buckshot roulette multiplayer lobby Robbery Suspect Threatens Employee at Bear 7-Eleven – Police Seek Your HelpJapan and other major exporters face a Trump-tariffs trade warSen. Mitch McConnell said Thursday he will lead a subcommittee overseeing defense spending as he carves out new roles once he relinquishes his long-running post as Senate Republican leader. The Kentucky Republican revealed he will assume the chairmanship of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. The role dovetails with his constant message that America needs a bulked-up military to deter threats from adversaries such as Russia, Iran and China. The transition comes as McConnell is ending his role as the longest-serving Senate leader in history, just as Republicans prepare to take majority control of the chamber after big gains in this month's election. Republicans elected South Dakota Sen. John Thune , a top deputy to McConnell, as the next Senate majority leader. McConnell, 82, said Thursday he will assume the subcommittee chairmanship at a critical time. “America’s national security interests face the gravest array of threats since the Second World War," the senator said in a statement. “At this critical moment, a new Senate Republican majority has a responsibility to secure the future of U.S. leadership and primacy.” McConnell frequently evokes Ronald Reagan’s mantra of “peace through strength” when discussing foreign policy risks and how the U.S. should respond. McConnell's stance could clash with President-elect Donald Trump’s “America First” doctrine on foreign affairs. McConnell worked with Trump on a tax cuts package and the appointment of conservative judges — including three justices to the nine-member Supreme Court — during Trump's first term as president. Fighting back against isolationism within his own party, McConnell has championed sending weapons and other aid to Ukraine as it fends off Russia’s invasion. McConnell said Thursday he's also set to become chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, which is often a more low-key panel at the center of big issues, both at the Capitol and in the country. The committee oversees the administration of the Senate side of the building, including during inaugurations. But it also puts McConnnell at the center of weighty topics, namely federal elections and voting rights as well as the procedures of the Senate, including the debate around the filibuster. McConnell said the committee will have important work in the coming two years. “Defending the Senate as an institution and protecting the right to political speech in our elections remain among my longest-standing priorities,” he said. There had been considerable speculation about what roles McConnell would take after stepping down as Republican leader. He has two years left in his current Senate term and has not signaled whether he will run for reelection in Kentucky in 2026. McConnell has been a prolific appropriator for the Bluegrass State, a role he’s well positioned to continue.The slump in the number of people heading to the shops during Boxing Day sales signals a return to declining pre-pandemic levels, an analyst has said. Boxing Day shopper footfall was down 7.9% from last year across all UK retail destinations up until 5pm, MRI Software’s OnLocation Footfall Index found. However, this year’s data had been compared with an unusual spike in footfall as 2023 was the first “proper Christmas” period without Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, an analyst at the retail technology company said. It found £4.6 billion will be spent overall on the festive sales. Before the pandemic the number of Boxing Day shoppers on the streets had been declining year on year. The last uplift recorded by MRI was in 2015. Jenni Matthews, marketing and insights director at MRI Software, told the PA news agency: “We’ve got to bear in mind that (last year) was our first proper Christmas without any (Covid-19) restrictions or limitations. “Figures have come out that things have stabilised, we’re almost back to what we saw pre-pandemic.” There were year-on-year declines in footfall anywhere between 5% and 12% before Covid-19 restrictions, she said. MRI found 12% fewer people were out shopping on Boxing Day in 2019 than in 2018, and there were 3% fewer in 2018 than in 2017, Ms Matthews added. She said: “It’s the shift to online shopping, it’s the convenience, you’ve got the family days that take place on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.” People are also increasingly stocking-up before Christmas, Ms Matthews said, and MRI found an 18% increase in footfall at all UK retail destinations on Christmas Eve this year compared with 2023. Ms Matthews said: “We see the shops are full of people all the way up to Christmas Eve, so they’ve probably got a couple of good days of food, goodies, everything that they need, and they don’t really need to go out again until later on in that week. “We did see that big boost on Christmas Eve. It looks like shoppers may have concentrated much of their spending in that pre-Christmas rush.” Many online sales kicked off between December 23 and the night of Christmas Day and “a lot of people would have grabbed those bargains from the comfort of their own home”, she said. She added: “I feel like it’s becoming more and more common that people are grabbing the bargains pre-Christmas.” Footfall is expected to rise on December 27 as people emerge from family visits and shops re-open, including Next, Marks and Spencer and John Lewis that all shut for Boxing Day. It will also be payday for some as it is the last Friday of the month. A study by Barclays Consumer Spend had forecast that shoppers would spend £236 each on average in the Boxing Day sales this year, but that the majority of purchases would be made online. Nearly half of respondents said the cost-of-living crisis will affect their post-Christmas shopping but the forecast average spend is still £50 more per person than it was before the pandemic, with some of that figure because of inflation, Barclays said. Amid the financial pressures, many people are planning to buy practical, perishable and essential items such as food and kitchenware. A total of 65% of shoppers are expecting to spend the majority of their sales budget online. Last year, Barclays found 63.9% of Boxing Day retail purchases were made online. However, a quarter of respondents aim to spend mostly in store – an 11% rise compared with last year. Karen Johnson, head of retail at Barclays, said: “Despite the ongoing cost-of-living pressures, it is encouraging to hear that consumers will be actively participating in the post-Christmas sales. “This year, we’re likely to see a shift towards practicality and sustainability, with more shoppers looking to bag bargains on kitchen appliances and second-hand goods.” Consumers choose in-store shopping largely because they enjoy the social aspect and touching items before they buy, Barclays said, adding that high streets and shopping centres are the most popular destinations.

Donald Trump may seek dismissal of the criminal case in which he was convicted in May of 34 felony counts involving hush money paid to a porn star, a judge ruled on Friday, while also indefinitely delaying his sentencing in light of his victory in the November 5 US presidential election. The sentencing was scheduled to take place next Tuesday. Prosecutors with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office this week asked New York state Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan to consider deferring all proceedings in the case until after Trump, 78, finishes his four-year presidential term that begins on January 20. Lawyers for Trump, a Republican, have argued that the case must be dismissed because having it loom over him while he is president would cause “unconstitutional impediments” to his ability to govern. Bragg’s office said it would argue against dismissal, but agreed that Trump deserves time to make his case through written motions. Merchan on Friday set a December 2 deadline for Trump to file his motion to dismiss and gave prosecutors until December 9 to respond. The judge did not set a new date for sentencing or indicate how long proceedings would remain on hold. The judge also did not indicate when he would rule on Trump’s motion to dismiss. The case stemmed from a $130,000 payment Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels for her silence before the 2016 election about a sexual encounter she has said she had a decade earlier with Trump, who denies it. A Manhattan jury found Trump guilty of falsifying business records to cover up his reimbursement of Cohen. It was the first time a US president — former or sitting — had been convicted of or charged with a criminal offence. Trump pleaded not guilty in the case, which he has sought to portray as a politically motivated attempt by Bragg, a Democrat, to interfere with his presidential campaign. “The American people have issued a mandate to return him to office and dispose of all remnants of the witch hunt cases,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement. A spokesperson for Bragg’s office declined to comment. Falsification of business records is punishable by up to four years in prison. Before he was elected, experts said it was unlikely — but not impossible — that Trump would face time behind bars, with punishments such as a fine or probation seen as more likely. Trump’s victory over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the November 5 election made the prospect of imposing a sentence of jail or probation even more politically fraught and impractical, given that a sentence could have impeded his ability to conduct the duties of the presidency. Trump was charged in three additional state and federal cases in 2023, one involving classified documents he kept after leaving office and two others involving his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss . He pleaded not guilty in all three cases. A Florida-based federal judge in July dismissed the documents case. The Justice Department is now evaluating how to wind down the federal election-related case. Trump also faces state criminal charges in Georgia over his bid to reverse his 2020 loss in that state, but that case remains in limbo. As president, Trump would have no power to shut down the New York or Georgia cases because they were filed in state courts. His Justice Department may close the federal cases. Trump last week nominated his defence lawyers in the hush money case, Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, to serve senior roles at the Justice Department during his administration.

As an outcome of the election, I’ve noticed a spike in climate anxiety among the young people I encounter. Climate anxiety is real. Students and young adults who are experiencing it need to talk about it. But the most effective antidote for that anxiety is action, and seeing those actions translate into results. These kids need to get involved with organizations like Citizens’ Climate Lobby, the Sierra Club, or the Illinois Environment Council. These organizations are effectively driving results but also are teaching young people effective advocacy techniques and also how to manage stress. Students would do well to participate in marches, call and write Congress, meet with representatives, enroll other students in getting active and challenge their universities to co-sponsor effective climate legislation as their time permits. They need to feel and be empowered as a change agent with the support of others in their group. When students come to know they are helping to create the political will for change and start seeing climate legislation pass, it will do wonders to alleviate their anxiety. Andrew Panelli, Homer Glen

Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes suffered yet another devastating loss to the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday afternoon, making it four consecutive losses against their biggest rival. It was a 13-10 slugfest that ended with the Wolverines kicking a game-winning field goal with under a minute left on the clock. While fans were calling for Ryan Day to be fired after the game for his continued inability to beat Michigan, we also saw a massive brawl take place between players on the field as the Wolverines attempted to plant their flag on the Ohio State 'O' in the middle of the field. We also saw a little bit of spicy trash talk from a former Michigan staffer who has a notorious place in this rivalry. That Michigan staffer is Connor Stallions. Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images After being dismissed from the team in connection to the famous sign-stealing drama that took place in Ann Arbor a year ago, Stallions has been informed that he must stay away from this game against Ohio State. However, he made sure to get his trash talk off afterwards on social media. "Hi friends! They said I wasn’t allowed in Columbus this year . Just checking in on my buddy Ryan. Everything good???" Stallions wrote on X. Hi friends! They said I wasn’t allowed in Columbus this year 😕. Just checking in on my buddy Ryan. Everything good??? @trentejones01 pic.twitter.com/6gCFpCqVcU Everything was not good for Ryan, as it turns out. While he has had great success in his career at Ohio State with a 66-10 overall record, the four consecutive losses to Michigan may be a fireable offense ultimately. The past three losses were explainable, as Michigan was in championship contention and near the top of the sport, but this year is tougher to swallow. Coming into this game, the Wolverines were 6-5, with no hopes of playing for anything more than a bowl game. That, and trying to ruin the Buckeyes' season, which they effectively did. Ohio State can still get an at-large bid in the College Football Playoff, but without an ability to win the Big Ten Championship Game, they will not be given a first-round bye. Related: Fans Calling for Ohio State Coach Ryan Day’s Job After Devastating Loss to MichiganRocket Lab's general counsel sells $689,646 in stockPunjab to roll out centralised system for monitoring drug de-addiction treatment

Drop in Boxing Day footfall ‘signals return to declining pre-pandemic levels’