’s businesses, however, have hired foreign workers, including waiters and cooks at his Mar-a-Lago club , and his social media company behind his Truth Social app has used the the H-1B program for highly skilled workers. During his 2024 campaign for president, as he made immigration his signature issue, Trump said immigrants in the country illegally are “poisoning the blood of our country” and promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. But in a sharp departure from his usual alarmist message around immigration generally, Trump told a podcast this year that he wants to give automatic green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges. “I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country,” he told the “All-In” podcast with people from the venture capital and technology world. Those comments came on the cusp of Trump’s budding alliance with tech industry figures, but he did not make the idea a regular part of his campaign message or detail any plans to pursue such changes.Attorneys want the US Supreme Court to say Mississippi’s felony voting ban is cruel and unusual
Women’s advocates say provincial and federal governments need to step up efforts to create housing for people escaping gender-based violence because too many women are forced to remain in unsafe situations after being abused. A study released last week by Women’s Shelters Canada says the country’s housing crisis is preventing many people from finding affordable and safe housing after leaving their abuser. Of the 381 shelters and transition houses that responded, 94 per cent of emergency shelters and 83 per cent of transition homes said victims were staying longer than they had in the past while searching for housing. The report also said when people do leave the facilities, about half return to their abusers because they have no other options. More than two-thirds of the women end up in housing situations considered precarious, which meant they were living with friends or families or trading work for rent. A full 36 per cent experience homelessness at some point. Anna Morgan, manager of programs and services at Ernestine’s Women’s Shelter in Etobicoke, Ont., says her organization has seen enormous demand for services as rents in the Greater Toronto Area soar. Her shelter is meant to provide short-term accommodation for women escaping violence, but it has become more like a transition house as people struggle to find a new place to live. READ MORE: Sooke Transition House sounds alarm over lack of options for women with pets fleeing domestic abuse “We’re over capacity,” Morgan said in a phone interview this week. “The shelter system is becoming basically transitional housing for people, and they (the shelters) are really not set up to be housing.” She said the shelter had to turn away 312 people in the fiscal year that ended March 31, and it is on track to turn away a high number again this year. The shelter helps women and gender-diverse people from all racial and ethnic backgrounds. Many people come from the GTA and neighbouring communities, but Morgan says sometimes people arrive from out of province or even as refugees. The vast majority of people coming to the shelter are “deeply poor,” she says, either on social assistance or working minimum wage jobs. The average rent in Toronto is $3,091 for a two-bedroom apartment, according to Rentals.com, and the wait for social housing is 10 years after getting on the wait-list. Morgan said the report’s findings ring true. In her experience, it’s common for people leaving the shelter system to either couch-surf or get back together with their abusers or into “other precarious, exploitative situations.” “They’re getting stuck in that cycle of experiencing gender-based violence and housing instability and precarity,” she said. As well, private landlords sometimes discriminate against people looking to rent based on their race, gender or sexual orientation. Morgan says many landlords also don’t want to rent to people with children, adding further barriers. Outside of Canada’s major urban hubs, smaller communities are also seeing high rates of gender-based violence and increased demand for help. In Moose Jaw, Sask., Jenn Angus of the Moose Jaw Transition House says the lack of affordable housing has driven up the length of stays for clients in her shelter every year for the last five years. “It’s disheartening,” Angus said in a phone interview this week, adding that it is becoming more common for people to stay between 50 and 70 days, when in previously people could find housing within three weeks. Women with children experience the longest stays, Angus added. SEE ALSO: ‘One is too many’: Vigil held to remember the women killed by femicide Angus added she’s noticed a growing trend of people seeking affordable shelter leaving Moose Jaw — a city of about 40,000 people with what she called a good slate of social services — for rural areas, where there are fewer support services. Saskatchewan had the highest rate of police-reported domestic violence among the provinces in 2023 according to Statistics Canada. Jessica Montgomery of the Jessica Martel Memorial Foundation in Morinville, Alta., said finding affordable housing can be difficult for women leaving their abusers because they often leave with little more than “the clothes on their back” and a suitcase. “A lot of survivors coming to us have also experienced economic abuse,” she said, explaining their abusers either had control over their finances or didn’t allow them to work. “It makes them harder to leave because they don’t have the resources to establish a new life.” Montgomery and Angus said the cost of setting up a new home — hooking up utilities, stocking the pantry, finding furniture — is an obstacle for victims trying to make a fresh start. They both said there’s an urgent need for governments at the federal and provincial levels to add funding to housing projects specifically for survivors of gender-based violence and to cut down on wait times for people applying for social assistance programs. In Nova Scotia, the commission of inquiry into the 2020 mass shooting — which began with the gunman brutally assaulting his spouse — called for “epidemic-level funding” to deal with domestic violence. And in September, the province’s legislature adopted a bill naming domestic violence an epidemic. Caira Mohamed of YWCA Halifax says there isn’t necessarily a dollar figure that represents epidemic-level funding. Instead, it involves a consistent level of assistance from the provincial and federal governments for shelters, transition houses and non-profits looking to end gender-based violence. “More programs which are targeted towards survivors of gender-based and intimate-partner violence will start to address some of these gaps (in services) we’re seeing and hopefully meet that threshold of epidemic-level funding,” she said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 6, 2024.New Delhi, Dec 27 (PTI) As the nation mourns the loss of one of its most respected statesmen Manmohan Singh, his former food and agriculture secretary T Nanda Kumar on Friday shared his memories of working with the former prime minister during some of India's most challenging times. Manmohan Singh, whose leadership was defined by compassion and intellect, passed away in New Delhi on Thursday night at the age of 92. Recalling his first one-on-one meeting with Singh in 2006, Nanda Kumar said India was facing a shortage of wheat at that time and it was decided to import it, sparking criticism from several quarters. Nanda Kumar said he went to the prime minister to talk over the issue. "He heard me patiently and explained, like the professor he was, the need to augment supplies when demand outstripped availability. He told me, 'as prime minister, I cannot let any Indian go without food'. That summed up the basis of his decisions," Nanda Kumar recounted to PTI. "This ethos guided Singh's leadership during crises," Kumar said. "In 2007, when I raised concerns about recurring shortages, Prime Minister Singh encouraged me to develop solutions." The outcome was the launch of several key initiatives such as the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana to boost agricultural productivity, the National Food Security Mission to enhance rice and wheat yields, and an increase in buffer stock norms by five million tonnes to prepare for emergencies, he added. During the 2008 global food crisis, Nanda Kumar had to propose a ban on non-basmati rice exports to secure domestic supplies. He said PM Singh firmly supported the move despite resistance. "I have to take care of the needs of my countrymen and women before sending food to other countries," Nanda Kumar recalled the prime minister having said. According to Kumar, this decision proved critical during the 2009 drought, ensuring food security without resorting to imports. Nanda Kumar also fondly remembered Singh's discussions with C Rangarajan, who was the Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the PM, on food and agriculture policy. "Those meetings were like two eminent economists discussing the national economy, and I was the student, listening to them in awe. His grasp of numbers, humility, and simplicity were life lessons for me," he said. For Nanda Kumar, Singh was not just the prime minister but a mentor and a guiding light. "The relationship between a secretary and the PM is clearly defined in the rulebook. But for me, he was a guru. I consider myself fortunate to have known him and worked with him for close to seven years," Nanda Kumar said. Nanda Kumar served during Manmohan Singh's tenure as the food secretary and agriculture secretary from 2006 to 2010, and later as a member of the National Disaster Management Authority from 2010 to 2014. Manmohan Singh, known as the architect of India's economic reforms, faced a trial by fire to ensure widespread acceptance of his pathbreaking 1991 Union budget that saw the nation rise from its darkest financial crises. A seven-day state mourning will be observed throughout the country as a mark of respect to the former prime minister who passed away last night. During the mourning, the national flag will be flown at half-mast across India. (This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)
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