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Wisconsin at Nebraska: How we see the game playing out, and over/under picksMissed kicks. Poor tackling. Costly penalties. Week 12 was filled with sloppy play around the NFL, leading to some upsets and surprising outcomes. Jayden Daniels nearly led Washington to an improbable comeback down 10 in the final two minutes against Dallas only to fall short because Austin Seibert's extra point sailed wide left. After a field goal and successful onside kick, Daniels connected with Terry McLaurin on an 86-yard catch-and-run touchdown to bring the Commanders within one point with 21 seconds remaining. But Seibert's point-after attempt failed and the Cowboys returned the ensuing onside kick for a touchdown to seal a 34-26 victory. Special teams were atrocious for both teams. Seibert also missed his first extra point and Washington allowed KaVontae Turpin's 99-yard kickoff return for a score earlier in the fourth quarter. The Cowboys missed a field goal, had another blocked and had a punt blocked. "What a wild special teams moment of blocked punts, kicks, kickoff returns, blocked field goals, just a number of things going to that spot," Commanders coach Dan Quinn said. Washington (7-5) was a 10 1/2-point favorite over the undermanned Cowboys (4-7) but ended up losing a third straight game. The Houston Texans were 8-point favorites against the lowly Tennessee Titans and let the game come down to Ka'imi Fairbairn missing a 28-yard field goal that would have tied it with just under two minutes left. C.J. Stroud threw two interceptions, was sacked four times and the Texans (7-5) committed 11 penalties, including an illegal shift that negated a go-ahead 33-yard TD pass to Nico Collins on the drive that ended with Fairbairn's miss in the 32-27 loss. The Titans (3-8) averaged just 17 points per game before putting 32 on the scoreboard against Houston's defense that entered No. 4 in the league. "We didn't do anything well enough to win this game," Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. "Out of all the positives that we did have, there were way too many negatives. Too many negative plays. Score, get a penalty, get touchdowns called back. Get penalties on special teams. Just way too many negative plays defensively, like unexplainable explosives for touchdowns. We just didn't play good across the board." The San Francisco 49ers didn't have quarterback Brock Purdy, star edge rusher Nick Bosa and All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams against Green Bay. That was no excuse for their undisciplined performance. The Niners committed nine penalties and their tackling was shoddy in a 38-10 loss to the Packers. The defending NFC champions are 5-6 with a trip to Buffalo (9-2) coming up. They're still only one game behind Seattle and Arizona in the NFC West. "I'm really not concerned right now about how many guys were missing. We didn't play good enough, so that's not a factor. But, when you are missing some guys, you do have to be better. When you have those penalties and we didn't stop the run like we did and we had those three turnovers in the second half, that's how you get embarrassed." Coming off their first loss of the season, the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs needed Patrick Mahomes' heroics on the final drive to beat Carolina 30-27. Mahomes ran 33 yards to set up Spencer Schrader's 31-yard field goal as time expired. Kansas City had 10 penalties, including a pass interference that gave the Panthers (3-8) another chance to make the 2-point conversion that tied the game with 1:46 remaining. On defense, the Chiefs (10-1) suddenly shaky unit gave up 334 total yards against Bryce Young and an offense that entered last in the NFL. "We've got to do better. We're doing good in the red zone but that's only a third of the field," Chiefs safety Bryan Cook said. "We will go back and look at the film to see what we're doing week to week, and see the tendencies that we're giving up, and just move forward from there. At the end of the day, we're all vets in the room for the most part. ... got to go back to the drawing board and see what we're doing and correct it from there." The Vikings allowed the Bears to recover an onside kick with 21 seconds left and Caleb Williams followed with a 27-yard pass to D.J. Moore to set up Cairo Santos' tying 48-yard field goal. But Minnesota won in overtime, 30-27. The Chiefs and Vikings overcame their mistakes in narrow victories. The Commanders, Texans and 49ers couldn't. They have to be better down the stretch to make a playoff run. Get local news delivered to your inbox!
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ST. LOUIS (AP) — Missouri’s governor on Monday denied clemency for Christopher Collings , a death row inmate facing execution for sexually assaulting and killing a 9-year-old girl and leaving her body in a sinkhole. Collings, 49, is scheduled to receive a single injection of pentobarbital at 6 p.m. CST Tuesday at the state prison in Bonne Terre, Missouri, for the 2007 killing of fourth-grader Rowan Ford. It would be the 23rd execution in the U.S. this year and the fourth in Missouri. “Mr. Collings has received every protection afforded by the Missouri and United States Constitutions, and Mr. Collings’ conviction and sentence remain for his horrendous and callous crime,” Republican Gov. Mike Parson said in a statement. Parson’s decision likely sealed Collings’ fate. Earlier Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal on behalf of Collings, without comment. No additional appeals are planned, Collings' attorney, Jeremy Weis, said. Parson's decision was not unexpected — a former sheriff, Parson has overseen 12 previous executions without granting clemency. Weis said Parson has allowed other executions to proceed for inmates with innocence claims, intellectual disabilities and for men who were “reformed and remorseful” for their crimes. “In each case of redemption, the Governor has ignored the evidence and sought vengeance,” Weis said in a statement. Collings confessed to killing Rowan, a child who referred to him as “Uncle Chris” after Collings lived for several months with the girl’s family in tiny Stella, Missouri. Rowan was killed on Nov. 3, 2007. Her body was found in a sinkhole outside of town six days later. She had been strangled. The clemency petition said an abnormality of Collings’ brain causes him to suffer from “functional deficits in awareness, judgment and deliberation, comportment, appropriate social inhibition, and emotional regulation.” It also noted that he suffered from frequent and often violent abuse as a child. “The result was a damaged human being with no guidance on how to grow into a functioning adult,” the petition stated. The petition also challenged the fairness of executing Collings when another man charged in the crime, Rowan’s stepfather, David Spears, also confessed but was allowed to plead to lesser crimes. Spears served more than seven years in prison before his release in 2015. Collings told authorities that he drank heavily and smoked marijuana with Spears and another man in the hours before the attack on Rowan, according to court records. Collings said he picked up the sleeping child from her bed, took her to the camper where he lived and assaulted her there. He said he strangled the child with a rope when he realized she recognized him. Collings told investigators that he took the girl's body to a sinkhole. He burned the rope used in the attack, along with the clothes he was wearing and his bloodstained mattress, prosecutors said. Spears also implicated himself in the crimes, according to court documents and the clemency petition. A transcript of Spears’ statement to police, cited in the petition, said he told police that Collings handed him a cord and that he killed Rowan. “I choke her with it. I realize she’s gone. She’s ... she’s really gone,” Spears said, according to the transcript. It was Spears who led authorities to the sinkhole where her body was found, according to court documents. No phone listing could be found for Spears. The Supreme Court appeal challenged the reliability of the key law enforcement witness at Collings’ trial, a police chief from a neighboring town who had four AWOL convictions while serving in the Army. Failure to disclose details about that criminal history at trial violated Collings’ right to due process, Weis contended. “His credibility was really at the heart of the entire case against Mr. Collings," Weis said in an interview. Three men have been executed in Missouri this year — Brian Dorsey on April 9, David Hosier on June 11 and Marcellus Williams on Sept. 24. Only Alabama, with six, and Texas, with five, have performed more executions than Missouri in 2024.Veteran Wall Street investor Ed Yardeni is doubling down on one of the Street's most optimistic forecasts, projecting the S&P 500 to hit 7,000 by the end of 2025. In a Friday newsletter, Yardeni reinforced his bullish outlook, positioning himself at the forefront of high-stakes predictions for the index's 2025 gains. “We’ve been bullish on the stock market since October 2022. We remain bullish, targeting 7000 on the S&P 500 by the end of next year. That puts us near the head of the pack,” he said. Oppenheimer sets its sights on an even loftier 7,100, while major investment bank firms, including Goldman Sachs , JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley , hover around 6,500. But will the market's stars align or are we looking at overly rosy predictions? Top 10 Wall Street’s 2025 Year-End S&P 500 Predictions Oppenheimer 7,100 Wells Fargo 7,007 Yardeni Research 7,000 Deutsche Bank 7,000 Societe Generale 6,750 BMO 6,700 HSBC 6,700 Bank of America 6,666 Scotiabank 6,650 Barclays 6,660 Yardeni's Roaring 2020s Scenario Yardeni's optimism stems from a “Roaring 2020s” scenario fueled by productivity gains, GDP growth of 3.0%-3.5%, and inflation cooling near 2.5%. Earlier in November, he issued a bold prediction: the S&P 500 – as tracked by the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY – could climb to 10,000 by the end of the decade , buoyed by Donald Trump ‘s return to the presidency. "We believe Trump 2.0 represents a major regime change that’s bullish for the economy and stocks," Yardeni said. Hr also anticipated a significant boost to corporate profit margins, driven by the proposed reduction in the corporate tax rate from 21% to 15%, coupled with tax breaks on individual income from tips, overtime and Social Security. While much of the recent earnings growth has been dominated by the tech sector's "Magnificent 7," Yardeni foresees a broader rally on the horizon. "We expect to see a broadening of the companies and industries for which analysts raise their sights in 2025," he said. Earnings: The Backbone Of The Rally Yardeni forecasts operating earnings per share (EPS) for the S&P 500 to hit $285 in 2025 – an 18.8% year-over-year jump, far above the Street’s consensus of $270. “We're leading the pack on EPS outlook," Yardeni stated, attributing the growth to a record profit margin of 13.9% and rising revenues per share, which are projected to climb 5.1% to $2,050. Wall Street analysts expect robust earnings growth of 14.3% for 2025, up from the estimated 10% for 2024. Sector Winners And Losers: Tech Takes Retains The Crown Tech continues to dominate, with the Information Technology sector predicted to post EPS growth of 21.7% in 2025, up from 20.4% in 2024, according to consensus estimates. Analysts also expect a rebound in Health Care, with EPS growth accelerating from 5.0% this year to 20.1% in 2025. Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology are key drivers, with EPS expected to soar 33.1% and 30.9%, respectively. The Materials sector is gearing up for a strong rebound, expected to shift from an 8.2% EPS decline in 2024 to an impressive 18.3% growth in 2025. Similarly, Industrials are set to thrive, fueled by Boeing's return to profitability and surging growth in key industries such as Copper, projected to rise by 37.6%, Commodity Chemicals by 33.1% and Construction Materials by 24.8%. Read now: 5 Semiconductor Stocks Wall Street Analysts Predict Could Soar In 2025 Image generated using AI Via Midjourney © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Navy QB Blake Horvath's 95-yard TD run in Armed Forces Bowl win is longest play in school history
Former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, said on Friday that he does not intend to return to Congress after he resigned to become President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general nominee. Gaetz withdrew from consideration on Thursday as several Republican senators reportedly were not planning to vote to confirm his nomination. His nomination was potentially headed toward failure as senators raised concerns after the House Ethics Committee's findings into alleged sexual misconduct by Gaetz were not released to the public. The House Ethics Committee could have potentially released its findings, but Gaetz ended up leaving the House days before the committee's planned vote. After he resigned from Congress, Speaker Mike Johnson said the report and the committee's findings should not be made public. RELATED STORY | Matt Gaetz says he's removing his name for consideration for attorney general After Gaetz withdrew his nomination, there was speculation on whether Gaetz would attempt to return to Congress as he was reelected to the House earlier this month. Speaking to Charlie Kirk on Friday, he put an end to that speculation. "I'm still gonna be in the fight, but it's going to be from a new perch. I do not intend to join the 119th Congress," he said. "There are a number of fantastic Floridians who have stepped up to run for my seat." Gaetz said he has other goals in life after spending 16 years in elected office. "I am going to be fighting for President Trump," he said. "I am going to do whatever he asks of me, I always have. I think eight years is enough time in the United States Congress." Hours after Gaetz's announcement, Trump said that he would nominate former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to be his nominee. Gaetz's seat will be filled following a special election.
NoneThere is no right of privacy in the U.S. Constitution, at least there wasn’t until 1965, when the Supreme Court famously found one in “penumbras, formed by emanations” from the Bill of Rights. It wasn’t a unanimous decision. “With all deference, I can find no such general right of privacy in the Bill of Rights, in any other part of the Constitution, or in any case ever before decided by this Court,” wrote one of the dissenting justices. However, there is an explicit right to be free from uncontrolled government searches. It’s the Fourth Amendment: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” On Dec. 6, a report on financial surveillance in the United States was released by the House Judiciary Committee and the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. It reveals that the U.S. government has turned the 1970 Bank Secrecy Act, a law intended to stop money laundering, tax evasion and criminal activity, into a tool to break through the Fourth Amendment and search the lawful, private financial transactions of innocent Americans. According to the testimony of an FBI analyst, the Bureau considers financial institutions to be “partners.” It employed liaisons to reach out and “engage” them. That sounds a lot like the government’s “engagement” with social media platforms, its “partners” in the silencing of Americans who “spread misinformation” as the government defined or declared it. In both cases, the government coaxed or coerced its “partners” into doing what would be flatly illegal for the government to do itself. “All the operational divisions, they all have an element that has an engagement responsibility with the private sector and partnerships in general,” explained FBI “Financial Targeting” analyst Peter Sullivan in a transcribed interview, “It’s one of Director Wray’s pillars, his partnerships.” That would be FBI Director Christopher Wray, who just resigned. Here’s how the “partnership” worked with Bank of America a week after the events at the U.S Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Sullivan told bank contacts in a “brainstorming” email that they might want to file a Suspicious Activity Report listing all of the bank’s customers who had used a credit or debit card in the Washington, D.C. area on Jan. 5 or 6, had made a weapons purchase of any kind in the last six month, and had a travel reservation to come to Washington on Jan. 19 or 20, when the inauguration would be held. Without a warrant or any legal process, Bank of America sent the government a Suspicious Activity Report naming 211 customers who met those three conditions. Sullivan, whose title at the time was finance sector liaison and who testified that his role was limited to “terrorism,” took that list of 211 bank customers and identified four individuals who had made a “weapons-related transaction” after Jan. 6. Sullivan testified, “I remember going to my supervisor and saying, we should push out these four, do baseline queries of these four, which are basic criminal background queries, and push out via assessment — it’s called a Guardian. A Guardian is a no-stone-unturned assessment. It’s not an investigation. But we pushed those four Guardians out to three field offices, respectively.” The three field offices were Memphis, San Francisco and Tampa. Then the four “Guardians” were uploaded for the Washington Field Office, which “had a number of leads that were sent.” If you can’t already see it, let’s carefully go over what’s wrong with this. THEY CAN’T DO THAT TO AMERICANS. The government can’t “suggest” to federally regulated companies that they turn over lists of perfectly lawful customer transactions, then use the lists to imagine criminal plots, then send agents to knock on doors around the country to assess who might be a “domestic terrorist.” We have gone off the constitutional rails. “The FBI has manipulated the Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) filing process to treat financial institutions as de facto arms of law enforcement, issuing ‘requests,’ without legal process, that amount to demands for information related to certain persons or activities it considers ‘suspicious,’” the House committee reported. The 1970 Bank Secrecy Act requires financial institutions to file a Suspicious Activity Report whenever the financial institution itself identifies “a suspicious transaction relevant to a possible violation of law or regulation.” Banks must also file a Currency Transaction Report with the federal government whenever any person conducts a transaction or multiple transactions totaling $10,000 in a single day. Currency Transaction Reports have “proliferated exponentially” as well. According to the House report, “If a consumer purchased a car, furniture, jewelry, art, or made a tuition payment totaling more than $10,000, a CTR was likely filed containing the consumer’s information despite there being no evidence of any suspicious activity.” Who can see these reports? Tens of thousands of government employees in “472 federal, state and local law enforcement, regulatory and national security agencies.” In 2023 alone, the reports were searched 3,362,735 times. Without a warrant. The Judiciary Committee and Select Subcommittee also discovered that the federal government is “testing out new methods and new technology to continue the financial surveillance of Americans.” The Fourth Amendment should be enough to stop this. Call your representatives and read it to them. Write Susan@SusanShelley.com and follow her on X @Susan_Shelley
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LOWELL, Mass. (AP) — Max Brooks' 26 points helped UMass-Lowell defeat Dartmouth 92-83 on Saturday. Brooks added nine rebounds and four steals for the River Hawks (8-4). Quinton Mincey added 20 points while going 7 of 10 from the floor, including 3 for 5 from 3-point range, and 3 for 4 from the line while he also had six assists. Martin Somerville shot 3 for 10 (2 for 5 from 3-point range) and 4 of 7 from the free-throw line to finish with 12 points, while adding six rebounds. The Big Green (4-6) were led by Connor Amundsen, who posted 28 points and six assists. Cade Haskins added 16 points for Dartmouth. Jayden Williams also recorded 11 points. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .After being crowned Miss Idaho in June of this year, Madi Andreason has been busy making waves in the community and honing her talents as she prepares for the Miss America pageant. Andreason is an Idaho Falls native who moved to Pocatello four years ago to attend Idaho State University to seek bachelor's degrees in political science and paralegal studies. She left Pocatello on Friday for Orlando, Florida, where she'll represent Idaho in the 104th Miss America Pageant from Saturday, Dec. 28, to Sunday, Jan. 5. “Idaho has never won Miss America before,” Andreason said. “I really want to change that and show that Idaho has what it takes to be a good representative. Idaho deserves that representation. The things I've been working on are really making sure to get out in my community and promote my community service initiative. It's called Get Up and Get Out. It's a fitness-based initiative that harnesses exercise to strengthen your mental and physical well-being.” Andreason continued, “I've been making sure to go around Idaho and promote that (initiative) to show that Idaho is a state of servers. Idaho is a state of loving people and Idaho is a state of connected people. I’m just making sure that I bring that support system with me to Miss America.” Andreason said the Miss America Pageant has several competitive phases for the contestants including private interview, fitness, talent, evening gown and on-stage question. “It's just about being at the top of my game,” Andreason said. “I'm prepared for all the phases of competition and I'm really excited about my talent. I think it's very unique. I sing for my talent and I chose a very unique song that I think is really relevant to a lot of girls. It's from the 'Barbie' movie and so everyone will have to tune in to hear what it is. But I wanted to pick something that was super modern and relevant to a lot of the little girls that I hope to inspire.” Andreason said that one of her proudest moments after being crowned Miss Idaho was hosting her own 5K race last month. “Being able to accomplish that and knowing that I can achieve what I set my heart out to do, that was super exciting,” Andreason said. “I was able to raise money for the American Heart Association. That was probably one of my greatest accomplishments. I also went to Arkansas with a lot of the other title holders for the current Miss America. She organizes a 5K and a 10K and so I ran my first 10K in Arkansas with Miss Nevada to support the current Miss America.” Andreason continued, “That was a super exciting appearance that I got to go to and one of the most gratifying. I would say the challenges have been making sure to find that balance that I'm serving myself and putting time into myself. You can't be a good representative if you're not fueling yourself and putting yourself first. I always say you can’t perform from an empty well, so just give to yourself as well as give to others.” Despite being crowned Miss Idaho and having the rare opportunity to compete in the Miss America Pageant, there is a surreal feeling for Andreason to be in the spotlight where she admired the influential women who came before her. “It still hasn’t hit me that I'm going to Miss America and I don't think it's going to hit me until I step on the stage,” Andreason said. “I grew up watching Miss America as so many little girls do and I never thought that I would see myself in that audition. I always work on myself and I’m now realizing that I'm on the other side of it. I am the role model now. It's a really gratifying experience and my heart is so full knowing that it's come full circle. I did the teen pageants and it took me about six times to win. I struggled with feeling (if) I had what it took, but I made sure to put in the hard work. I think that hard work works and I just want to go out there and leave no doubt that Idaho is deserving of this.” Viewers can tune into the Miss America Pageant finale at 5 p.m. on the CW Network on Jan. 5.
Border measures begin to take effect in response to Trump’s tariff threat
Health In Tech Announces Closing of Initial Public OfferingKYIV: Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited Ukraine on Monday to reaffirm German support for Kyiv after becoming the first major ally of the war-torn country to speak to Vladimir Putin in years to urge negotiations. His surprise visit comes as Ukrainian forces are buckling across the eastern front and amid fears about future US support once Donald Trump returns to the White House in January. Russia launched another aerial barrage of hundreds of drones hours before Scholz arrived, leaving one dead and three wounded in the western Ukrainian city of Ternopil. Scholz had said he would meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky and announce another package of military support worth €650 million ($680 million) to be delivered by the end of the year. Scholz and Zelensky later met at an undisclosed location and reviewed military drones manufactured by Ukrainian and German firms. They also visited a hospital and spoke to people wounded in the war. “I would like to make it clear here on the ground that Germany will remain Ukraine’s strongest supporter in Europe,” said Scholz, who faces new elections in February after his coalition collapsed last month. “Ukraine can rely on Germany — we say what we do. And we do what we say,” he added in a post on social media. Scholz in mid-November spurred controversy and concern in Ukraine by becoming the first Western leader in years to speak by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Low Kremlin expectations for visit Zelensky at the time slammed the call, saying it had opened a “Pandora’s Box” by weakening Putin’s international isolation. In the call, Scholz condemned the war and “urged Russia to show willingness to negotiate with Ukraine with the aim of achieving a just and lasting peace”, the chancellor’s office said. The Kremlin said Monday that it had no expectations from Scholz’s visit. “I would not say we have expectations from this visit. Germany is continuing its line of unconditional support to Ukraine,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that Putin had not passed on a message to Zelensky through Scholz. Ukraine faces a tough winter, with Russia unleashing drone and missile attacks against its power grid. The air force said Russia had attacked overnight with 110 drones, including the Iranian-designed Shahed unmanned aerial vehicle from four regions of Russia. The bombardment killed a 45-year-old man in Ternopil, a town of around 224,000 people, where strikes last month left thousands without electricity, authorities said. “Unpunished evil never stops. And it will not limit itself by our borders,” Zelensky’s chief of staff Andriy Yermak wrote on social media in response to the attack. Scholz’s visit comes ahead of the January 20 inauguration of Trump, who has pledged to speedily end the war, raising fears he will try to force Ukraine to accept a deal on Moscow’s terms. ‘Russian roulette’ Separately, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Monday warned her Chinese counterpart that Beijing’s support for Moscow would impact ties and instead urged China to help end the Ukraine conflict. Zelensky said Sunday that his country needed security guarantees from NATO and more weapons to defend itself before any talks with Russia. He made the comments after meeting the EU’s new head of diplomacy Kaja Kallas and EU Council chief Antonio Costa, who were visiting Kyiv as a show of support on their first day in office. Under Scholz, Germany has become the second-biggest arms supplier to Ukraine after the United States, but has refused to send Kyiv long-range missiles that could strike deep inside Russia. Berlin has stuck to that approach even after US President Joe Biden gave the green light for Ukraine to fire long-range ATACMS missiles into Russia for the first time. In a campaign speech in Berlin on Saturday, Scholz criticized political rivals pushing for Germany’s Taurus long-range missile system to be delivered to Ukraine. Speaking to his Social Democratic Party, Scholz said that confronting Moscow, a nuclear power, with such a threat would amount to playing “Russian roulette” with Germany’s security. — AFP
By MATTHEW BROWN and JACK DURA BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Donald Trump assigned Doug Burgum a singular mission in nominating the governor of oil-rich North Dakota to lead an agency that oversees a half-billion acres of federal land and vast areas offshore: “Drill baby drill.” That dictate from the president-elect’s announcement of Burgum for Secretary of Interior sets the stage for a reignition of the court battles over public lands and waters that helped define Trump’s first term, with environmentalists worried about climate change already pledging their opposition. Burgum is an ultra-wealthy software industry entrepreneur who grew up on his family’s farm. He represents a tame choice compared to other Trump Cabinet picks. Public lands experts said his experience as a popular two-term governor who aligns himself with conservationist Teddy Roosevelt suggests a willingness to collaborate, as opposed to dismantling from within the agency he is tasked with leading. That could help smooth his confirmation and clear the way for the incoming administration to move quickly to open more public lands to development and commercial use. “Burgum strikes me as a credible nominee who could do a credible job as Interior secretary,” said John Leshy, who served as Interior’s solicitor under former President Bill Clinton. “He’s not a right-wing radical on public lands,” added Leshy, professor emeritus at the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco. The Interior Department manages about one-fifth of the country’s land with a mandate that spans from wildlife conservation and recreation to natural resource extraction and fulfilling treaty obligations with Native American tribes. Most of those lands are in the West, where frictions with private landowners and state officials are commonplace and have sometimes mushroomed into violent confrontations with right-wing groups that reject federal jurisdiction. Burgum if confirmed would be faced with a pending U.S. Supreme Court action from Utah that seeks to assert state power over Interior Department lands. North Dakota’s attorney general has supported the lawsuit, but Burgum’s office declined to say if he backs Utah’s claims. U.S. Justice Department attorneys on Thursday asked the Supreme Court to reject Utah’s lawsuit. They said Utah in 1894 agreed to give up its right to the lands at issue when it became a state. Trump’s narrow focus on fossil fuels is a replay from his 2016 campaign — although minus coal mining, a collapsing industry that he failed to revive in his first term. Trump repeatedly hailed oil as “liquid gold” on the campaign trail this year and largely omitted any mention of coal. About 26% of U.S. oil comes from federal lands and offshore waters overseen by Interior. Production continues to hit record levels under President Joe Biden despite claims by Trump that the Democrat hindered drilling. But industry representatives and their Republican allies say volumes could be further boosted. They want Burgum and the Interior Department to ramp up oil and gas sales from federal lands, in the Gulf of Mexico and offshore Alaska. The oil industry also hopes Trump’s government efficiency initiative led by billionaire Elon Musk can dramatically reduce environmental reviews. Biden’s administration reduced the frequency and size of lease sales, and it restored environmental rules that were weakened under Trump . The Democrat as a candidate in 2020 promised further restrictions on drilling to help combat global warming, but he struck a deal for the 2022 climate bill that requires offshore oil and gas sales to be held before renewable energy leases can be sold. “Oil and gas brings billions of dollars of revenue in, but you don’t get that if you don’t have leasing,” said Erik Milito with the National Ocean Industries Association, which represents offshore industries including oil and wind. Trump has vowed to kill offshore wind energy projects. But Milito said he was hopeful that with Burgum in place it would be “green lights ahead for everything, not just oil and gas.” It is unclear if Burgum would revive some of the most controversial steps taken at the agency during Trump’s first term, including relocating senior officials out of Washington, D.C., dismantling parts of the Endangered Species Act and shrinking the size of two national monuments in Utah designated by former President Barack Obama. Officials under Biden spent much of the past four years reversing Trump’s moves. They restored the Utah monuments and rescinded numerous Trump regulations. Onshore oil and gas lease sales plummeted — from more than a million acres sold annually under Trump and other previous administrations, to just 91,712 acres (37,115 hectares) sold last year — while many wind and solar projects advanced. Developing energy leases takes years, and oil companies control millions of acres that remain untapped. Biden’s administration also elevated the importance of conservation in public lands decisions, adopting a rule putting it more on par with oil and gas development. They proposed withdrawing parcels of land in six states from potential future mining to protect a struggling bird species, the greater sage grouse. North Dakota is among Republican states that challenged the Biden administration’s public lands rule. The states said in a June lawsuit that officials acting to prevent climate change have turned laws meant to facilitate development into policies that obstruct drilling, livestock grazing and other uses. Oil production boomed over the past two decades in North Dakota thanks in large part to better drilling techniques. Burgum has been an industry champion and last year signed a repeal of the state’s oil tax trigger — a price-based tax hike industry leaders supported removing. Burgum’s office declined an interview request. In a statement after his nomination, Burgum echoed Trump’s call for U.S. “energy dominance” in the global market. The 68-year-old governor also said the Interior post offered an opportunity to improve government relations with developers, tribes, landowners and outdoor enthusiasts “with a focus on maximizing the responsible use of our natural resources with environmental stewardship for the benefit of the American people.” Related Articles National Politics | Attorneys want the US Supreme Court to say Mississippi’s felony voting ban is cruel and unusual National Politics | Trump convinced Republicans to overlook his misconduct. But can he do the same for his nominees? National Politics | Beyond evangelicals, Trump and his allies courted smaller faith groups, from the Amish to Chabad National Politics | Trump’s team is delaying transition agreements. What does it mean for security checks and governing? National Politics | Judge delays Trump hush money sentencing in order to decide where case should go now Under current Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the agency put greater emphasis on working collaboratively with tribes, including their own energy projects . Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna tribe in New Mexico, also advanced an initiative to solve criminal cases involving missing and murdered Indigenous peoples and helped lead a nationwide reckoning over abuses at federal Indian boarding schools that culminated in a formal public apology from Biden. Burgum has worked with tribes in his state, including on oil development. Badlands Conservation Alliance director Shannon Straight in Bismarck, North Dakota, said Burgum has also been a big supporter of tourism in North Dakota and outdoor activities such as hunting and fishing. Yet Straight said that hasn’t translated into additional protections for land in the state. “Theodore Roosevelt had a conservation ethic, and we talk and hold that up as a beautiful standard to live by,” he said. “We haven’t seen it as much on the ground. ... We need to recognize the landscape is only going to be as good as some additional protections.” Burgum has been a cheerleader of the planned Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in Medora, North Dakota. Brown reported from Billings, Montana.
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