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By HALELUYA HADERO The emergence of generative artificial intelligence tools that allow people to efficiently produce novel and detailed online reviews with almost no work has put merchants , service providers and consumers in uncharted territory, watchdog groups and researchers say. Phony reviews have long plagued many popular consumer websites, such as Amazon and Yelp. They are typically traded on private social media groups between fake review brokers and businesses willing to pay. Sometimes, such reviews are initiated by businesses that offer customers incentives such as gift cards for positive feedback. But AI-infused text generation tools, popularized by OpenAI’s ChatGPT , enable fraudsters to produce reviews faster and in greater volume, according to tech industry experts. The deceptive practice, which is illegal in the U.S. , is carried out year-round but becomes a bigger problem for consumers during the holiday shopping season , when many people rely on reviews to help them purchase gifts. Fake reviews are found across a wide range of industries, from e-commerce, lodging and restaurants, to services such as home repairs, medical care and piano lessons. The Transparency Company, a tech company and watchdog group that uses software to detect fake reviews, said it started to see AI-generated reviews show up in large numbers in mid-2023 and they have multiplied ever since. For a report released this month, The Transparency Company analyzed 73 million reviews in three sectors: home, legal and medical services. Nearly 14% of the reviews were likely fake, and the company expressed a “high degree of confidence” that 2.3 million reviews were partly or entirely AI-generated. “It’s just a really, really good tool for these review scammers,” said Maury Blackman, an investor and advisor to tech startups, who reviewed The Transparency Company’s work and is set to lead the organization starting Jan. 1. In August, software company DoubleVerify said it was observing a “significant increase” in mobile phone and smart TV apps with reviews crafted by generative AI. The reviews often were used to deceive customers into installing apps that could hijack devices or run ads constantly, the company said. The following month, the Federal Trade Commission sued the company behind an AI writing tool and content generator called Rytr, accusing it of offering a service that could pollute the marketplace with fraudulent reviews. The FTC, which this year banned the sale or purchase of fake reviews, said some of Rytr’s subscribers used the tool to produce hundreds and perhaps thousands of reviews for garage door repair companies, sellers of “replica” designer handbags and other businesses. Max Spero, CEO of AI detection company Pangram Labs, said the software his company uses has detected with almost certainty that some AI-generated appraisals posted on Amazon bubbled up to the top of review search results because they were so detailed and appeared to be well thought-out. But determining what is fake or not can be challenging. External parties can fall short because they don’t have “access to data signals that indicate patterns of abuse,” Amazon has said. Pangram Labs has done detection for some prominent online sites, which Spero declined to name due to non-disclosure agreements. He said he evaluated Amazon and Yelp independently. Many of the AI-generated comments on Yelp appeared to be posted by individuals who were trying to publish enough reviews to earn an “Elite” badge, which is intended to let users know they should trust the content, Spero said. The badge provides access to exclusive events with local business owners. Fraudsters also want it so their Yelp profiles can look more realistic, said Kay Dean, a former federal criminal investigator who runs a watchdog group called Fake Review Watch. To be sure, just because a review is AI-generated doesn’t necessarily mean its fake. Some consumers might experiment with AI tools to generate content that reflects their genuine sentiments. Some non-native English speakers say they turn to AI to make sure they use accurate language in the reviews they write. “It can help with reviews (and) make it more informative if it comes out of good intentions,” said Michigan State University marketing professor Sherry He, who has researched fake reviews. She says tech platforms should focus on the behavioral patters of bad actors, which prominent platforms already do, instead of discouraging legitimate users from turning to AI tools. Prominent companies are developing policies for how AI-generated content fits into their systems for removing phony or abusive reviews. Some already employ algorithms and investigative teams to detect and take down fake reviews but are giving users some flexibility to use AI. Spokespeople for Amazon and Trustpilot, for example, said they would allow customers to post AI-assisted reviews as long as they reflect their genuine experience. Yelp has taken a more cautious approach, saying its guidelines require reviewers to write their own copy. “With the recent rise in consumer adoption of AI tools, Yelp has significantly invested in methods to better detect and mitigate such content on our platform,” the company said in a statement. The Coalition for Trusted Reviews, which Amazon, Trustpilot, employment review site Glassdoor, and travel sites Tripadvisor, Expedia and Booking.com launched last year, said that even though deceivers may put AI to illicit use, the technology also presents “an opportunity to push back against those who seek to use reviews to mislead others.” “By sharing best practice and raising standards, including developing advanced AI detection systems, we can protect consumers and maintain the integrity of online reviews,” the group said. The FTC’s rule banning fake reviews, which took effect in October, allows the agency to fine businesses and individuals who engage in the practice. Tech companies hosting such reviews are shielded from the penalty because they are not legally liable under U.S. law for the content that outsiders post on their platforms. Tech companies, including Amazon, Yelp and Google, have sued fake review brokers they accuse of peddling counterfeit reviews on their sites. The companies say their technology has blocked or removed a huge swath of suspect reviews and suspicious accounts. However, some experts say they could be doing more. “Their efforts thus far are not nearly enough,” said Dean of Fake Review Watch. “If these tech companies are so committed to eliminating review fraud on their platforms, why is it that I, one individual who works with no automation, can find hundreds or even thousands of fake reviews on any given day?” Consumers can try to spot fake reviews by watching out for a few possible warning signs , according to researchers. Overly enthusiastic or negative reviews are red flags. Jargon that repeats a product’s full name or model number is another potential giveaway. When it comes to AI, research conducted by Balázs Kovács, a Yale professor of organization behavior, has shown that people can’t tell the difference between AI-generated and human-written reviews. Some AI detectors may also be fooled by shorter texts, which are common in online reviews, the study said. However, there are some “AI tells” that online shoppers and service seekers should keep it mind. Panagram Labs says reviews written with AI are typically longer, highly structured and include “empty descriptors,” such as generic phrases and attributes. The writing also tends to include cliches like “the first thing that struck me” and “game-changer.”President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly set to nominate Stephen Feinberg, a billionaire defense industry investor and major Trump megadonor—despite his lack of military or organizational leadership experience—for the second-highest position at the U.S. Department of Defense, Deputy Defense Secretary. The Washington Post first broke the news on Tuesday afternoon, which comes as Trump’s pick for U.S. Secretary of Defense, Fox News weekend host Pete Hegseth, faces mounting criticism and negative press amid numerous scandals including alleged sexual assault, “aggressive drunkenness,” and financial mismanagement of veterans’ organizations. Trump has already offered the job to Feinberg, according to the Post, calling it “a decision that could elevate a longtime political supporter with investments in defense companies that maintain lucrative Pentagon contracts.” “Feinberg is the co-CEO of Cerberus Capital Management, which has invested in hypersonic missiles and which previously owned the private military contractor DynCorp,” the Post reports. “DynCorp was acquired by another defense firm, Amentum, in 2020. During the first Trump administration, Feinberg led the President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, which provides the U.S. leader advice on intelligence assessments and estimates and counterintelligence matters.” ALSO READ: Will Trump back the FBI’s battle against domestic extremists? He won’t say. “The deputy defense secretary typically manages day-to-day operations of the massive bureaucracy with a combined workforce of more than 3 million service members and civilian employees,” the Post explained. The current Deputy Defense Secretary is Kathleen Hicks. She holds a master’s in national security studies, and her PhD in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Hicks started her career at the Pentagon as a civil servant in 1993. For three years she was a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) before returning to the Pentagon under President Barack Obama in 2009. She has served as Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for strategy, plans, and forces, and Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for policy. In 2020, President-elect Joe Biden chose Hicks to lead “the 23-person agency review team’s assessment of defense and national-security related issues,” Defense Daily reported. “These teams are composed of highly experienced and talented professionals with deep backgrounds in crucial policy areas across the federal government. The teams have been crafted to ensure they not only reflect the values and priorities of the incoming administration, but reflect the diversity of perspectives crucial for addressing America’s most urgent and complex challenges,” the Biden transition team said in a statement, according to Defense Daily. Feinberg has a bachelors’ from Princeton. In 2021, The New York Times reported that the four Saudis “who participated in the 2018 killing of the Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi received paramilitary training in the United States the previous year under a contract approved by the State Department, according to documents and people familiar with the arrangement.” “The training was provided by the Arkansas-based security company Tier 1 Group, which is owned by the private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management,” the Times reported. In July of 2017, a New York Times report noted Feinberg’s ties to the now far-right podcaster and political strategist Steve Bannon, and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner. “Erik D. Prince, a founder of the private security firm Blackwater Worldwide , and Stephen A. Feinberg, a billionaire financier who owns the giant military contractor DynCorp International, have developed proposals to rely on contractors instead of American troops in Afghanistan at the behest of Stephen K. Bannon, Mr. Trump’s chief strategist, and Jared Kushner, his senior adviser and son-in-law, according to people briefed on the conversations.” A 2012 Rolling Stone profile of then-presidential candidate Mitt Romney, included this statement from Feinberg. “’We try to hide religiously,’ explained Steven [sic] Feinberg, the CEO of a takeover firm called Cerberus Capital Management that recently drove one of its targets into bankruptcy after saddling it with $2.3 billion in debt. ‘If anyone at Cerberus has his picture in the paper and a picture of his apartment, we will do more than fire that person,’ Feinberg told shareholders in 2007. ‘We will kill him. The jail sentence will be worth it.’ ”[4YE- $`}mD[~ޖP?]|SCh[D"tmޑ-LBs85H ޓ_c7sC`"2%\N iʎ ]1p@qmZqr؛^na!BHwgy{Ab*j `ql[ ڥPuÚgr'lWfhVTLB>+y[i{PD@+-`{{Ζ].ă5;T1u^Jc Bk")_ᾫꀁ?wr=E}Jb1NU1/9[[fT –5[+)S 1|7qNFGg"LNI"6gImj€ q`alel #w'4`v_'wUB7C3^#s$5XI@oN?Vh%24 M=FwYgG ޱ2-_[鶟* p/a#C7Dxc?2lhGOhnxU/PKX "ZW6c/0 slots.txtZɒ*;Esٟ$,q-.

NEW YORK -- As Luigi Mangione pleaded not guilty Monday to state murder and terrorism charges in the brazen killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson , supporters of the suspect continued to donate tens of thousands of dollars for a defense fund established for him, leaving law enforcement officials worried Mangione is being turned into a martyr. Several online defense funds have been created for Mangione by anonymous people, including one on the crowdfunding website GiveSendGo that as of Monday morning had raised over $187,000. The GiveSendGo defense fund for the 26-year-old Mangione was established by an anonymous group calling itself "The December 4th Legal Committee," apparently in reference to the day Mangione allegedly ambushed and gunned down Thompson in Midtown Manhattan as the executive walked to his company's shareholders conference at the New York Hilton hotel. "We are not here to celebrate violence, but we do believe in the constitutional right to fair legal representation," the anonymous group said in a statement. The crowdfunding campaign prompted donations from thousands of anonymous donors across the country, many of them leaving messages of support for Mangione, including one person who called themselves "A frustrated citizen" and thanked Mangione for "sparking the awareness and thought across this sleeping nation." In a statement to ABC News, a spokesperson for GiveSendGo said the company "operates with a principle of not preemptively determining guilt or innocence." "Our platform does not adjudicate legal matters or the validity of causes. Instead, we allow campaigns to remain live unless they violate the specific terms outlined in our Terms of Use. Importantly, we do allow campaigns for legal defense funds, as we believe everyone deserves the opportunity to access due process," the GiveSendGo spokesperson said. The spokesperson added, "We understand the concerns raised by such campaigns and take these matters seriously. When campaigns are reported, our team conducts a thorough review to ensure they comply with our policies. While other platforms may choose a different approach, GiveSendGo's core value is to provide a space where all individuals, no matter their situation, can seek and receive support, with donors making their own informed decisions." Other crowdfunding sites such as GoFundMe have also taken down campaigns soliciting donations for Mangione's defense. "GoFundMe's Terms of Service prohibit fundraisers for the legal defense of violent crimes," the crowdfunding website said in a statement. "The fundraisers have been removed from our platform and all donors have been refunded." Amazon and Etsy have removed from their websites merchandise featuring Mangione, including T-shirts and tote bags reading "Free Luigi" and the phrase "Deny, Defend, Depose," words police said were etched in the shell casings discovered at the scene of Thompson's homicide. "Celebrating this conduct is abhorrent to me. It's deeply disturbing," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told ABC News senior investigative reporter Aaron Katersky in an interview last week. "And what I would say to members of the public, people who, as you described, are celebrating this and maybe contemplating other action, that we will be vigilant and we will hold people accountable. We are at the ready." When Mangione appeared in court Monday for his arrangement, more than two dozen young women, who had waited in the frigid cold outside the courthouse, said they were there to support the defendant. Most of the women wore face masks and a few appeared visibly emotional as Mangione entered the courtroom. "This is a grave injustice, and that's why people are here," one of the women, who said she arrived at the courthouse at 5 a.m., told ABC News. Other supporters outside the courthouse chanted, "Free, free Luigi" and "Eat the rich," and held signs reading, "People over profits" and "Health over wealth." Manhattan grand jury indicted Mangione last week on 11 charges, including first-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism. Mangione is also facing federal charges that could get him the death penalty if convicted. Mangione's attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, raised concerns in court Monday that her client is being used by police and New York City Mayor Eric Adams as "political fodder." Angifilo also slammed last week's extradition of Mangione back to Manhattan to face charges, calling Adams' presence amid the massive display of force used in the transfer "the biggest staged perp walk I have seen in my career." "What was the New York City mayor doing at this press conference -- that is utterly political," she said, before referencing the mayor's own criminal case. "The New York City mayor should know more than anyone the presumption of innocence." Retired FBI special agent Richard Frankel said suspects have received unsolicited support in previous politically charged violent crimes. "We saw it with the Unabomber," said Frankel, an ABC News contributor, referring to Ted Kaczynski, the mathematician-turn-domestic terrorist who blamed technology for a decline of individual freedom and mailed handcrafted explosives to targeted individuals between 1978 and 1995. Frankel said Eric Rudolph, who detonated a bomb in Atlanta's Centennial Olympic Park during the 1996 Olympic Games and carried out three additional bombings as he eluded capture for five years, also attracted supporters. "In my opinion, they're supporting individuals who have committed potentially terrorist acts, but it's a politically charged act," Frankel said. Referring to the Thompson killing, Frankel added, "You can be up in arms about the health care industry, but you can't threaten or actually hurt members of the health care industry." Most recently, Marine veteran Daniel Penny was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely, a homeless man who was acting erratically on a New York City subway, after supporters donated more than $3 million to his legal defense fund. Law enforcement officials have expressed concern that Mangione is being turned into a martyr. Someone this week pasted "wanted posters" outside the New York Stock Exchange naming other executives. A recent bulletin released by the Delaware Valley Intelligence Center, a multi-agency law enforcement intelligence-sharing network based in Philadelphia, included a photo of a banner hanging from an overpass reading, "Deny, Defend, Depose," which are the same words etched on shell casings police said were recovered from the Thompson homicide scene. "Many social media users have outright advocated for the continued killings of CEOs with some aiming to spread fear by posting 'hit lists,'" the bulletin, obtained by ABC News, reads.Valley communities rank high in annual digital cities surveyCopy link Copied Copy link Copied Subscribe to gift this article Gift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe. Already a subscriber? Login The ASX is set to drop despite a rally in the big US tech companies that spurred a rebound in stocks. Wall Street had a brief wobble on Monday driven by a weaker-than-expected report on US consumer confidence. Bloomberg Copy link Copied Copy link Copied Subscribe to gift this article Gift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe. Already a subscriber? Login Introducing your Newsfeed Follow the topics, people and companies that matter to you. Latest In North America Fetching latest articles Most Viewed In WorldEx-DePaul guard leads N. Illinois against Chris Holtmann's Blue Demons

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will chair a meeting of the cabinet committee on Canada-U.S. relations today, amid increasing calls for his resignation. A mid-day adjustment to Trudeau's itinerary was issued by the Prime Minister's Office and notes he will take part in the meeting virtually, though a specific time wasn't listed. It's been a chaotic week for the governing Liberals, starting with Chrystia Freeland's cabinet resignation just hours after she was set to table the fall economic statement. Freeland and new Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc have previously spoken with the media at the conclusion of these cabinet committee meetings. The committee was reformed following Donald Trump's re-election, and a chief topic of discussion at the meetings has been border security after the incoming president threatened to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian products. Several Liberal MPs publicly called for Trudeau to step down as Liberal leader since Freeland's resignation, and the NDP has joined the other major opposition parties in saying it no longer has confidence in the minority Liberal government. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 23, 2024 David Baxter, The Canadian Press

Colorado hands No. 2 UConn its second loss in 2 days at Maui Invitational

By JILL COLVIN and STEPHEN GROVES WASHINGTON (AP) — After several weeks working mostly behind closed doors, Vice President-elect JD Vance returned to Capitol Hill this week in a new, more visible role: Helping Donald Trump try to get his most contentious Cabinet picks to confirmation in the Senate, where Vance has served for the last two years. Vance arrived at the Capitol on Wednesday with former Rep. Matt Gaetz and spent the morning sitting in on meetings between Trump’s choice for attorney general and key Republicans, including members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The effort was for naught: Gaetz announced a day later that he was withdrawing his name amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations and the reality that he was unlikely to be confirmed. Thursday morning Vance was back, this time accompanying Pete Hegseth, the “Fox & Friends Weekend” host whom Trump has tapped to be the next secretary of defense. Hegseth also has faced allegations of sexual assault that he denies. Vance is expected to accompany other nominees for meetings in coming weeks as he tries to leverage the two years he has spent in the Senate to help push through Trump’s picks. Vice President-elect JD Vance, still a Republican senator from Ohio, walks from a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., center, and Vice President-elect JD Vance, left, walk out of a meeting with Republican Senate Judiciary Committee members, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, departs the chamber at the Capitol in Washington, March 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, center speaks during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, right, speaks with Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, before testifying at a hearing, March 9, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, arrives for a classified briefing on China, at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, arrives for a vote on Capitol Hill, Sept. 12, 2023 in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance R-Ohio speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Feb. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) Vice President-elect JD Vance, still a Republican senator from Ohio, walks from a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) The role of introducing nominees around Capitol Hill is an unusual one for a vice president-elect. Usually the job goes to a former senator who has close relationships on the Hill, or a more junior aide. But this time the role fits Vance, said Marc Short, who served as Trump’s first director of legislative affairs as well as chief of staff to Trump’s first vice president, Mike Pence, who spent more than a decade in Congress and led the former president’s transition ahead of his first term. ”JD probably has a lot of current allies in the Senate and so it makes sense to have him utilized in that capacity,” Short said. Unlike the first Trump transition, which played out before cameras at Trump Tower in New York and at the president-elect’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, this one has largely happened behind closed doors in Palm Beach, Florida. There, a small group of officials and aides meet daily at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort to run through possible contenders and interview job candidates. The group includes Elon Musk, the billionaire who has spent so much time at the club that Trump has joked he can’t get rid of him. Vance has been a constant presence, even as he’s kept a lower profile. The Ohio senator has spent much of the last two weeks in Palm Beach, according to people familiar with his plans, playing an active role in the transition, on which he serves as honorary chair. Vance has been staying at a cottage on the property of the gilded club, where rooms are adorned with cherubs, oriental rugs and intricate golden inlays. It’s a world away from the famously hardscrabble upbringing that Vance documented in the memoir that made him famous, “Hillbilly Elegy.” His young children have also joined him at Mar-a-Lago, at times. Vance was photographed in shorts and a polo shirt playing with his kids on the seawall of the property with a large palm frond, a U.S. Secret Service robotic security dog in the distance. On the rare days when he is not in Palm Beach, Vance has been joining the sessions remotely via Zoom. Though he has taken a break from TV interviews after months of constant appearances, Vance has been active in the meetings, which began immediately after the election and include interviews and as well as presentations on candidates’ pluses and minuses. Among those interviewed: Contenders to replace FBI Director Christopher Wray , as Vance wrote in a since-deleted social media post. Defending himself from criticism that he’d missed a Senate vote in which one of President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees was confirmed, Vance wrote that he was meeting at the time “with President Trump to interview multiple positions for our government, including for FBI Director.” “I tend to think it’s more important to get an FBI director who will dismantle the deep state than it is for Republicans to lose a vote 49-46 rather than 49-45,” Vance added on X. “But that’s just me.” While Vance did not come in to the transition with a list of people he wanted to see in specific roles, he and his friend, Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who is also a member of the transition team, were eager to see former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. find roles in the administration. Trump ended up selecting Gabbard as the next director of national intelligence , a powerful position that sits atop the nation’s spy agencies and acts as the president’s top intelligence adviser. And he chose Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services , a massive agency that oversees everything from drug and food safety to Medicare and Medicaid. Vance was also a big booster of Tom Homan, the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who will serve as Trump’s “border czar.” In another sign of Vance’s influence, James Braid, a top aide to the senator, is expected to serve as Trump’s legislative affairs director. Allies say it’s too early to discuss what portfolio Vance might take on in the White House. While he gravitates to issues like trade, immigration and tech policy, Vance sees his role as doing whatever Trump needs. Vance was spotted days after the election giving his son’s Boy Scout troop a tour of the Capitol and was there the day of leadership elections. He returned in earnest this week, first with Gaetz — arguably Trump’s most divisive pick — and then Hegseth, who has was been accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 2017, according to an investigative report made public this week. Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing. Vance hosted Hegseth in his Senate office as GOP senators, including those who sit on the Senate Armed Services Committee, filtered in to meet with the nominee for defense secretary. While a president’s nominees usually visit individual senators’ offices, meeting them on their own turf, the freshman senator — who is accompanied everywhere by a large Secret Service detail that makes moving around more unwieldy — instead brought Gaetz to a room in the Capitol on Wednesday and Hegseth to his office on Thursday. Senators came to them. Vance made it to votes Wednesday and Thursday, but missed others on Thursday afternoon. Vance is expected to continue to leverage his relationships in the Senate after Trump takes office. But many Republicans there have longer relationships with Trump himself. Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican, said that Trump was often the first person to call him back when he was trying to reach high-level White House officials during Trump’s first term. “He has the most active Rolodex of just about anybody I’ve ever known,” Cramer said, adding that Vance would make a good addition. “They’ll divide names up by who has the most persuasion here,” Cramer said, but added, “Whoever his liaison is will not work as hard at it as he will.” Cramer was complimentary of the Ohio senator, saying he was “pleasant” and ” interesting” to be around. ′′He doesn’t have the long relationships,” he said. “But we all like people that have done what we’ve done. I mean, that’s sort of a natural kinship, just probably not as personally tied.” Under the Constitution, Vance will also have a role presiding over the Senate and breaking tie votes. But he’s not likely to be needed for that as often as was Kamala Harris, who broke a record number of ties for Democrats as vice president, since Republicans will have a bigger cushion in the chamber next year. Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.

City Hall braces for Trump assault on its minority set-aside program

Defence stocks will be in spotlight on Wednesday after the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), under the chairmanship of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh , accorded Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for five capital acquisition proposals worth over Rs 21,772 crore. This included the procurement of Water Jet Fast Attack Crafts , Fast Interceptor Craft, Electronic Warfare Suite , Next Generation Radar Warning Receiver and Advanced Light Helicopters . DAC granted the approval for the procurement of 31 New Water Jet Fast Attack Crafts (NWJFACs) for the Indian Navy. These are designed to perform the task of low intensity maritime operations, surveillance, patrol, and search and rescue (SAR) operations close to the coast. In addition, these vessels will also play a role in anti-piracy missions, in and around India's island territories. The council also approved the procurement of 120 Fast Interceptor Craft (FIC-1). These are capable of performing multiple roles, including escorting high-value units such as aircraft carriers, destroyers, and frigates, and submarines for coastal defence. The approval for the procurement of an Electronic Warfare Suite (EWS) equipped with external airborne self-protection jammer pods, next-generation radar warning receiver, and associated equipment for Su-30 MKI aircraft was also made. This system will enhance the operational capabilities of SU-30 MKI and protect it from enemy radars and related weapon systems while carrying out a mission against enemy targets protected by Air Defence systems. Stock Trading Technical Analysis Made Easy: Online Certification Course By - Souradeep Dey, Equity and Commodity Trader, Trainer View Program Stock Trading Options Trading Made Easy: Options Trading Course By - Anirudh Saraf, Founder- Saraf A & Associates, Chartered Accountant View Program Stock Trading Complete Guide to Stock Market Trading: From Basics to Advanced By - Harneet Singh Kharbanda, Full Time Trader View Program Stock Trading Market 104: Options Trading: Kickstart Your F&O Adventure By - Saketh R, Founder- QuickAlpha, Full Time Options Trader View Program Stock Trading Technical Analysis Demystified: A Complete Guide to Trading By - Kunal Patel, Options Trader, Instructor View Program Stock Trading Options Trading Course For Beginners By - Chetan Panchamia, Options Trader View Program Stock Trading A2Z of Stock Market for Beginners: Stock Market Course For Beginners By - elearnmarkets, Financial Education by StockEdge View Program Stock Trading Technical Analysis for Everyone - Technical Analysis Course By - Abhijit Paul, Technical Research Head, Fund Manager- ICICI Securities View Program Stock Trading Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By - Dinesh Nagpal, Full Time Trader, Ichimoku & Trading Psychology Expert View Program Stock Trading Options Scalping Made Easy By - Sivakumar Jayachandran, Ace Scalper View Program Stock Trading Commodity Markets Made Easy: Commodity Trading Course By - elearnmarkets, Financial Education by StockEdge View Program Stock Trading Ichimoku Trading Unlocked: Expert Analysis and Strategy By - Dinesh Nagpal, Full Time Trader, Ichimoku & Trading Psychology Expert View Program Stock Trading Market 101: An Insight into Trendlines and Momentum By - Rohit Srivastava, Founder- Indiacharts.com View Program Stock Trading Markets 102: Mastering Sentiment Indicators for Swing and Positional Trading By - Rohit Srivastava, Founder- Indiacharts.com View Program The committee further accorded AoN for the procurement of six Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH) M (MR) for the Indian Coast Guard to strengthen the coastal security and surveillance in the coastal areas. It has also accorded approval for the overhaul of T-72 & T-90 tanks, BMP- and engines of Sukhoi fighter aircraft which will enhance the service life of these assets. Also Read: Adani companies on a stronger footing: Bernstein ( Disclaimer : Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times) (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel )Accuray Incorporated Reports Inducement Award Under NASDAQ Listing Rules

NEW YORK -- As Luigi Mangione pleaded not guilty Monday to state murder and terrorism charges in the brazen killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson , supporters of the suspect continued to donate tens of thousands of dollars for a defense fund established for him, leaving law enforcement officials worried Mangione is being turned into a martyr. Several online defense funds have been created for Mangione by anonymous people, including one on the crowdfunding website GiveSendGo that as of Monday morning had raised over $187,000. The GiveSendGo defense fund for the 26-year-old Mangione was established by an anonymous group calling itself "The December 4th Legal Committee," apparently in reference to the day Mangione allegedly ambushed and gunned down Thompson in Midtown Manhattan as the executive walked to his company's shareholders conference at the New York Hilton hotel. "We are not here to celebrate violence, but we do believe in the constitutional right to fair legal representation," the anonymous group said in a statement. The crowdfunding campaign prompted donations from thousands of anonymous donors across the country, many of them leaving messages of support for Mangione, including one person who called themselves "A frustrated citizen" and thanked Mangione for "sparking the awareness and thought across this sleeping nation." In a statement to ABC News, a spokesperson for GiveSendGo said the company "operates with a principle of not preemptively determining guilt or innocence." "Our platform does not adjudicate legal matters or the validity of causes. Instead, we allow campaigns to remain live unless they violate the specific terms outlined in our Terms of Use. Importantly, we do allow campaigns for legal defense funds, as we believe everyone deserves the opportunity to access due process," the GiveSendGo spokesperson said. The spokesperson added, "We understand the concerns raised by such campaigns and take these matters seriously. When campaigns are reported, our team conducts a thorough review to ensure they comply with our policies. While other platforms may choose a different approach, GiveSendGo's core value is to provide a space where all individuals, no matter their situation, can seek and receive support, with donors making their own informed decisions." Other crowdfunding sites such as GoFundMe have also taken down campaigns soliciting donations for Mangione's defense. "GoFundMe's Terms of Service prohibit fundraisers for the legal defense of violent crimes," the crowdfunding website said in a statement. "The fundraisers have been removed from our platform and all donors have been refunded." Amazon and Etsy have removed from their websites merchandise featuring Mangione, including T-shirts and tote bags reading "Free Luigi" and the phrase "Deny, Defend, Depose," words police said were etched in the shell casings discovered at the scene of Thompson's homicide. "Celebrating this conduct is abhorrent to me. It's deeply disturbing," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told ABC News senior investigative reporter Aaron Katersky in an interview last week. "And what I would say to members of the public, people who, as you described, are celebrating this and maybe contemplating other action, that we will be vigilant and we will hold people accountable. We are at the ready." When Mangione appeared in court Monday for his arrangement, more than two dozen young women, who had waited in the frigid cold outside the courthouse, said they were there to support the defendant. Most of the women wore face masks and a few appeared visibly emotional as Mangione entered the courtroom. "This is a grave injustice, and that's why people are here," one of the women, who said she arrived at the courthouse at 5 a.m., told ABC News. Other supporters outside the courthouse chanted, "Free, free Luigi" and "Eat the rich," and held signs reading, "People over profits" and "Health over wealth." Manhattan grand jury indicted Mangione last week on 11 charges, including first-degree murder in furtherance of terrorism. Mangione is also facing federal charges that could get him the death penalty if convicted. Mangione's attorney, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, raised concerns in court Monday that her client is being used by police and New York City Mayor Eric Adams as "political fodder." Angifilo also slammed last week's extradition of Mangione back to Manhattan to face charges, calling Adams' presence amid the massive display of force used in the transfer "the biggest staged perp walk I have seen in my career." "What was the New York City mayor doing at this press conference -- that is utterly political," she said, before referencing the mayor's own criminal case. "The New York City mayor should know more than anyone the presumption of innocence." Retired FBI special agent Richard Frankel said suspects have received unsolicited support in previous politically charged violent crimes. "We saw it with the Unabomber," said Frankel, an ABC News contributor, referring to Ted Kaczynski, the mathematician-turn-domestic terrorist who blamed technology for a decline of individual freedom and mailed handcrafted explosives to targeted individuals between 1978 and 1995. Frankel said Eric Rudolph, who detonated a bomb in Atlanta's Centennial Olympic Park during the 1996 Olympic Games and carried out three additional bombings as he eluded capture for five years, also attracted supporters. "In my opinion, they're supporting individuals who have committed potentially terrorist acts, but it's a politically charged act," Frankel said. Referring to the Thompson killing, Frankel added, "You can be up in arms about the health care industry, but you can't threaten or actually hurt members of the health care industry." Most recently, Marine veteran Daniel Penny was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely, a homeless man who was acting erratically on a New York City subway, after supporters donated more than $3 million to his legal defense fund. Law enforcement officials have expressed concern that Mangione is being turned into a martyr. Someone this week pasted "wanted posters" outside the New York Stock Exchange naming other executives. A recent bulletin released by the Delaware Valley Intelligence Center, a multi-agency law enforcement intelligence-sharing network based in Philadelphia, included a photo of a banner hanging from an overpass reading, "Deny, Defend, Depose," which are the same words etched on shell casings police said were recovered from the Thompson homicide scene. "Many social media users have outright advocated for the continued killings of CEOs with some aiming to spread fear by posting 'hit lists,'" the bulletin, obtained by ABC News, reads.

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Kellogg, who is one of the architects of a staunchly conservative policy book that lays out an “America First” national security agenda for the incoming administration, will come into the role as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine enters its third year in February. Trump, making the announcement on his Truth Social account, said, “He was with me right from the beginning! Together, we will secure PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH, and Make America, and the World, SAFE AGAIN!” Kellogg, an 80-year-old retired Army lieutenant general who has long been Trump’s top adviser on defense issues, served as national security adviser to Vice President Mike Pence , was chief of staff of the National Security Council and then stepped in as an acting security adviser for Trump after Michael Flynn resigned. As special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Kellogg will have to navigate an increasingly untenable war between the two nations. The Biden administration has begun urging Ukraine to quickly increase the size of its military by drafting more troops and revamping its mobilization laws to allow for the conscription of those as young as 18. The White House has pushed more than $56 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s February 2022 invasion and expects to send billions more before Biden leaves office in less than two months. The U.S. has recently stepped up weapons shipments and has forgiven billions in loans provided to Kyiv. Trump has criticized the billions the Biden administration has spent in supporting Ukraine and has said he could end the war in 24 hours, comments that appear to suggest he would press Ukraine to surrender territory that Russia now occupies. As a co-chairman of the American First Policy Institute’s Center for American Security, Kellogg wrote several of the chapters in the group’s policy book. The book, like the Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025,” is designed to lay out a Trump national security agenda and avoid the mistakes of 2016 when he entered the White House largely unprepared. Kellogg in April wrote that “bringing the Russia-Ukraine war to a close will require strong, America First leadership to deliver a peace deal and immediately end the hostilities between the two warring parties.” Trump's proposed national security adviser , U.S. Rep. Michael Waltz of Florida, tweeted Wednesday that “Keith has dedicated his life to defending our great country and is committed to bringing the war in Ukraine to a peaceful resolution.” Kellogg featured in multiple Trump investigations dating to his first term. He was among the administration officials who listened in on the July 2019 call between Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy in which Trump prodded his Ukrainian counterpart to pursue investigations into the Bidens. The call, which Kellogg would later say did not raise any concerns on his end, was at the center of the first of two House impeachment cases against Trump, who was acquitted by the Senate both times. On Jan. 6, 2021, hours before pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol, Kellogg, who was then Pence’s national security adviser, listened in on a heated call in which Trump told his vice president to object or delay the certification in Congress of President Joe Biden ’s victory. He later told House investigators that he recalled Trump saying to Pence words to the effect of: “You’re not tough enough to make the call.” Baldor reported from Washington. AP writer Eric Tucker in Washington contributed to this report.Trudeau to chair Canada-U.S. relations cabinet committee amid calls to resign

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