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By BILL BARROW, Associated Press PLAINS, Ga. (AP) — Newly married and sworn as a Naval officer, Jimmy Carter left his tiny hometown in 1946 hoping to climb the ranks and see the world. Less than a decade later, the death of his father and namesake, a merchant farmer and local politician who went by “Mr. Earl,” prompted the submariner and his wife, Rosalynn, to return to the rural life of Plains, Georgia, they thought they’d escaped. The lieutenant never would be an admiral. Instead, he became commander in chief. Years after his presidency ended in humbling defeat, he would add a Nobel Peace Prize, awarded not for his White House accomplishments but “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” The life of James Earl Carter Jr., the 39th and longest-lived U.S. president, ended Sunday at the age of 100 where it began: Plains, the town of 600 that fueled his political rise, welcomed him after his fall and sustained him during 40 years of service that redefined what it means to be a former president. With the stubborn confidence of an engineer and an optimism rooted in his Baptist faith, Carter described his motivations in politics and beyond in the same way: an almost missionary zeal to solve problems and improve lives. Carter was raised amid racism, abject poverty and hard rural living — realities that shaped both his deliberate politics and emphasis on human rights. “He always felt a responsibility to help people,” said Jill Stuckey, a longtime friend of Carter’s in Plains. “And when he couldn’t make change wherever he was, he decided he had to go higher.” Carter’s path, a mix of happenstance and calculation , pitted moral imperatives against political pragmatism; and it defied typical labels of American politics, especially caricatures of one-term presidents as failures. “We shouldn’t judge presidents by how popular they are in their day. That’s a very narrow way of assessing them,” Carter biographer Jonathan Alter told the Associated Press. “We should judge them by how they changed the country and the world for the better. On that score, Jimmy Carter is not in the first rank of American presidents, but he stands up quite well.” Later in life, Carter conceded that many Americans, even those too young to remember his tenure, judged him ineffective for failing to contain inflation or interest rates, end the energy crisis or quickly bring home American hostages in Iran. He gained admirers instead for his work at The Carter Center — advocating globally for public health, human rights and democracy since 1982 — and the decades he and Rosalynn wore hardhats and swung hammers with Habitat for Humanity. Yet the common view that he was better after the Oval Office than in it annoyed Carter, and his allies relished him living long enough to see historians reassess his presidency. “He doesn’t quite fit in today’s terms” of a left-right, red-blue scoreboard, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who visited the former president multiple times during his own White House bid. At various points in his political career, Carter labeled himself “progressive” or “conservative” — sometimes both at once. His most ambitious health care bill failed — perhaps one of his biggest legislative disappointments — because it didn’t go far enough to suit liberals. Republicans, especially after his 1980 defeat, cast him as a left-wing cartoon. It would be easiest to classify Carter as a centrist, Buttigieg said, “but there’s also something radical about the depth of his commitment to looking after those who are left out of society and out of the economy.” Indeed, Carter’s legacy is stitched with complexities, contradictions and evolutions — personal and political. The self-styled peacemaker was a war-trained Naval Academy graduate who promised Democratic challenger Ted Kennedy that he’d “kick his ass.” But he campaigned with a call to treat everyone with “respect and compassion and with love.” Carter vowed to restore America’s virtue after the shame of Vietnam and Watergate, and his technocratic, good-government approach didn’t suit Republicans who tagged government itself as the problem. It also sometimes put Carter at odds with fellow Democrats. The result still was a notable legislative record, with wins on the environment, education, and mental health care. He dramatically expanded federally protected lands, began deregulating air travel, railroads and trucking, and he put human rights at the center of U.S. foreign policy. As a fiscal hawk, Carter added a relative pittance to the national debt, unlike successors from both parties. Carter nonetheless struggled to make his achievements resonate with the electorate he charmed in 1976. Quoting Bob Dylan and grinning enthusiastically, he had promised voters he would “never tell a lie.” Once in Washington, though, he led like a joyless engineer, insisting his ideas would become reality and he’d be rewarded politically if only he could convince enough people with facts and logic. This served him well at Camp David, where he brokered peace between Israel’s Menachem Begin and Epypt’s Anwar Sadat, an experience that later sparked the idea of The Carter Center in Atlanta. Carter’s tenacity helped the center grow to a global force that monitored elections across five continents, enabled his freelance diplomacy and sent public health experts across the developing world. The center’s wins were personal for Carter, who hoped to outlive the last Guinea worm parasite, and nearly did. As president, though, the approach fell short when he urged consumers beleaguered by energy costs to turn down their thermostats. Or when he tried to be the nation’s cheerleader, beseeching Americans to overcome a collective “crisis of confidence.” Republican Ronald Reagan exploited Carter’s lecturing tone with a belittling quip in their lone 1980 debate. “There you go again,” the former Hollywood actor said in response to a wonky answer from the sitting president. “The Great Communicator” outpaced Carter in all but six states. Carter later suggested he “tried to do too much, too soon” and mused that he was incompatible with Washington culture: media figures, lobbyists and Georgetown social elites who looked down on the Georgians and their inner circle as “country come to town.” Carter carefully navigated divides on race and class on his way to the Oval Office. Born Oct. 1, 1924 , Carter was raised in the mostly Black community of Archery, just outside Plains, by a progressive mother and white supremacist father. Their home had no running water or electricity but the future president still grew up with the relative advantages of a locally prominent, land-owning family in a system of Jim Crow segregation. He wrote of President Franklin Roosevelt’s towering presence and his family’s Democratic Party roots, but his father soured on FDR, and Jimmy Carter never campaigned or governed as a New Deal liberal. He offered himself as a small-town peanut farmer with an understated style, carrying his own luggage, bunking with supporters during his first presidential campaign and always using his nickname. And he began his political career in a whites-only Democratic Party. As private citizens, he and Rosalynn supported integration as early as the 1950s and believed it inevitable. Carter refused to join the White Citizens Council in Plains and spoke out in his Baptist church against denying Black people access to worship services. “This is not my house; this is not your house,” he said in a churchwide meeting, reminding fellow parishioners their sanctuary belonged to God. Yet as the appointed chairman of Sumter County schools he never pushed to desegregate, thinking it impractical after the Supreme Court’s 1954 Brown v. Board decision. And while presidential candidate Carter would hail the 1965 Voting Rights Act, signed by fellow Democrat Lyndon Johnson when Carter was a state senator, there is no record of Carter publicly supporting it at the time. Carter overcame a ballot-stuffing opponent to win his legislative seat, then lost the 1966 governor’s race to an arch-segregationist. He won four years later by avoiding explicit mentions of race and campaigning to the right of his rival, who he mocked as “Cufflinks Carl” — the insult of an ascendant politician who never saw himself as part the establishment. Carter’s rural and small-town coalition in 1970 would match any victorious Republican electoral map in 2024. Once elected, though, Carter shocked his white conservative supporters — and landed on the cover of Time magazine — by declaring that “the time for racial discrimination is over.” Before making the jump to Washington, Carter befriended the family of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., whom he’d never sought out as he eyed the governor’s office. Carter lamented his foot-dragging on school integration as a “mistake.” But he also met, conspicuously, with Alabama’s segregationist Gov. George Wallace to accept his primary rival’s endorsement ahead of the 1976 Democratic convention. “He very shrewdly took advantage of his own Southerness,” said Amber Roessner, a University of Tennessee professor and expert on Carter’s campaigns. A coalition of Black voters and white moderate Democrats ultimately made Carter the last Democratic presidential nominee to sweep the Deep South. Then, just as he did in Georgia, he used his power in office to appoint more non-whites than all his predecessors had, combined. He once acknowledged “the secret shame” of white Americans who didn’t fight segregation. But he also told Alter that doing more would have sacrificed his political viability – and thus everything he accomplished in office and after. King’s daughter, Bernice King, described Carter as wisely “strategic” in winning higher offices to enact change. “He was a leader of conscience,” she said in an interview. Rosalynn Carter, who died on Nov. 19 at the age of 96, was identified by both husband and wife as the “more political” of the pair; she sat in on Cabinet meetings and urged him to postpone certain priorities, like pressing the Senate to relinquish control of the Panama Canal. “Let that go until the second term,” she would sometimes say. The president, recalled her former aide Kathy Cade, retorted that he was “going to do what’s right” even if “it might cut short the time I have.” Rosalynn held firm, Cade said: “She’d remind him you have to win to govern.” Carter also was the first president to appoint multiple women as Cabinet officers. Yet by his own telling, his career sprouted from chauvinism in the Carters’ early marriage: He did not consult Rosalynn when deciding to move back to Plains in 1953 or before launching his state Senate bid a decade later. Many years later, he called it “inconceivable” that he didn’t confer with the woman he described as his “full partner,” at home, in government and at The Carter Center. “We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, and it continued when Jimmy got involved in politics,” Rosalynn Carter told AP in 2021. So deep was their trust that when Carter remained tethered to the White House in 1980 as 52 Americans were held hostage in Tehran, it was Rosalynn who campaigned on her husband’s behalf. “I just loved it,” she said, despite the bitterness of defeat. Fair or not, the label of a disastrous presidency had leading Democrats keep their distance, at least publicly, for many years, but Carter managed to remain relevant, writing books and weighing in on societal challenges. He lamented widening wealth gaps and the influence of money in politics. He voted for democratic socialist Bernie Sanders over Hillary Clinton in 2016, and later declared that America had devolved from fully functioning democracy to “oligarchy.” Yet looking ahead to 2020, with Sanders running again, Carter warned Democrats not to “move to a very liberal program,” lest they help re-elect President Donald Trump. Carter scolded the Republican for his serial lies and threats to democracy, and chided the U.S. establishment for misunderstanding Trump’s populist appeal. He delighted in yearly convocations with Emory University freshmen, often asking them to guess how much he’d raised in his two general election campaigns. “Zero,” he’d gesture with a smile, explaining the public financing system candidates now avoid so they can raise billions. Carter still remained quite practical in partnering with wealthy corporations and foundations to advance Carter Center programs. Carter recognized that economic woes and the Iran crisis doomed his presidency, but offered no apologies for appointing Paul Volcker as the Federal Reserve chairman whose interest rate hikes would not curb inflation until Reagan’s presidency. He was proud of getting all the hostages home without starting a shooting war, even though Tehran would not free them until Reagan’s Inauguration Day. “Carter didn’t look at it” as a failure, Alter emphasized. “He said, ‘They came home safely.’ And that’s what he wanted.” Well into their 90s, the Carters greeted visitors at Plains’ Maranatha Baptist Church, where he taught Sunday School and where he will have his last funeral before being buried on family property alongside Rosalynn . Carter, who made the congregation’s collection plates in his woodworking shop, still garnered headlines there, calling for women’s rights within religious institutions, many of which, he said, “subjugate” women in church and society. Carter was not one to dwell on regrets. “I am at peace with the accomplishments, regret the unrealized goals and utilize my former political position to enhance everything we do,” he wrote around his 90th birthday. The politician who had supposedly hated Washington politics also enjoyed hosting Democratic presidential contenders as public pilgrimages to Plains became advantageous again. Carter sat with Buttigieg for the final time March 1, 2020, hours before the Indiana mayor ended his campaign and endorsed eventual winner Joe Biden. “He asked me how I thought the campaign was going,” Buttigieg said, recalling that Carter flashed his signature grin and nodded along as the young candidate, born a year after Carter left office, “put the best face” on the walloping he endured the day before in South Carolina. Never breaking his smile, the 95-year-old host fired back, “I think you ought to drop out.” “So matter of fact,” Buttigieg said with a laugh. “It was somehow encouraging.” Carter had lived enough, won plenty and lost enough to take the long view. “He talked a lot about coming from nowhere,” Buttigieg said, not just to attain the presidency but to leverage “all of the instruments you have in life” and “make the world more peaceful.” In his farewell address as president, Carter said as much to the country that had embraced and rejected him. “The struggle for human rights overrides all differences of color, nation or language,” he declared. “Those who hunger for freedom, who thirst for human dignity and who suffer for the sake of justice — they are the patriots of this cause.” Carter pledged to remain engaged with and for them as he returned “home to the South where I was born and raised,” home to Plains, where that young lieutenant had indeed become “a fellow citizen of the world.” —- Bill Barrow, based in Atlanta, has covered national politics including multiple presidential campaigns for the AP since 2012.Ohio State's loss to Michigan on Saturday has brought on more criticism for head coach Ryan Day, who has struggled against the Wolverines over the last few seasons. 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TILT Holdings TLLTF is at a critical juncture as it explores divesting its plant-touching business (PTB), which generates 75% of its revenue but continues to struggle with declining margins. Massachusetts operations, contributing two-thirds of revenue, are under pressure from market saturation, while Pennsylvania's wholesale arm faces reduced purchases as vertically integrated operators prioritize in-house products. Gross margins across TILT fell from 18% in Q1 to 14% in Q3, reflecting challenges across all divisions. Analyst Pablo Zuanic values the PTB between $20–$30 million, a modest sum given the company's $3 million market cap and heavy debt burden. Get Benzinga’s exclusive analysis and the top news about the cannabis industry and markets daily in your inbox for free. Subscribe to our newsletter here . You can't afford to miss out if you’re serious about the business. Debt Remains A Major Hurdle Despite Positive Cash Flow TILT's financial health is constrained by $62 million in net debt, with $12 million due in 2025 and $38 million in 2026, alongside $44 million in lease obligations. However, Zuanic highlights a positive development: TILT generated $2 million in operating cash flow in Q3 2024. Jupiter’s Challenges: A Dual Front Jupiter, TILT's vape subsidiary , is contending with both operational setbacks and broader market shifts. U.S. sales dropped to $9.4 million in Q3 2024, down from $15 million in the same period last year, even after adjusting for the transition of half its sales to a 15% distribution fee model. Canadian sales grew 11% to $6.4 million but saw gross margins collapse from 29% to zero. Zuanic calculates that Jupiter's distribution fees could generate $9 million annually at 100% gross margins, with the remaining $53 million in sales yielding 20% margins. This would produce $20 million in gross profit, making Jupiter potentially profitable with $10 million in EBITDA. However, Zuanic remains cautious about the sustainability of these projections given continued market share erosion. Read Also: LEEF Brands Completes 10:1 Share Consolidation Competitive Landscape And CCELL Partnership Jupiter's long-standing partnership with CCELL is adapting to shifting market dynamics. CCELL has diversified its production outside China to mitigate geopolitical risks, while also strengthening direct U.S. customer support. Zuanic raises concerns about potential overlap between CCELL's direct operations and Jupiter's business , warning that structural changes may be necessary to preserve market leadership. Consumer preferences are shifting toward all-in-one devices (AIOs), prompting Jupiter to invest in proprietary technologies and bolster its supply chain. Despite these efforts, the company has yet to reverse a five-year trend of declining market share. Zuanic underscores the importance of aligning innovation with operational efficiency to stay competitive. For a deeper dive into his methodology and projections, visit Zuanic & Associates' research portal . Read Next: Texas AG Ken Paxton Sues Dallas Over Cannabis Decriminalization Reform © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.Fire and Emergency's (FENZ) chief executive says the organisation is working to abolish poor behaviour. Kerry Gregory's message on social media comes after two independent reviews outlined bullying, harassment, sexism and racism in its culture . He said the organisation's reputation was being tarnished by those acting inappropriately, and those not willing to follow FENZ's code of conduct should leave. "My message is simple. Enough's enough. "Our organisation's values are not just words on a page. They describe who we are and what we want to be. If you're not willing to uphold our values, be accountable for your actions and show respect for those around you, then maybe Fire and Emergency is no longer the place for you to work or volunteer." In the video, Gregory acknowledged members who felt anxious and unsafe about going to work, saying it genuinely upsets him. "The feedback we received was direct and difficult to hear, but it was accurate and necessary and I'm committed to doing it better. "When I reflect on why this behaviour has continued, I believe it's because there's a sense that it's acceptable or that those responsible are untouchable and there's been a lack of trust in our organisation's ability to act." He said it needed to stop for the safety of FENZ staff. Gregory wanted members to hold themselves and other staff accountable. "If you see or hear something that you feel crosses the line, whether it's hurtful, disrespectful or just doesn't sit well with you, say something. This isn't about confrontation, it's about having honest conversations." Speaking to RNZ's Midday Report on Friday, Gregory said a lot of work had been done since the culture review in 2022 "to actually get the things in line, to give our people more tools to be able to, to deal with them". "We've put an independent complaints management process in place, not only to raise complaints, but also to get advice on how [staff] can deal with things. And we've now just put in place our code of conduct and our managing inappropriate behaviour and conduct policy." Gregory defended the years-long timeframe, saying culture change "takes a long time". "It's a long journey and on the whole, you know, our people are really good - but [there are] certainly pockets that I'm seeing where it is inappropriate behaviour... I don't think there's any place in FENZ for bullying, harassment, racism, sexism, all those. And like I said, culture change takes time and it takes a whole organisation to be able to wrap behind them and actually move the culture." He said since 2022 FENZ had "taken quite a different approach. To lead from the top, you cannot just say 'we need to change our culture'. Not everyone sees that, because the parts of the organisation that many of our people work in have a really good culture, really supportive of this... but where it's not appropriate, that's where there's no place for that in FENZ." The video's release was not a pre-emptive move against forthcoming information that might put FENZ in a bad light, he said. "It's just a chance to remind people and say, I need you as well. I need you to help to change the culture and, and get rid of these inappropriate behaviours... the video is not meant to be a game changer. The video is meant to be a call to action and for people to really think about their behaviour and the behaviours of others." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.BOSTON, Dec. 09, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Block & Leviton announces that a securities fraud lawsuit has been filed against Kyverna Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: KYTX) and certain of its executives. Investors who have lost money in their Kyverna Therapeutics, Inc. investment should contact the firm to learn more about how they might recover those losses. For more details, visit https://blockleviton.com/cases/kytx . What is this all about? Kyverna Therapeutics has been sued for securities law violations. The lawsuit alleges that at the time of the company's February 2024 IPO, it knew adverse data about one of Kyverna's drug trials, which it kept from the market, in violation of federal securities laws. Those who purchased Kyverna shares traceable to the company's IPO may be eligible to recover for their losses. Who is eligible? Anyone who purchased Kyverna Therapeutics, Inc. common stock between February 07, 2024 and December 09, 2024 and has seen their shares fall may be eligible, whether or not they have sold their investment. Investors should contact Block & Leviton to learn more. What should you do next? The deadline to seek appointment as lead plaintiff is February 07, 2025. A class has not yet been certified, and until a certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member. If you've lost money on your investment, you should contact Block & Leviton to learn more via our case website , by email at shareholders@blockleviton.com , or by phone at (888) 256-2510. Whistleblower? If you have non-public information about Kyverna Therapeutics, Inc., you should consider assisting in our investigation or working with our attorneys to file a report with the Securities Exchange Commission under their whistleblower program. Whistleblowers who provide original information to the SEC may receive rewards of up to 30% of any successful recovery. For more information, contact Block & Leviton at whistleblowers@blockleviton.com or by phone at (888) 256-2510. Why should you contact Block & Leviton? Block & Leviton is widely regarded as one of the leading securities class action firms in the country. Our attorneys have recovered billions of dollars for defrauded investors and are dedicated to obtaining significant recoveries on behalf of our clients through active litigation in the federal courts across the country. Many of the nation's top institutional investors hire us to represent their interests. You can learn more about us at our website, www.blockleviton.com , call (888) 256-2510 or email shareholders@blockleviton.com with any questions. This notice may constitute attorney advertising. CONTACT: BLOCK & LEVITON LLP 260 Franklin St., Suite 1860 Boston, MA 02110 Phone: (888) 256-2510 Email: shareholders@blockleviton.comGus Malzahn is leaving his post as UCF's head coach to reunite with Florida State coach Mike Norvell as the Seminoles' offensive coordinator, ESPN reported on Saturday. Norvell, who served as a graduate assistant under Malzahn at Tulsa in 2007-08, relinquished his role as FSU's primary playcaller amid a staff shakeup this season. Florida State, 1-7 in the Athletic Coast Conference this season, entered Saturday's season finale against Florida at 2-9 and ranked No. 131 in the nation in total offense. UCF also endured a tough 2024 season, going 4-8 after losing eight of its last nine games. During Malzahn's four-year tenure, the Knights went 28-24, including 5-13 in the Big 12 Conference the last two seasons. Malzahn, 59, is 105-62 in 13 seasons as a college head coach, highlighted by a 68-35 mark in eight seasons at Auburn -- which included a BCS title game appearance in 2013. He served as offensive coordinator and playcaller when the Tigers won the national title in 2010. Malzahn will be tasked with revitalizing a Florida State offense that helped produce a 13-1 campaign in 2023, when the Seminoles were denied a spot in the College Football Playoff. Over the last three seasons at UCF, his rushing attack has been in the Top 10 in the nation. In his 19 seasons as a college head coach or offensive coordinator, Malzahn's teams have averaged 447.7 yards per game, and three of his teams eclipsed 7,000 yards in a season. --Field Level Media

Commentary: Whether we were born in SC or out, we all have a story and a historyTV legend confirms ‘catastrophic’ event amid huge Casualty ChristmasScott Gillingham. Wab Kinew. A battle on the ice for hockey supremacy. The Manitoba premier is set to face off against Winnipeg's mayor on Nov. 30 to mark Winnipeg's 150th anniversary. Gillingham, councillors, and members of Winnipeg's Public Service will hit the ice against Kinew, MLAs, and provincial staff in a friendly competition. "I can't promise the hockey will be pretty, but municipal government is about being scrappy and digging hard in the corners. We're going to give it 110 per cent and stick to the game plan," Gillingham said in a news release. This matchup is meant to recreate a game from 50 years ago when then-mayor Stephen Juba and his City Fathers team battled former premier Edward Schreyer and his Golden Boys. An old poster for a hockey game between former mayor Stephen Juba and his City Fathers team and former premier Edward Schreyer and his Golden Boys. Uploaded Nov. 21, 2024. (Winnipeg Archives) "I'm excited to face off with the mayor and his team to celebrate Winnipeg's 150th anniversary in front of a packed barn full of the best fans in the NHL – Manitobans," said Kinew in a news release. The two teams will clash at the Gateway Recreation Centre at 1717 Gateway Rd. Puck drop is at 11:15 a.m., admission is free, and the first 250 people to show up will get free hotdogs and drinks. The city is also encouraging people to bring non-perishable food items to donate to Manitoba Harvest.

Oil prices higher on China boost, Syria uncertaintyhalf the weight of a typical lithium-ion battery. Netherlands-based VC Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam led the round. It's an extension on CarbonX's €10mn capital injection announced in February, capping off the funding round at a cosy €14mn. Graphite is the go-to material for lithium-ion battery anodes, which is the negative electrode responsible for storing and releasing electrons during the charging and discharging process. Its found in batteries that power everything from EVs to smartphones. The EU imports almost 100% of its graphite from China, which recently imposed restrictions on exports of the carbon-based material amid rising political tensions between Bejing and the West. "A resilient battery supply chain is crucial for global electrification," said CarbonX's co-founder Rutger van Raalten. "Yet, we don't see sufficient alternatives for locally sourcing critical raw materials such as graphite." CarbonX wants to offer European and American battery makers a way to source a... Siôn GeschwindtPresident Joe Biden paid tribute to his “great friend” and predecessor in the White House, Jimmy Carter , who died earlier today at 100. Biden also said that he will be ordering an official state funeral for the former president. Traditionally, during such ceremonies, the former president lies in state at the Capitol Rotunda, followed by a funeral at Washington National Cathedral. The flag at the White House also was lowered to half staff this evening. “Today, America and the world lost an extraordinary leader, statesman and humanitarian,” Biden said. “Over six decades, we had the honor of calling Jimmy Carter a dear friend. But, what’s extraordinary about Jimmy Carter, though, is that millions of people throughout America and the world who never met him thought of him as a dear friend as well.” Biden said last year that Carter had asked him to deliver his eulogy. Biden was the first sitting U.S. senator to endorse Carter’s presidential bid in 1975, when his run for the White House was still considered a long shot bid. “With his compassion and moral clarity, he worked to eradicate disease, forge peace, advance civil rights and human rights, promote free and fair elections, house the homeless, and always advocate for the least among us. He saved, lifted, and changed the lives of people all across the globe,” Biden said. “He was a man of great character and courage, hope and optimism. We will always cherish seeing him and Rosalynn together. The love shared between Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter is the definition of partnership and their humble leadership is the definition of patriotism.” Biden and First Lady Jill Biden visited Carter and Rosalynn Carter at their home in Plains in 2021. “We sat and talked about the old days,” Biden said, per the AP. Rosalynn Carter died last year. “We will miss them both dearly, but take solace knowing they are reunited once again and will remain forever in our hearts.” “To the entire Carter family, we send our gratitude for sharing them with America and the world. To their staff – from the earliest days to the final ones – we have no doubt that you will continue to do the good works that carry on their legacy. “And to all of the young people in this nation and for anyone in search of what it means to live a life of purpose and meaning – the good life – study Jimmy Carter, a man of principle, faith, and humility. He showed that we are great nation because we are a good people – decent and honorable, courageous and compassionate, humble and strong.” The Carters were present at the last state funeral, held in 2018 for former President George H.W. Bush.

ATLANTA , Dec. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cousins Properties Incorporated (the "Company" or "Cousins") (NYSE:CUZ) announced today that its operating partnership, Cousins Properties LP (the "Operating Partnership"), has priced an offering of $400 million aggregate principal amount of 5.375% senior unsecured notes due 2032 at 99.463% of the principal amount. The offering is expected to close on December 17, 2024 , subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. Cousins intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to fund a portion of the purchase price of 601 West 2nd Street, also known as Sail Tower, an 804,000 square foot trophy lifestyle office property in Austin (the "Sail Tower Acquisition"), and the remainder to repay borrowings under its credit facility and for general corporate purposes. In the event the Sail Tower Acquisition is not completed, Cousins will use the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes, including the acquisition and development of office properties, other opportunistic investments and the repayment of debt. The notes will be fully and unconditionally guaranteed on a senior unsecured basis by the Company. J.P. Morgan, Truist Securities, US Bancorp, BofA Securities, Morgan Stanley, PNC Capital Markets LLC, TD Securities and Wells Fargo Securities are acting as joint book-running managers. A shelf registration statement relating to these securities is effective with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The offering may be made only by means of a prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus. Copies of these documents may be obtained by contacting J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, 383 Madison Avenue, New York, New York , 10179, Attention: Investment Grade Syndicate Desk, 3rd Floor, telephone collect at 1-212-834-4533; Truist Securities, Inc., Attention: Prospectus Department, 303 Peachtree Street, Atlanta, GA 30308, telephone: 800-685-4786, or e-mail: TruistSecurities.prospectus@Truist.com ; or U.S. Bancorp Investments, Inc., Attention: High Grade Syndicate, 214 North Tryon Street, 26th Floor, Charlotte, NC 28202, or by telephone at: (877) 558-2607. Electronic copies of these documents are also available from the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov . This press release is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell the notes, nor shall it constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale is unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction. About Cousins Properties Cousins Properties is a fully integrated, self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust ("REIT"). The Company, based in Atlanta, GA and acting through the Operating Partnership, primarily invests in Class A office buildings located in high growth Sun Belt markets. Founded in 1958, Cousins creates shareholder value through its extensive expertise in the development, acquisition, leasing, and management of high-quality real estate assets. The Company has a comprehensive strategy in place based on a simple platform, trophy assets, and opportunistic investments. Forward-Looking Statements Certain matters contained in this press release are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws and are subject to uncertainties and risks, as itemized in Item 1A included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and in the Company's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended June 30, 2024 and September 30, 2024 . These forward-looking statements include information about the Company's possible or assumed future results of the business and the Company's financial condition, liquidity, results of operations, plans, and objectives. They also include, among other things, statements regarding subjects that are forward-looking by their nature, such as: guidance and underlying assumptions; business and financial strategy; future debt financings; future acquisitions and dispositions of operating assets or joint venture interests; future acquisitions and dispositions of land, including ground leases; future acquisitions of investments in real estate debt; future development and redevelopment opportunities; future issuances and repurchases of common stock, limited partnership units, or preferred stock; future distributions; projected capital expenditures; market and industry trends; future occupancy or volume and velocity of leasing activity; entry into new markets, changes in existing market concentrations, or exits from existing markets; future changes in interest rates and liquidity of capital markets; and all statements that address operating performance, events, investments, or developments that we expect or anticipate will occur in the future — including statements relating to creating value for stockholders. Any forward-looking statements are based upon management's beliefs, assumptions, and expectations of our future performance, taking into account information that is currently available. These beliefs, assumptions, and expectations may change as a result of possible events or factors, not all of which are known. If a change occurs, our business, financial condition, liquidity, and results of operations may vary materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements. Actual results may vary from forward-looking statements due to, but not limited to, the following: the availability and terms of capital and our ability to obtain and maintain financing arrangements on terms favorable to us or at all; the ability to refinance or repay indebtedness as it matures; any changes to our credit rating; the failure of purchase, sale, or other contracts to ultimately close; the failure to achieve anticipated benefits from acquisitions, developments, investments, or dispositions; the effect of common stock or operating partnership unit issuances, including those undertaken on a forward basis, which may negatively affect the market price of our common stock; the availability of buyers and pricing with respect to the disposition of assets; changes in national and local economic conditions, the real estate industry, and the commercial real estate markets in which we operate (including supply and demand changes), particularly in Atlanta , Austin , Tampa , Charlotte , Phoenix , Dallas , and Nashville , including the impact of high unemployment, volatility in the public equity and debt markets, and international economic and other conditions; threatened terrorist attacks or sociopolitical unrest such as political instability, civil unrest, armed hostilities, or political activism, which may result in a disruption of day-to-day building operations; changes to our strategy in regard to our real estate assets may require impairment to be recognized; leasing risks, including the ability to obtain new tenants or renew expiring tenants, the ability to lease newly-developed and/or recently acquired space, the failure of a tenant to commence or complete tenant improvements on schedule or to occupy leased space, and the risk of declining leasing rates; changes in the preferences of our tenants brought about by the desire for co-working arrangements, trends toward utilizing less office space per employee, and the effect of employees working remotely; any adverse change in the financial condition or liquidity of one or more of our tenants or borrowers under our real estate debt investments; volatility in interest rates (including the impact upon the effectiveness of forward interest rate contract arrangements) and insurance rates; inflation; competition from other developers or investors; the risks associated with real estate developments (such as zoning approval, receipt of required permits, construction delays, cost overruns, and leasing risk); supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and increased construction costs; risks associated with security breaches through cyberattacks, cyber intrusions or otherwise, as well as other significant disruptions of our information technology networks and related systems, which support our operations and our buildings; changes in senior management, changes in the Company's board of directors, and the loss of key personnel; the potential liability for uninsured losses, condemnation, or environmental issues; the potential liability for a failure to meet regulatory requirements, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and similar laws or the impact of any investigation regarding the same; the financial condition and liquidity of, or disputes with, joint venture partners; any failure to comply with debt covenants under debt instruments and credit agreements; any failure to continue to qualify for taxation as a real estate investment trust or meet regulatory requirements; potential changes to state, local, or federal regulations applicable to our business; material changes in dividend rates on common shares or other securities or the ability to pay those dividends; potential changes to the tax laws impacting real estate investment trusts and real estate in general; risks associated with climate change and severe weather events, as well as the regulatory efforts intended to reduce the effects of climate changes and investor and public perception of our efforts to respond to the same; the impact of newly adopted accounting principles on our accounting policies and on period-to-period comparisons of financial results; risks associated with possible federal, state, local, or property tax audits; and those additional risks and environmental or other factors discussed in reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by the Company. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company cannot guarantee the accuracy of any such forward-looking statements contained in this press release, and the Company does not intend to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Contacts Roni Imbeaux Vice President, Finance and Investor Relations 404-407-1104 rimbeaux@cousins.com View original content: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cousins-properties-announces-pricing-of-senior-notes-offering-302330787.html SOURCE Cousins PropertiesMINNETONKA, Minn. — A Minnetonka woman is helping connect the ALS community through an app. On Jan. 5, 2022, Faith's son, Scott, was diagnosed with ALS. ALS is a fatal neurological disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Scott was 50 years old at the time of his diagnosis. He was a marathon runner and avid cyclist. "For parents with children with ALS, no one wants to think they're going to watch their child die before them. It's just not the way it goes, right?" Faith said. "Our children are supposed to outlive us." Scott is what doctors call a "slow progressor." So right now, he doesn't need as much help from caregivers. It was his diagnosis that inspired Faith to do more. "I'm going to spend as much time as I can working for the great ALS community and working to make their lives as good as we possibly can under the circumstances," Faith said. Faith thrust herself into research and organizations supporting the cure for ALS. She started getting involved with Everything ALS . It's a nonprofit that's committed to bringing technology innovations and data science to support efforts from care to cure for people living with the disease. Everything ALS does that through patient-driven research, and most recently — an app. The organization launched an app-based program called "Pathfinders" a few months ago. It's aimed to empower, connect and offer essential resources to the ALS community. Those impacted by the disease know it can be isolating. Through the app, the ALS community can connect with one of nine pathfinders. Faith is one of them. "When you give, you get," Faith said. "So for me, giving to other people the love and response that I get from them, knowing that I've helped them, it just warms my heart. That feeds me." Both caregivers and people living with ALS can reach out to a pathfinder about anything — from anticipatory grief to catheter recommendations to other ALS-related resources. "People can read our bios and say, 'Oh this is the mother of someone with ALS. That's who I want to talk to because my child has ALS. They will truly understand my situation.' Or, 'Oh this pathfinder is a veteran. I need to learn more about the VA benefits. I'm going to connect with this pathfinder.'" she said. Right now, Everything ALS is still working to add more pathfinders to cater to more people and ultimately connect more people. The goal is to be able to provide the person on the other side of the app chat with whatever information, resources, or listening ear they might need. If you're interested in the program, click here or reach out to Faith at faith@everythingals.org . Beret Leone is a native Minnesotan who joined the WCCO team as a reporter in September 2022 - and she's thrilled be back home in the Twin Cities! Beret grew up in Chaska and graduated from Bethel University.A handful of South Carolina Republicans plan to reintroduce a bill that would define abortion as homicide — a crime punishable by death under state law. State Rep. Rob Harris (R) pre-filed the South Carolina Prenatal Equal Protection Act earlier this month, and it will be introduced in the judiciary committee when the legislative session begins in January. The proposed bill seeks to amend the state’s criminal code to widen the definition of “person” to include “an unborn child at any stage of development.” The bill would define abortion, with few exceptions, as equivalent to killing a person under the criminal code. South Carolina currently has a six-week abortion ban in effect. If passed, this bill would effectively enact a total abortion ban because it considers all abortion, starting “from the moment of fertilization,” to be homicide. South Carolina’s criminal code carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years in prison for homicide. Under special circumstances — including when a victim is under 11 years old — the minimum sentence can be life in prison or the death penalty. Taken together, this could mean anyone aborting a pregnancy in the state would face life in prison or execution. The proposal does include some exceptions for “spontaneous” miscarriage and life-saving procedures, but all too often these types of exceptions are real in name only . Harris originally introduced the same bill in 2023, and the idea that lawmakers would consider using capital punishment on people who get abortions sparked national outrage. Several Republicans who co-sponsored that bill quietly removed their names after public outcry. The 2023 version died shortly after it was introduced in the state House. Harris did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment this week, but defended the bill in 2023 to HuffPost reporter Lydia O’Connor. “My bill does not single out women,” Harris said at the time. “It prohibits everyone from committing murder. It provides the same due process that everyone enjoys under our current laws.” It’s very unlikely that the bill will go anywhere this time around. The current version has six co-sponsors, including Harris, all of whom are white men and members of the South Carolina Freedom Caucus, part of the more extreme sector of the Republican Party . “I think that the majority of people, even the most strident Republicans, would say the death penalty bill is not where we want to go with abortion,” Vicki Ringer, the director of public affairs at Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, told HuffPost. Support for prosecuting abortion patients is a fringe position, even within the anti-abortion movement, and most large groups have distanced themselves from the idea. Most anti-abortion laws include carve-outs to ensure that patients aren’t criminalized for their pregnancy outcomes. Still, many have been arrested despite these laws. Don't let this be the end of the free press. The free press is under attack — and America's future hangs in the balance. As other newsrooms bow to political pressure, HuffPost is not backing down. Would you help us keep our news free for all? We can't do it without you. Can't afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read. You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again . We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can't do it without you. Whether you give once or many more times, we appreciate your contribution to keeping our journalism free for all. You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest — we could use your help again . We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can't do it without you. Whether you give just one more time or sign up again to contribute regularly, we appreciate you playing a part in keeping our journalism free for all. Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages. Although Ringer believes the bill will be dead on arrival, she hopes people will not dismiss how frightening it is that some lawmakers are comfortable introducing legislation like this. “I don’t know who is getting equal protection, but it appears in South Carolina that only fetuses and embryos get equal protection,” she said. “Women and trans people do not.” Related From Our Partner