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Trinity Tower project receives $35M in loans from federal governmentSecretary of State Antony Blinken is heading back to the Middle East as the Biden administration tries to shape the unfolding chaos in Syria before Donald Trump returns to the White House. Blinken was scheduled to depart Washington for the region Wednesday, just days after a surprisingly rapid rebel advance across Syria ousted the brutal dictator Bashar Al-Assad from the capital Damascus. The trip is his 12th to the region since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in late 2023, and will begin in Jordan and continue in Turkey, two key allies that both have long borders with Syria. “The Secretary will reiterate the United States’ support for an inclusive, Syrian-led transition to an accountable and representative government,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement on Wednesday morning. The fall of the Assad regime, which had been supported by Iran and Russia, has led to jubilation among Syrians and massive celebrations in Damascus. But the power vacuum left by the sudden implosion, and the rise of an Islamist insurgent group backed by Turkey, has led to chaos and uncertainty that is already being exploited by both domestic groups and regional players. Israel has seized the moment to try and ensure that the Assad regime’s weapons don’t fall into the hands of any Islamist groups, sending fighter jets on hundreds of airstrikes over the past few days to destroy much of Syria’s naval and air force armaments. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also sent his armed forces into a military buffer zone between the two countries. Other armed groups supported by Turkey have also made inroads against U.S.-supported Kurdish forces, who have been battling Islamic State militants. The U.S. has about 900 troops based in Syria to assist that mission — which President Joe Biden has pledged to maintain. But Trump, who will assume power on Jan. 20, has been clear that he doesn’t consider Syria to be America’s problem — and many observers believe he will pull U.S. forces out of the beleaguered country, which has been engulfed by civil war since 2011. “Syria is a mess, but is not our friend,” he wrote on X over the weekend. “The United States should have nothing to do with it. This is not our fight. Let it play out. Do not get involved!” A key focus now for the Biden administration and other neighboring countries is preventing the resurgence of Islamic State, which emerged from the chaos of the disastrous 13-year civil war. But another crucial priority is trying to use U.S. leverage to forge the understandably chaotic current state of affairs into an ordered political process. A key part of that leverage is U.S. recognition of a new government, a move that would help Syria avoid the international isolation that has befallen the Taliban government in Afghanistan. On Tuesday, Blinken said in a statement that the U.S. would be prepared to recognize a Syrian government that adhered to certain principles. He said a new government must respect the rights of Syria’s minorities, help get aid to all those in need, prevent the country from being used as a base for terrorism or threatening neighbors, and ensure chemical weapons stockpiles are secured and destroyed. The Biden administration’s attempts over the last year to influence events in the Middle East have largely failed — most notably as the war in Gaza has dragged on and when Israel ignored U.S. warnings to expand the conflict with an invasion of Lebanon to confront the Hezbollah militia. While in the Middle East, Blinken will also discuss the need for a ceasefire and hostage deal in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, as well as efforts to monitor the cessation of hostilities agreement between Israel and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, the State Department said.None

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CHICAGO — Jason Lee, a top adviser to Mayor Brandon Johnson, voted in Texas last month despite a rule requiring city employees to live in Chicago. Records obtained by the Chicago Tribune show Lee cast his ballot for the November 2024 presidential election in person on Election Day in Houston, where his voter registration address was listed and where one document indicates he told Texas election officials he lived. But he has also served as Johnson’s senior adviser since the mayoral transition in May 2023 and signed an affidavit that month attesting that Chicago is his permanent home. Lee hasn’t been charged with wrongdoing, but the optics of a government leader who is required by law to live in one city voting in another are questionable. In a phone interview, Lee said he wanted to vote for his sister, Erica Lee Carter, in a special election to complete the unfinished Congressional term of their late mother, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, who died of pancreatic cancer in July. He said he is allowed to vote in Texas even though he lives in Chicago. “I voted in Texas last month because I wanted to vote for my sister,” Lee told the Tribune. “My mother has been a U.S. representative for my entire life, and I made a commitment to her that I would vote in my home district. I didn’t vote anywhere else. My parents’ home is where my registration card was, and I never changed it. But my residency is in Chicago.” Carter prevailed in November’s special election and will complete her mother’s final two months before the general election winner, former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, assumes the permanent role next year. In his interview with the Tribune, Lee denied that he misled either Chicago or Texas officials on his residency. “Honestly, do you know what ‘time’ is?” Lee said when asked how he was able to vote in Texas last month if he lives in Chicago. “If I live in Chicago now, it doesn’t mean that I lived there then. ... A lot of people are registered in their hometown, even if they’re living somewhere else.” Asked when he officially moved to Chicago, Lee said “it’s been 100% true since the day I started working with the city” on May 15, 2023. He said he rents an apartment in the Loop and pays utilities and taxes in Chicago. “Being registered in a city and living in a city aren’t the two same things,” Lee said. “You don’t have to be registered to vote to live in a city. And on May 15, (2023,) I had residency in Chicago, and I’ve been a resident.” Voters are typically required to vote in the state where they live, although there are exceptions for certain groups like college students and Americans living abroad. The Texas election code says “‘residence’ means domicile, that is, one’s home and fixed place of habitation to which one intends to return after any temporary absence.” Lee has no voting history in Chicago except in the March 2020 primary, according to public records released by the Chicago Board of Elections. Records from the Harris County, Texas, clerk show Lee voted in Texas later that November, and that in the Nov. 5 election this year he voted at Thompson Elementary School in Houston. His voting information from last month indicates that Lee gave confirmation to the poll worker that he still lives in Texas, though Lee told the Tribune he does not recall such a conversation. The Texas Secretary of State’s electronic pollbook standards guide for poll workers states that “after determining that the voter is registered, the voter must be asked if the residence address on the list of registered voters has changed.” Lee’s November record says “TRUE” underneath a column labeled, “IsPhotoIDAcceptable,” which the Harris County Clerk’s deputy director of elections compliance Du-Ha Kim Nguyen told the Tribune in an email means that a voter provided one of the seven acceptable forms of ID. His document then lists “TRUE” when asked “IsVoterResponseForAddress,” a designation that Nguyen in her statement to the Tribune wrote “means that the voter answered ‘YES’ when the poll worker asked if he still lives at that registered address.” It also says “FALSE” under “IsSORProvided,” a label Nguyen said entails whether a “Statement of Residence” updating the voter’s address was filed. But Lee’s May 14, 2023, Chicago government affidavit attesting that he lives in the city says that “an opinion of the Corporation Counsel states in part: ‘actual residence has been found to contemplate substantially the same attributes as are intended when the word ‘domicile’ is used, and a permanent or fixed character is intended.’” The Illinois Supreme Court has also ruled that a residence is a “true, permanent home” and “principal residence (and) domicile” when upholding Chicago’s residency requirement. “I don’t know what they asked me. I don’t recall what they asked. It doesn’t matter what they asked me,” Lee said when presented with his Texas voting record from November. “You think that every single interaction at a polling location goes exactly by what they mark?” Lee also did not vote in Chicago’s 2023 municipal election despite running Johnson’s mayoral campaign, Board of Elections records show. Asked why not, Lee said, “I didn’t commit voter fraud by voting in a city I wasn’t registered in.” He said he was traveling “back and forth” between Chicago and Texas during Johnson’s campaign but spent most of his time in Chicago. Before working for Johnson, Lee’s jobs include serving as political director for United Working Families, a political organization closely allied with the Chicago Teachers Union; the Illinois Black Voter Project in 2018; and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s 2019 mayoral campaign. As for the future of Lee’s Texas voter registration, he said, “No, I don’t plan to maintain it. I wanted to vote for my sister one final time.” “I kept my registration because I wanted to vote for my mother, and then I wanted to vote for my sister. I live in Chicago, and anybody who has any sense knows I live in Chicago, because they see me every day,” Lee said. “I want to pass a budget so the people of Chicago can continue their services and everything and their public safe — and everything else they need. That’s what I’m gonna be focused on. In Chicago.” Bob Heath, an elections attorney in Texas, said if Lee’s registration were to be challenged in the courts, he would need to reasonably prove he intends to return to Houston and that “his presence in Chicago is temporary.” Lee, in a follow-up call to the Tribune, said he never intended to leave Texas permanently, but that he doesn’t have “any current plan” to move back. Lee has been a top adviser to Johnson for years and an occasional source of controversy for the administration. As senior adviser, Lee has been far more visible than comparable staffers and consultants under recent mayors and has frequently done on-the-record media interviews. Some City Hall holdovers from previous administrations refer to him as “Mayor Lee” due to the large influence he has over city plans, a nickname he has rebutted as disrespectful to voters who cast their ballots for Johnson. Just this week, Johnson shouted out Lee during a City Club appearance, encouraging people who “have a better plan” than taxpayer subsidies for a Bears stadium to “see my senior adviser, Jason Lee.” Lee’s mother, Jackson Lee, ran for mayor of Houston last year and received $51,500 from Chicago city contractors , lobbyists and politicians between that August fundraiser and her loss in the December runoff. Lee has also clashed publicly with an alderman. In fall 2023, Lee tied the removal of a homeless encampment to whether downtown Ald. Bill Conway would agree to vote for two hallmarks of Johnson’s progressive policy platform, which the alderman later said was inappropriate and referred to the inspector general’s office for investigation. Lee acknowledged the conversation but chalked it up to normal political deal-making. In another incident, former deputy director of digital strategy Dora Meza complained to city and state officials that, two days after Johnson was inaugurated, Lee walked into a press aide’s office and began yelling, according to a complaint she filed with the state’s human rights department and the city inspector general. Lee was upset with the digital team, made up of people hired during the Lightfoot administration who had stayed on after Johnson took office, for not posting a photo recap of Johnson’s appearance at the NBA Draft Combine to the mayor’s Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages, according to the complaint Meza filed. Meza said she told Lee they were holding off on posting content because they were livestreaming the funeral for slain police Officer Aréanah Preston. During the interaction, Lee “constantly hovered over” Meza as she sat in her desk, “raised his voice, used profane language, rolled his eyes, and kept holding his head in his hands,” according to the complaint. A colleague, Azhley Rodriguez, said she was present. Lee has denied the “alleged incident.” Lee said he recalls “the details differently, both in terms of the reason for the discussion and the characterization of my actions” and characterized it as a “one-time engagement” that was “only minutes long.” ©2024 Chicago Tribune. Visit at chicagotribune.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.Hours after a "breakthrough" was reported between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the federal government to defuse the current political escalation amid PTI’s civil disobedience threat, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar has made it clear that no formal discussions with the former ruling party have started. “No meeting took place between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq at the latter's residence," the minister said, speaking on Geo News programme Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath on Wednesday. The minister's clarification comes following the "icebreaker" meeting between the NA speaker and top PTI leaders including Asad Qaiser, Omar Ayub and Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) Chairman Sahibzada Hamid Raza at the Speaker House in Islamabad earlier today. Following the key meeting, embattled PTI and the government expressed willingness to sit together on the negotiation table without any preconditions ahead of the former’s civil disobedience movement, the insiders said. The meeting was held following a telephonic contact between Qaiser and Sadiq, the sources added. In his television interview today, Tarar noted that Asad Qaiser was not present at the NA Speaker’s residence when PM Shehbaz visited to offer condolences on the passing of the Speaker’s sister. He further explained that while informal exchanges occur occasionally, official discussions have not begun between the two sides, adding that neither have communication channels been restored with the Imran Khan-led party nor have committees commenced negotiations. The PML-N politician stressed the need for the PTI first to express remorse and apologise for incidents on May 9 and November 26, accusing them of fabricating a false narrative to damage the state’s reputation. He questioned who would trust the PTI and who would guarantee their credibility. “They’re looking to dodge their political failures. How can anyone trust the PTI or their guarantees?” he questioned. Mentioning the PTI's "do-or-die" march that was launched on November 24, Tarar also pointed out that the party was told they could not assemble at D-Chowk in Islamabad, adding that all evidence of the opposition party's actions is available with the government. Tarar also criticised the former ruling party for using provincial resources to attack the federal government, adding that they had backtracked on their stance during the 26th Constitutional Amendment discussions.Opposition fighters are closing in on Syria’s capital in a that has taken much of the world by surprise. Syria's army has abandoned key cities in the west and south with little resistance. Nervous residents in Damascus describe security forces on the streets. The state news agency has been forced to deny rumors that President Bashar Assad has left the country. Who are these ? If they enter Damascus after taking , what then? Here’s a look at the stunning reversal of fortune for Assad and his government in just the past 10 days, and what might lie ahead as Syria’s 13-year . The aim? Overthrow the government This is the first time that opposition forces have reached the outskirts of the Syrian capital since 2018, when the country’s troops recaptured the area following a yearslong siege. The approaching fighters are led by the most powerful insurgent group in Syria, , or HTS, along with an umbrella group of Turkish-backed Syrian militias called the Syrian National Army. Both have been entrenched in the northwest. They launched the shock offensive on Nov. 27 with gunmen capturing Aleppo, Syria’s largest city, and the central city of Hama, the fourth largest. The HTS has its origins in al-Qaida and is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the United Nations. But the group said in recent years it cut ties with al-Qaida, and HTS has sought to remake itself in recent years by focusing on promoting civilian government in their territory as well as military action. HTS leader Abu told CNN in an exclusive interview Thursday from Syria that the aim of the offensive is to overthrow Assad’s government. Possible rifts ahead The HTS and Syrian National Army have been allies at times and rivals at times, and their aims might diverge. The Turkish-backed militias also have an interest in creating a buffer zone near the Turkish border to keep away Kurdish militants at odds with Ankara. has been a main backer of the fighters seeking to overthrow Assad but more recently has urged reconciliation, and Turkish officials have strongly rejected claims of any involvement in the current offensive. Whether the HTS and the Syrian National Army will work together if they succeed in overthrowing Assad or turn on each other again is a major question. Others take advantage While the flash offensive against Syria’s government began in the north, armed opposition groups have also mobilized elsewhere. The southern areas of Sweida and Daraa have both been taken locally. Sweida is the heartland of Syria’s Druze religious minority and had been the site of regular anti-government protests even after Assad seemingly consolidated his control over the area. Daraa is a Sunni Muslim area that was widely seen as the cradle of the uprising against Assad’s rule that erupted in 2011. Daraa was recaptured by Syrian government troops in 2018, but rebels remained in some areas. In recent years, Daraa was in a state of uneasy quiet under a Russian-mediated ceasefire deal. And much of Syria's east is controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-led group backed by the United States that in the past has clashed with most other armed groups in the country. Syria’s government now controls just four of 14 provincial capitals. What’s next? Much depends on Assad’s next moves and his forces' will to fight. A commander with the insurgents, Hassan Abdul-Ghani, posted on the Telegram messaging app that opposition forces have started carrying out the “final stage” of their offensive by encircling Damascus. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Syrian troops have withdrawn from much of the two southern provinces and are sending reinforcements to Homs. If that city is captured, the link would be cut between Damascus, Assad’s seat of power, and the coastal region where he enjoys wide support. “Homs to the coastal cities will be a very huge red line politically and socially. Politically, if this line is crossed, then we are talking about the end of the entire Syria, the one that we knew in the past,” said a Damascus resident, Anas Joudeh. Assad appears to be as allies Russia and Iran are distracted by other conflicts and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah has been weakened by its war with Israel, now under a fragile ceasefire. The U.N. special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, is calling for urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition,” saying the situation is changing by the minute. He met with foreign ministers and senior diplomats from eight key countries including Saudi Arabia, Russia, Egypt, Turkey and Iran on the sidelines of the Doha Summit. President-elect Donald Trump in his on the developments in Syria said the besieged Assad didn’t deserve U.S. support to stay in power. “THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT,” Trump posted on social media.

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As the holidays approach and millions plan to travel back home for Christmas or Hanukkah snowy, rainy, and even icy weather may cause some delays. On the east coast a large portion of the region from the central Appalachians to New England will see “light to occasionally moderate” snow on Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. On Tuesday morning parts of New Jersey, New York City, Philadelphia and Boston, saw some snowfall , which is set to end by Tuesday afternoon. Temperatures in the mid-Atlantic region will rise above freezing following a days-long cold snap, Forbes reported. Meanwhile in the south on Christmas Eve parts of eastern Texas, Arkansas and southern Missouri will get thunderstorms and rainfall that could exceed one inch in some parts through Wednesday morning, according to the National Weather Service. Snow and rain storms threaten millions as record-setting Christmas travel begins One dead after 'catastrophic' storm hits California coast as collapsing pier plunges into ocean Luckily, the rest of the country is set to have pleasant weather leading up to Christmas. The National Weather Service said temperatures for much of the country will be above average for December. On Christmas Day parts of the south and Midwest will experience rain showers and some t-storms, from the lower Mississippi Valley to the Ohio Valley, the Weather Channel reported. Isolated severe thunderstorms are possible as well, but locally heavy downpours and wet roads appear to be the main travel concern in those areas. In the west a windy, wet storm will move into the Pacific Northwest and far northwest California Christmas afternoon and Christmas night. Some local flash flooding is possible, particularly in far northwest California and southwest Oregon, according to the Weather Channel. For those flying there are potential airport weather delays in Seattle, Salt Lake City, Houston and New Orleans for Christmas Day. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are expected to bring significant weather disruptions that could affect travel. The light snow and freezing rain could cause delays in In the Northeast, particularly in the New York City Tri-state to parts of New England, according to The Weather Channel. While the rain and thunderstorms in the south are expected to impact roads. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lifted a nationwide ground stop for American Airlines and its subsidiaries, after the airline was forced to delay numerous flights nationwide due to "technical issues" on Tuesday morning. In a statement, American Airlines said: "A vendor technology issue briefly affected flights this morning. That issue has been resolved and flights have resumed." Passengers faced delays of up to 90 minutes, with some flights returning to their gates. This comes on one of the busiest days for travel of the season with 40 million people estimated to fly this Christmas season, according to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). DAILY NEWSLETTER: Sign up here to get the latest news and updates from the Mirror US straight to your inbox with our FREE newsletter.

Infinity Nikki is blessing the world with its stunning visuals and fabulous outfits, and it’s available as a free-to-play experience. Many are wondering, however, if there are any Infinity Nikki gacha elements to worry about. Are there Infinity Nikki gacha elements? Infinity Nikki has you collect costumes for special abilities and gorgeous new outfits to wear in the game. While some can be received by simply progressing in the game, other outfits are exclusively gacha . How does the gacha system work? It works very similarly to Genshin Impact. You can get four- and five-star outfits from the Resonance (like Wish) system . With every 10 Revelation or Resonite Crystals, you’ll get a guaranteed 4-star or higher piece of an outfit. You’ll need to gain Stellarites or Diamonds to get these Crystals. Diamonds act similarly to Primogems if you’ve played Genshin Impact. You’ll gain them from completing quests and finishing in-game activities . These diamonds can be used to get the Revelation and Resonite Crystals. You’ll need 120 of them to gain one, so 1,200 Diamonds are required to gain a 10-pull. If you want to skip the Diamond grinding, you can pay for Stellarites, another currency that can be used to gain Crystals. They cost the following in real money: With the first top-up, you’ll get a double bonus. For example, if you spend $0.99 on 60 Stellarites, you’ll get a bonus 60 Stellarites for 120 in total. Certain costumes can be purchased outright. If you head to the bottom tab of the Store, you can access four different outfits, such as the Scalry Dream dress. They each vary in press and might be on sale.Skattebo and Arizona State to the playoff after 45-19 win over Iowa State in Big 12 title game ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Big 12 newcomer Arizona State will represent the conference in the 12-team College Football Playoff. Cam Skattebo ran for 170 yards and two scores while adding a touchdown catch the 12th-ranked Sun Devils beat No. 16 Iowa State 45-19 in the Big 12 championship game. The Sun Devils with 34-year-old head coach Kenny Dillingham are 11-2 after being the preseason pick to finish at the bottom of their new 16-team league. They have won six games in a row. Iowa State is 10-3, already the first 10-win season in the program's 133-year history. Boise State makes the College Football Playoff as Big 12's 1st-round bye chances dim INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The first big win in college football’s postseason goes to Boise State. The have Broncos captured the Mountain West Conference title and earned their spot in the sport’s first 12-team playoff. As for the losers, there was UNLV, which fell 21-7 to Heisman hopeful Ashton Jeanty and the Broncos in the conference title game. But more than that, it was the Big 12, which saw one path to a first-round bye in those playoffs blocked off by Jeanty and Company. Lindsey Vonn competes in a pair of downhills, another step on her comeback trail at the age of 40 COPPER MOUNTAIN, Colo. (AP) — Lindsey Vonn finished in the middle of the pack in a pair of lower-level downhill events as she competed for the first time in nearly six years. The 40-year-old Vonn is on the comeback trail after stepping away from the sport because of injuries. Vonn wasn't concerned with times and places in the races so much as getting used to the speed again and gaining the necessary points to compete on the World Cup circuit. Vonn accomplished both, finishing 24th in the first downhill race of the day and 27th in the second. She posted on social media after the FIS races she had enough points to enter World Cup events. Man City drops more points after draw with Crystal Palace and Man United loses again Manchester City’s Premier League title defense has taken another blow after a 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace. Four-time defending champion City ended a seven-game winless run on Wednesday by beating Nottingham Forest. But City has dropped more points on Saturday after the draw at Selhurst Park. It could have been worse for City after Palace led twice. Pep Guardiola’s team is fourth in the standings and eight points behind leader Liverpool. Liverpool has a game in hand after its derby with Everton was postponed due to a storm. Amber Glenn becomes first US woman in 14 years to win figure skating Grand Prix Final GRENOBLE, France (AP) — Amber Glenn has become the first American to win the women’s Grand Prix Final competition since Alissa Czisny 14 years ago. Glenn landed a triple axel on her way to a total score of 212.07 points to beat Japan's Mone Chiba and triple world champion Kaori Sakamoto. That continues a stunning breakout season at the age of 25 for Glenn. The U.S. could win two more titles later Saturday. Ilia Malinin leads the men’s event ahead of the free skate and Madison Chock and Evan Bates lead the ice dance. Norris takes pole for season-ending Abu Dhabi GP and Hamilton 18th in Mercedes farewell ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Lando Norris took pole position for the last Formula 1 race of the season alongside teammate Oscar Piastri to put McLaren on the verge of a first constructors’ title in 26 years. Norris’ last lap put him .209 of a second faster than Piastri, with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. .020 further back. Seven-time F1 champion Hamilton qualified 18th for his last race with Mercedes after a bizarre incident wrecked his final qualifying lap. A plastic pole marking the inside of a corner was knocked loose by Kevin Magnussen’s Haas and Hamilton drove over it. Big 12's Yormark brings up hard choices for fans before sparsely attended title game ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — College football fans are facing some hard choices in the expanded playoff system with some teams set to play away from home multiple times. Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark raised that point before the sparsely attended title game between No. 12 Arizona State and 16th-ranked Iowa State. There were thousands of empty seats at the home of the Dallas Cowboys. Yormark says he remains committed to having a Big 12 title game. Besides the issues of fans, there have been suggestions that some leagues might be better off without title games as it relates to playoff hopes. Everton vs. Liverpool postponed because of Storm Darragh. Other Premier League games remain on LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — The Merseyside derby between Everton and Liverpool has been postponed because of Storm Darragh's dangerous winds and heavy rain on the west coast. The Met office says parts of Wales have experienced wind gusts of over 90 mph. The four other Premier League games Saturday remained on as planned. Manchester United will host Nottingham Forest at 5:30 p.m. local time at Old Trafford. The remaining games start at 3 p.m. local time. Aston Villa hosts Southampton and urged fans to use extra time to get to Villa Park in Birmingham. In London, Brentford will host Newcastle, and Crystal Palace will host Manchester City. Ashton Jeanty lets his play do the talking for CFP-bound Boise State BOISE, Idaho (AP) — After Ashton Jeanty streaked through the middle of UNLV’s defense on his way to a 75-yard touchdown run Friday night in the Mountain West Conference title game, he didn’t strike the Heisman pose. He didn’t even lobby for it after the game, instead letting his play do the talking in No. 10 Boise State's 21-7 victory over No. 19 UNLV 21-7. Jeanty added another 209 yards — his sixth game over 200 yards this season — to push his total to 2,497 — just 132 yards short of passing Barry Sanders’ FBS season rushing record. The Broncos earned a spot in the College Football Playoff with the victory. No. 24 Army wins AAC championship in first attempt as Daily runs for 4 TDs in 35-14 win over Tulane WEST POINT, N.Y. (AP) — Bryson Daily rushed for four touchdowns to tie the American Athletic Conference championship game record, and No. 24 Army completed a perfect first season in the league by beating Tulane 35-14. Kanye Udoh rushed for 158 yards, including a 72-yarder to set up a Daily TD, and a score. Daily added 126 yards on the ground for the Black Knights, who overwhelmed AAC opponents with their bruising, clock-eating rushing attack during their first around the league, then ran it to perfection in the championship game. Army moved to 11-1. Daily had runs of 5, 3, 4 and 7 yards.University of Idaho students travel across the campus during a change in classes. (Courtesy of University of Idaho) Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on December 11, 2024 Soon after the State Board of Education began talking about restricting diversity, equity and inclusion programs on campuses, Nick Koenig and other University of Idaho students began fanning out. They started collecting student testimonials about the U of I’s Office of Equity and Diversity — and its programs for women, Black and Latino students and LGBTQ students. “I had sexual trauma resurface causing me to have a panic attack,” wrote one student. “Going to the women’s center, the staff supported me and lent me a shoulder to cry on.” “These offices were the one place I could be my authentic self. No need to ‘fix’ the way I spoke or to ‘hide’ my accent,” wrote a second student. “If it were not for the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the Black/African American Cultural Center, I don’t know if I would have graduated, let alone be pursuing a master’s degree.” The testimonials aligned with Koenig’s own experience. A doctoral student who teaches climate science and sociology, Koenig moved from Kentucky to Moscow in 2022, after a Zoom call with the former head of the U of I’s LGBTQA office. “It was absolutely the reason I came,” Koenig said last week. “My story is just one of the numerous stories of these kinds of support services and how they operate day to day.” Koenig has forwarded the 66 student testimonials to the State Board — and to a legislative task force scrutinizing DEI programs. But the State Board is likely to vote next Wednesday on a resolution to limit DEI on campus. And while the U of I says it is waiting to see what the State Board does, Boise State University and Idaho State University have already reined in their own DEI initiatives. By design, or by coincidence, the two universities are backing away from a showdown with the State Board and the Legislature. The heart of the DEI resolution reads as follows: “Institutions shall ensure that no central office, policy, procedure, or initiative is dedicated to diversity, equity and inclusion.” The State Board would carve out a series of exceptions — covering federal research grants, accreditation or NCAA rules, among other items. Exceptions aside, the State Board resolution would shut down campus centers that have a DEI component. “Institutions shall ensure that all student success centers are dedicated to all students ... regardless of personal identity characteristics.” The proposal has Gov. Brad Little’s blessing. “Little has long supported the idea that all Idahoans be given the same opportunities to succeed,” spokeswoman Joan Varsek said this week. And while the State Board is taking online comments from students through Friday , that doesn’t change the fact that its resolution has political momentum behind it. If the State Board votes next week, at its last scheduled meeting of the year, the board’s resolution could get out ahead of the Legislature. The Legislature’s DEI task force hasn’t offered any specific proposals yet, and it won’t meet again until the week of Jan. 6, the opening week of the 2025 session. Meanwhile, Boise State and Idaho State have moved first. Months before the Legislature’s task force began its work — and months before the State Board unveiled its DEI resolution — Boise State administrators began talking about closing its Gender Equity Center and its Student Equity Center. It’s unclear exactly when Boise State decided to close the centers. But in a Sept. 24 memo to legislative staff, the university’s government affairs team said the closure was a done deal. (The Legislature’s DEI task force held its first meeting on Oct. 23.) “We’ve been aware of the conversations happening at the state board level and the legislative level,” Jeremiah Shinn, Boise State’s vice president for student affairs and enrollment management, said in an interview Tuesday. “We wanted to be as proactive as we can.” The two equity centers — with nine staffers and a combined budget of about $700,000 — closed on Nov. 29. The money will stay in student support programs, but some of the employees are leaving Boise State. “It won’t be the same staff to a person,” Shinn said. The centerpiece in Boise State’s shift is pretty much what the State Board has in mind: a one-stop shop, the newly opened Student Connections and Success Center. In their Sept. 24 memo to legislative staff, Boise State said it would gear the new center toward a variety of demographic groups that struggle to stay in school: first-generation students, rural students, low-income students eligible for federal Pell grants, Hispanic students, and male students. It’s going to look different, but Shinn says he believes Boise State will be able to serve the different needs of all student groups under one roof. “This is new territory for us and certainly we’ll learn a lot in the coming weeks and semesters,” he said. On Nov. 14 — one week before the State Board’s first hearing on the DEI resolution — Idaho State President Robert Wagner announced said his university would close its Diversity Resource Center and its Gender Resource Center. Both had operated on campus for 20 years or longer, and had a combined budget of close to $150,000. The centers’ programs will move into Idaho State’s own one-stop shop, dubbed the Bengal Student Success Center. Wagner is promising what he calls “a hub for academic growth.” But compliance is at least part of the equation. “This shift allows us to consolidate efforts and provide more streamlined, impactful support for all students while adhering to state guidelines,” Wagner said in a memo to students and staff . For the time being, the U of I’s Office of Equity and Diversity is still intact. That also goes for the programs under its bailiwick: the College Assistance Migrant Program , the Black/African American Cultural Center , the LGBTQA Office , the Office of Multicultural Affairs and the Women’s Center . The office has close to 11 full-time staffers and an annual budget exceeding $1.3 million. The Legislature has banned all colleges and universities from using taxpayer funding for DEI programs, so almost all of this $1.3 million comes from student fees. That status quo is certain to change if the State Board resolution passes. The U of I has a “rough idea” of how it would put all of its student support programs under one umbrella, spokeswoman Jodi Walker said Tuesday. But the U of I wants to wait to see what comes from the State Board, to avoid the upheaval that could come from closing and reopening student centers. “We want to align,” she said. “We don’t have to do this twice.” But at the same time, the U of I has been trying to assure the university community that the student programs will not go away. “Maybe we are going to serve them and support them in ways that look different than what we’ve done in the past, maybe it’s from a different office, maybe it’s from different units, but still trying to meet the needs of students and employees as well,” Provost Torrey Lawrence said at a recent Faculty Senate meeting, according to the Lewiston Tribune . Koenig expects the U of I to give in eventually, in order to appease a Legislature that has cut past higher education budgets over DEI. “It sucks that it’s always the most marginalized that are thrown out first ... to save the bottom line,” Koenig said. And that might affect Koenig’s future. Koenig, who uses the pronouns they and them, studies tree rings to gauge climate change. Koenig loves Idaho and its limitless forests. But depending on what happens next legislative session, Koenig said they might leave the state. At this point, the defense of DEI isn’t coming from university leaders — who say they are committed to supporting students of all backgrounds, but who also have to work with the State Board and the Legislature. Instead, that support is bubbling up from the grass roots level. In the days leading up to their most recent meeting on Dec. 2, members of the legislative task force received a flurry of more than three dozen emails from Idahoans, urging the lawmakers to leave DEI programs alone. The emails — obtained by Idaho Education News, through a public records request — came from current and former U of I students, retired educators and a woman who called herself “a concerned grandmother” of a U of I student. “There are certain programs that benefit my granddaughter, such as the Women’s Center,” she wrote. “These are safe places of support and community.” The 66 U of I testimonials — collected by Koenig and fellow students — represent a sliver of an enrollment of nearly 12,300. But one pattern emerged from this small sample. If the U of I’s DEI programs go away, three-fourths of the respondents said they would reconsider attending the U of I or supporting their university. “I definitely wouldn’t want to support a university that doesn’t care for its students and isn’t willing to fight for them,” said one student. “If the university isn’t willing to protect academia then what is it willing to do at all? Why even exist as an institution?” Kevin Richert writes a weekly analysis on education policy and education politics. Look for his stories each Thursday. Due to the timeliness of the topic, this week’s analysis was published on Wednesday, Dec. 11. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

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2 Canadian Growth Stocks Set to Skyrocket in the Next 12 MonthsBRAINTREE Christmas events have seen some cancellations due to health and safety concerns after a gusty weather forecast is predicted. Christmas festivities have been planned in the town centre for this Saturday, which would have seen street food and sweet treats, handmade items and collectibles. Sadly, Braintree Council has taken the “very difficult decision” to cancel its street market this Saturday. A spokesman said: “Whilst we hoped the weather forecast would change, heavy rain and wind gusts of up to 45mph are predicted on Saturday and this creates a health and safety issue with gazebos. “We hope you understand why we have had to make this decision, and we hope the weather will be better for our Christmas market on Saturday, December 14.” Festivities at The Boars Head will also no longer go ahead, which would have seen performances on a stage at the fountain end of the high street from 2pm. The pub encouraged people to keep their ears open for potential Christmas celebrations closer to Christmas, which may run in line with Braintree Council's Christmas market on December 14. Festive - Celebrations in George Yard Shopping Centre will go ahead (Image: Stacey Cosens/BDC) Fortunately, George Yard Shopping Centre will still host its light switch-on and an afternoon of free festivities from 1pm. There will be performances from Phina Circus and Dance, Taylor’s Dance Company, and a Frozen show with Elsa, Anna and Olaf, as well as the cast of Dick Whittington which is on at The Institute in Braintree this Christmas. George Yard will countdown to its lights switch scheduled for 5.45pm, but it has advised visitors monitor its social media channels in case the schedule changes due to the weather. Braintree Hobby Hub will also be in the old Burton’s store with stalls ran by small businesses.5 skiers survive avalanche near Whistler, B.C snow conditions ripe for more