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Diana Shipping DSX is preparing to release its quarterly earnings on Monday, 2024-11-25. Here's a brief overview of what investors should keep in mind before the announcement. Analysts expect Diana Shipping to report an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.09. The announcement from Diana Shipping is eagerly anticipated, with investors seeking news of surpassing estimates and favorable guidance for the next quarter. It's worth noting for new investors that guidance can be a key determinant of stock price movements. Earnings History Snapshot During the last quarter, the company reported an EPS missed by $0.14, leading to a 0.79% drop in the share price on the subsequent day. Here's a look at Diana Shipping's past performance and the resulting price change: Quarter Q2 2024 Q1 2024 Q4 2023 Q3 2023 EPS Estimate 0.10 0.03 0.04 0.07 EPS Actual -0.04 0.01 0.06 0.06 Price Change % -1.0% -1.0% 1.0% 3.0% Stock Performance Shares of Diana Shipping were trading at $2.1 as of November 21. Over the last 52-week period, shares are down 35.5%. Given that these returns are generally negative, long-term shareholders are likely a little upset going into this earnings release. To track all earnings releases for Diana Shipping visit their earnings calendar on our site. This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and reviewed by an editor. © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.India, Kuwait commit to enhanced collaboration in energy, defence, trade and technology through joint commission
Hunter’s pardon shows Trump was right all along – nobody’s above the law, unless your surname is BidenWASHINGTON (AP) — Russell Hedrick, a North Carolina farmer, flies drones to spray fertilizers on his corn, soybean and wheat fields at a fraction of what it would cost him to use a conventional ground spreader. As a volunteer rescuer, Hedrick uses thermal drones to search for people trapped by mudslides and cargo drones to send water and baby formula to those who are stranded — something he did after Hurricane Helene . Now he is fretting that one day he will have to ground his drone fleet. Most commercial drones sold in the United States, including those used by Hedrick, are made in China. They have become a target of U.S. lawmakers, who see the dominance of Chinese drones not only as an espionage threat but as a commercial threat because they make it nearly impossible for American manufacturers to compete. It’s another front in the U.S.-China economic and technological competition that’s likely to intensify with the return to the White House in January of Republican Donald Trump, who has promised to get tough on China. Washington has already placed restrictions on Chinese telecommunications companies and imposed high tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles as the U.S. competes with China in semiconductors , artificial intelligence and other areas. A defense bill that Congress passed on Dec. 18 includes a clause to stop two Chinese companies from selling new drones in the U.S. if a review finds they pose “an unacceptable risk” to American national security. Congress has banned federal agencies from acquiring Chinese drones, with some exceptions, and several states have barred publicly funded programs from using or procuring Chinese drones. A broader ban is worrisome for Americans for whom drones have become a part of their lives and work. It could disrupt wide-ranging operations, from law enforcement to mapping and filmmaking that drone operators say are viable because of the low cost and high performance of the Chinese drones. American-made drones just aren’t comparable, they say. American reliance on Chinese-made drones In Hickory, North Carolina, Hedrick began flying Chinese-made drones in 2019 to fertilize crops and monitor crop health. A drone spreader costs $35,000, while a conventional ground sprayer would set him back $250,000, he said. “With the drone efficiency, we are able to do things we were never able to do before: to apply fertilizer but use less, which is good for American consumers,” Hedrick said. But it’s precisely that reliance on Chinese drones that worries U.S. lawmakers. “It is strategically irresponsible to allow Communist China to be our drone factory,” argued Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., who has been tapped by Trump to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. She led earlier House efforts to ban new Chinese drones. It was the role of drones in everyday life that drove Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., to get Congress to restrict the purchase of Chinese drones by federal agencies. Those restrictions were included in a defense bill that Democratic President Joe Biden signed last year. Scott has compared Chinese drones to spy balloons that could “gather data or carry harmful payloads” across America, posing risks to military bases, critical infrastructure and natural resources. Michael Robbins, president and chief executive officer of AUVSI, an advocacy group for unmanned vehicles such as drones, opposes an immediate ban. Instead, his group has urged the government to support the U.S. drone-making industry through investment so it can catch up with its Chinese competitors in both capability and cost. He applauds Congress for addressing some of the issues in the 2025 defense budget, including promoting investment in autonomous technology and working to develop a secure supply chain for U.S. drone manufacturing. That vulnerability was clear earlier this year when Beijing sanctioned the U.S. drone maker Skydio, forcing it to ration its batteries sourced from China. “This is an attempt to eliminate the leading American drone company and deepen the world’s dependence on Chinese drone suppliers,” wrote Adam Bry, chief executive officer of Skydio. Citing security interests, China has restricted exports to the U.S. of drone parts, including motors, flight controllers and imaging equipment. John Goodson, CEO of Darkhive, a San Antonio-based drone maker, said a ban would not stop Chinese drone makers from selling their products elsewhere in the world but could hurt U.S. drone companies that rely on China for parts. For now, it remains unrealistic to ban Chinese drones when there are few comparable products, said Faine Greenwood, a drone enthusiast who writes extensively about drones. “If we ban the Chinese drones, we knock out many amazing things we do.” The dominant Chinese player The best-known Chinese drones are those by DJI Technology Co., a company founded in 2006 and based in the southern city of Shenzhen. It's named in the defense spending bill, along with another Chinese company, Autel Robotics. DJI has the lion's share of the global drone market and is the dominant player in the U.S. market. Its devices are known for their affordability and high performance. They are even used on the battlefield in Ukraine by both sides, even though DJI does not make military drones. DJI's drones have been used by first responders to locate disaster victims, mappers to survey roads and utility lines, mosquito control officers to reach swarms of larvae, and filmmakers to capture aerial footage. Police use them to help prevent crime and find missing people. Hedrick, the North Carolina farmer, mobilized drone search efforts as a volunteer after Helene hit. On the first night, he and his teammates located 150 stranded people. When they could not be immediately rescued, Hedrick said his team used DJI cargo drones to send in supplies. “I am not going to say I won’t love to have U.S. drones, but I don’t see the American drones as anywhere close to the DJI drones in terms of reliability, ease of use, and just the user-friendly software,” Hedrick said. “The U.S. drones are not as good as the DJI ones but cost twice as much.” But as U.S.-China relations have soured, DJI drones have come under scrutiny. The U.S. government has put the company on several blacklists, saying it violates human rights by supplying drones to Chinese police to surveil members of the ethnic Uyghur minority, and alleging links to the Chinese military. DJI has denied wrongdoing and is suing the Pentagon over the designation that it is a Chinese military company. U.S. customs officials also have blocked some DJI shipments over concerns that the products might have been made with forced labor. DJI has called it “a customs-related misunderstanding.” As for the defense bill, DIJ said it contains no provision that would allow the company to defend itself. “We call on a relevant technical intelligence agency to undertake an audit of our products, and we ask for a fair right of reply to any findings,” DJI said. The Chinese Embassy in Washington said China opposes what it calls the politicization of trade. “The Chinese government firmly supports Chinese companies in carrying out international trade and cooperation in drones for civilian use, and opposes certain countries’ frequent illegal sanctions on Chinese companies and individuals on the grounds of so-called national security,” Liu Pengyu, the embassy spokesman, said in a statement. A lack of alternatives Several states have already restricted the use of Chinese drones. In Tennessee, public agencies, including police and fire departments, are no longer allowed to purchase DJI drones. That caused a headache for Capt. Chris Lowe of the Kingsport Fire Department. After his department lost a DJI Mavic Pro drone, he was quoted $5,000 for a replacement from an approved list of drones, when another DJI Mavic Pro would cost $1,000 to $1,500. “Basically it would be a DJI clone but doesn’t have all the capabilities,” Lowe said of the alternative. Without any state assistance, he said he would either forgo a new drone or tighten the belt in equipment maintenance elsewhere. He said the department has used drones to scope out wildfires, chemical leaks and disaster scenes and to search for missing people. “It's about life and death,” he said. In Wimberley, Texas, Gene Robinson has used high-resolution drone images to analyze differences in vegetation to discover buried bodies. He said he helped police find a victim's buried arm, making prosecution possible. Robinson doesn’t think there’s a viable alternative to the DJI drone he uses. He said his project at Texas State University's Forensic Anthropology Center would be “deader than a doornail” if there's a national ban on Chinese-made drones. At the Interior Department, the policy against foreign-made drones has hamstrung its drone operations, resulting in the “loss of opportunities to collect data on landscape, natural and cultural resources, wildlife and infrastructure," according to a September report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Florida's state ban In Florida, law enforcement officers last year complained to the state senate that a ban on state-funded agencies operating Chinese-made drones left them with costlier aircraft that didn't perform as well. That prompted state lawmakers to appropriate $25 million to help government-run drone programs acquire compliant models. Christopher Todd, executive director of the not-for-profit group Airborne International Response Team, described the ban and the subsequent switch as “an absolute mess." “Lawmakers failed to understand that this issue is far more complicated than simply changing from one drone to another," he said. “You need to learn a new user interface with new shortcuts and new protocols, and then you need to change all of the software and accessories and re-examine all of your network configurations to accommodate the technology change." But the financial assistance as well as training programs, such as the one provided by his group, made the transition possible, he said. More than 90% of law enforcement agencies in Florida used DJI drones in 2022, and the share plummeted to about 14% after the ban, according to Todd's group. In Orange County, where Orlando is located, the sheriff's office said it spent nearly $580,000 to replace 18 noncompliant drones last year and received nearly $400,000 in reimbursements from the state. “The transition has gone well and has simultaneously increased our drone fleet with better capabilities and technology,” the sheriff's office said.NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Darren Rizzi would be an unconventional choice to take over the New Orleans Saints' head coaching job on a permanent basis. That doesn't mean it can't happen. The Saints (4-7) had been on a seven-game skid when Rizzi, the club's special teams coordinator, was promoted. They've since won two straight, and as the club entered its Week 12 bye, prominent players were already discussing their desire to continue improving Rizzi's resume. “He’s definitely had an impact on our football team,” quarterback Derek Carr said after New Orleans' 35-14 victory over Cleveland last weekend. “We want to keep winning so that maybe he gets a chance to be the coach here for a long time. “That’s what we want as players,” Carr continued. "Hopefully, we can continue to have success, keep winning and give him that opportunity.” Before the Saints' demoralizing defeat at Carolina precipitated the firing of third-year coach Dennis Allen , Rizzi had never been a head coach at the NFL or major college level. The north New Jersey native and former Rhode Island tight end got his first head coaching job at Division II New Haven in 1999. He also coached his alma mater in 2008 before moving to the NFL with Miami in 2009 as a special teams assistant. By 2010, he was the Dolphins' special teams coordinator and added the title of associate head coach in 2017 before ex-Saints coach Sean Payton lured him to New Orleans in 2019. A common thread shared by Payton and Rizzi is that both worked under Bill Parcells. Parcells — known best for winning two Super Bowls as coach of the New York Giants — was coaching the Dallas Cowboys when Payton was his offensive coordinator. Rizzi, who grew up a Giants fan during the Parcells era, got to know his childhood idol during his first couple years in Miami, where Parcells executive vice president of football operations. Since his promotion, Rizzi has spoken to both Payton and Parcells. And he has begun to employ motivational techniques reminiscent of Payton, who left New Orleans in 2022 as the franchise leader in wins (152 in the regular season and nine in the postseason — including New Orleans' lone Super Bowl triumph). Payton as a big believer of symbolic imagery and motivational props, from baseball bats distributed before contests that were expected to be especially physical to gas cans left in the lockers of aging veterans whose performance was key to the club's success. Rizzi, who describes himself as a “blue collar” guy, has his own spin on such things. He began his tenure by asking players to accept individual responsibility for the metaphorical hole the team had dug itself and asked them all to embrace the idea of filling it up — one shovelful at a time. He even has brought a shovel — as well as a hammer, tape measure, level and other construction tools — to team meetings to help make his points. Saints tight end Taysom Hill, who also plays on special teams, has gotten to know Rizzi well during a half-decade of working together. Hill doesn't sound surprised to see Rizzi's combination of work ethic, enthusiasm and personal touch resonating across the entire team now. He also made a lot of changes , from weekly schedule adjustments to reconfiguring players' lockers by position. “He has a really good pulse on what we need collectively as a team to get ready for a football game," said Hill, who scored three touchdowns and accounted for 248 yards as a runner, receiver, passer and returner against Cleveland. “Guys have responded to that.” Because Rizzi's first victory came over the first-place Atlanta Falcons , and because the Falcons lost again last week, the Saints now trail Atlanta by just two games with six to play. Suddenly, the idea of the Saints playing meaningful football down the stretch is not so far-fetched. “We’re starting to get our swag back, and that makes me happy,” Rizzi said. ”We’re going to have some downtime now to kind of press the reset button again and see if we can make a push here." When the Saints return to action at home against the Los Angeles Rams on Dec 1, they'll do so with a level of momentum and positivity that seemed to steadily drain out of the club between their first loss of the season in Week 3 through the six straight setbacks that followed. While Saints players have tended to blame themselves for Allen's demise, they've been quick to credit Rizzi for the turnaround. “He’s pointed us and steered the ship in the right direction,” Carr said. “Hopefully, we can just keep executing at a high level for him, because we love him.” AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
No. 13 Duke 73, No. 9 Kansas St. 62Kwanzaa Food Traditions: What Dishes Are Typically Served?Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Hold onto your bookmarks. The list of our 10 most-loved books published since 2000 spans the literary, experimental and translated as well as true crime, science fiction and memoir genres. Some will make you cry, others will make you laugh – the best will have you doing both. Choosing only 10 books from 25 years means there are notable absences, but the list offers a sketch of the books that have shaped us and our world since the start of the millennium. Our writers, critics and editors were asked to consider their personal favourites – the books that will always have a place on their shelves – as well as quality, influence and legacy. How many have you read? Austerlitz, W G Sebald (2001) W G Sebald was the German master who invented contemporary “faction”, and Austerlitz is the last of his longer works and the one which most resembles a novel. The main character shares a name with the famous Napoleonic battle and he speaks in moody and melancholic arias of desolation over a period that stretches from the 1960s to the 1990s. Austerlitz hates the aggressive brutality of the architecture of Antwerp and exhibits a depth of melancholy that is the basic idiom of his self-delineation and Sebald’s characterisation. This is a mutation of fiction which has the self-validating intensity of great poetry. Austerlitz is a labyrinth of a book in which dream worlds and real worlds shatter and collide. It’s manifestly a masterpiece, perhaps the very greatest of those works which insinuate and actualise the way in which the mind transfigured the world it depicts. Peter Craven Blankets , Craig Thompson (2003) There was once a time when comic books were considered child’s play – throwaway fluff for the emotionally and socially stunted. At the turn of the millennium, the great graphic novels boom happened and suddenly everyone realised they’d unfairly dismissed the literary potential of books with pictures. Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis , Chris Ware’s Jimmy Corrigan and Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home were among the era’s most acclaimed titles, alongside my moody favourite Craig Thompson’s Blankets – a romantic and melancholic coming-of-age story charting the author’s world-opening first love and spirited questioning of his religious upbringing. It all plays like a Softies song – deeply evocative and earnest and reflective, Thompson’s snow-dotted panels are filled with the sort of quiet space that stops you in your tracks repeatedly, something run-on sentences could never do. As my copy’s coffee-stained jacket, quoting Pulitzer winning cartoonist Jules Feiffer, somewhat defensively suggests: “I’d call that literature.” Robert Moran Joe Cinque’s Consolation: A True Story of Death, Grief and the Law, Helen Garner (2004) These days, we’re inundated with true crime content — podcasts, documentaries, books and TV shows — but none come close to the moral inquiry, literary craftsmanship and utter elegance of Helen Garner’s Joe Cinque’s Consolation . The non-fiction work follows the murder trial of Anu Singh, a law student at ANU in Canberra, and her best friend, who were accused of murdering Singh’s boyfriend, engineering student Joe Cinque, in 1997 with a lethal dose of heroin and Rohypnol. Singh had allegedly organised two dinner parties before the murder, hinting to her friends about her plans, but none intervened. Garner’s work avoids easy conclusions and oversimplification, combining sharp analysis with deep empathy to transform a personal tragedy into a universal exploration of justice, grief and human frailty. If only this self-reflective, philosophical book was the standard for all works about true criminal cases. Melanie Kembrey Never Let Me Go, Kazuo Ishiguro (2005) Kathy, Ruth and Tommy are special children growing up in a curiously old-fashioned boarding school with kind teachers. Already the place and time is lit with a nostalgic glow. Kathy, now an adult, looks back without rancour on those formative years and the close ties with her two friends. Gradually, the world surrounding the school is revealed. You may see the twist coming, but it doesn’t matter, because Never Let Me Go is unexpected in different ways. Kazuo Ishiguro ’s delicate handling transcends his science fiction premise and in simple understated language graced with dignified euphemisms tells us a complex and profoundly moving love story. The reader may be shocked and angry, but the characters never are, and we respect that. Kathy’s memories add up to a meditation on human connection, what we can keep and what we have to lose. The last scene, in which Kathy contemplates rubbish flapping on a barbed wire fence, has never left me. Jane Sullivan Ten must-read books published since 2000. A Visit from The Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan (2010) “Time’s a goon, you gonna let that goon push you around?” says Scotty Hausman. He’s a failed guitarist who leaves a dead fish in the office of a friend whose success he resents in A Visit from the Goon Squad , Jennifer Egan’s ode to Proust by way of The Sopranos that I devoured when it came out. Egan’s kaleidoscopic 2010 novel follows unforgettable characters including a kleptomaniac called Sasha Blake and Bennie Salazar, a punk rocker-turned-ageing record executive who sprinkles gold flakes in his morning coffee in a bid to feel again. It’s often praised for its formal daring: its interlocked narratives shuttle back and forth and one of its best chapters is written as a PowerPoint presentation. But to me, the novel’s ability to evoke time’s quieter tragedies — the ghosts of youth, the slow sapping of desire, the choices that distance us from those we most love – that make it profound. Neha Kale My Brilliant Friend, Elena Ferrante (2011) The Italian novelist Elena Ferrante is an elusive figure. The name is a pen-name; Ferrante’s true identity is officially unknown. What we know is that she has published a quartet of evidently autobiographical novels, collectively called the Neapolitan Novels, which prove that fiction in the 21st century can still scale the exhilarating heights that Proust scaled in the 20th. My Brilliant Friend , the disturbing and beautiful first book of Ferrante’s sequence, centres on the narrator’s childhood friendship with the unforgettable Lila. Both girls are ambitious and courageous; both struggle to transcend the limits of the oppressively male world around them. Like Proust, Ferrante has an uncanny memory. She recalls the passions and traumas of her girlhood as if they happened yesterday. The story she tells is in one sense local and particular. But she tells it with a piercing urgency that transforms it into something universal, which has resonated with millions of readers worldwide. David Free Conversations with Friends, Sally Rooney (2017) Before every book marketed to Millennial women became stamped with a cursory “for fans of Sally Rooney”, there was Conversations With Friends , the book that kicked off the Irish author’s career and, arguably, an entire literary genre. Despite having released three novels since – each a success in their own right – Conversations is still Rooney at her best. Ultimately, this is a book about relationships: the friendship between college students, poets and former lovers Frances and Bobbi; the marriage between alluring older couple Melissa and Nick; the addictive and, honestly very hot, love affair of Frances and Nick; and the bloodied relationship between Frances and her body. Being a Rooney fan may have become somewhat of a cliche (though one much less painful than that of her literary haters, in my opinion), but there’s no denying this book changed what we considered possible in fiction for, and about, young women. Gyan Yankovich Hit So Hard, Patty Schemel (2017) I’m sorry, but Patty Schemel’s memoir of drugs, sex(uality) and existential annihilation is rock and roll. The prose is clean, rigorous and every bit as pacy as Schemel’s drums thrashing and churning during Live Through This . You don’t necessarily need to care about Seattle grunge, riot grrrl, textured portraits of Kurt Cobain (whose pathos Schemel perfectly evokes here) or exactly what it’s like to throw a puppy-shaped backpack full of Anne Rice paraphernalia at Courtney Love, to appreciate this memoir. Just savour the unexpected, ambient turns of phrase (an addict’s excuses and escape plans, their little bouts of salvation bargaining: the “geographic cure”; Courtney Love playing Melbourne’s Big Day Out with Hole: a “radiant nightmare”.) There is, too, the affecting gallows humour, as in the unexpected punchline to a story of someone casually injecting heroin in their neck during casual conversation; or the eerie moment Schemel, watching the news, sees her own picture displayed during reports of the death of a fellow Hole member. Dumpster-diving, so to speak, through LA dreams and Madonna’s garbage, all while maintaining the kind of stoicism Marcus Aurelius would kill for, Schemel’s voice – graceful, resonant, beguiling – convinced me that, sometimes, the only way out is through. Declan Fry My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Ottessa Moshfegh (2018) My Year of Rest and Relaxation is an exercise in hypnotised reading. Such is the skill of Ottessa Moshfegh, taking us through the story of an appallingly beautiful 26-year old woman who embarks on an ambitious self-imposed quarantine to sleep for a year. The unnamed narrator is a rich, skinny orphaned elite. She approaches her voluntary isolation with the focus of a cyclist about to tackle the Tour de France. It’s mid-June 2000 when her drug-induced hibernation begins. “I didn’t do much in my waking hours besides watch movies,” she announces in the opening pages. Her dogged attempts to detach herself from reality are thwarted (or aided) by a pair of hilarious sidekicks – her psychiatrist, Dr Tuttle, a turtle-neck wearing quack who encourages 14 hours of sleep; and Reva, the painfully jealous loyal friend who suffers from a degree of self-loathing that makes her both utterly detestable and endearing. Saying no to the world that was not made for women, this text therefore feels resolutely feminist. Our heroine’s utter denial of stimuli feels both outrageous and inspiring. No other book captures the sweet malaise that was the late ’90s, pre-9/11 New York era. Jessie Tu Praiseworthy , Alexis Wright (2023) Praiseworthy is a canon-crushing Australian novel for the ages – a grand, whirling hymn of everywhen. Wright’s real-life frustrations at the indignities of the Anthropocene stalk the pages of this bitterly funny book. When a methane-like haze settles over the once-tidy town of Praiseworthy , a dreamer – Cause Man Steel – sees an opportunity to capitalise on this new, ferocious era of heat. There’s a fortune to be made, deliverance to be found. Is he a schemer or a visionary? Prophet or fool? His journey will be as absurd as it is epic – a Don Quixote of the dust. “I believe literature must meet the scale of what is happening in the world,” Wright explains. “We have to, even foolishly, believe that anything can be done in life or in literature with deep thought”. Praiseworthy is not just the product of deep thought, but an invitation – a mighty and generous invitation – to do the thinking for ourselves. Beejay Silcox Honourable mentions Things I Didn’t Know: A Memoir , Robert Hughes (2005) Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel (2009) Outline , Rachel Cusk (2014) Lincoln in the Bardo , George Saunders (2017) The Overstory , Richard Powers (2018) What books do you think deserve a place on the list? Tell us in the comments.
WASHINGTON — Special counsel Jack Smith moved to abandon two criminal cases against Donald Trump on Monday, acknowledging that Trump’s return to the White House will preclude attempts to federally prosecute him for retaining classified documents or trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat. The decision was inevitable, since longstanding Justice Department policy says sitting presidents cannot face criminal prosecution. Yet it was still a momentous finale to an unprecedented chapter in political and law enforcement history, as federal officials attempted to hold accountable a former president while he was simultaneously running for another term. Trump emerges indisputably victorious, having successfully delayed the investigations through legal maneuvers and then winning re-election despite indictments that described his actions as a threat to the country's constitutional foundations. FILE - Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to the media about an indictment of former President Donald Trump, Aug. 1, 2023, at an office of the Department of Justice in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) “I persevered, against all odds, and WON," Trump exulted in a post on Truth Social, his social media website. He also said that “these cases, like all of the other cases I have been forced to go through, are empty and lawless, and should never have been brought.” The judge in the election case granted prosecutors' dismissal request. A decision in the documents case was still pending on Monday afternoon. The outcome makes it clear that, when it comes to a president and criminal accusations, nothing supersedes the voters' own verdict. In court filings, Smith's team emphasized that the move to end their prosecutions was not a reflection of the merit of the cases but a recognition of the legal shield that surrounds any commander in chief. “That prohibition is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the Government’s proof, or the merits of the prosecution, which the Government stands fully behind,” prosecutors said in one of their filings. They wrote that Trump’s return to the White House “sets at odds two fundamental and compelling national interests: on the one hand, the Constitution’s requirement that the President must not be unduly encumbered in fulfilling his weighty responsibilities . . . and on the other hand, the Nation’s commitment to the rule of law.” In this situation, “the Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated,” they concluded. Smith’s team said it was leaving intact charges against two co-defendants in the classified documents case — Trump valet Walt Nauta and Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira — because “no principle of temporary immunity applies to them.” Steven Cheung, Trump's incoming White House communications director, said Americans “want an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and we look forward to uniting our country.” Trump has long described the investigations as politically motivated, and he has vowed to fire Smith as soon as he takes office in January. Now he will start his second term free from criminal scrutiny by the government that he will lead. The election case brought last year was once seen as one of the most serious legal threats facing Trump as he tried to reclaim the White House. He was indicted for plotting to overturn his defeat to Joe Biden in 2020, an effort that climaxed with his supporters' violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. President-elect Donald Trump arrives before the launch of the sixth test flight of the SpaceX Starship rocket Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024 in Boca Chica, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Pool via AP) But the case quickly stalled amid legal fighting over Trump’s sweeping claims of immunity from prosecution for acts he took while in the White House. The U.S. Supreme Court in July ruled for the first time that former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution, and sent the case back to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan to determine which allegations in the indictment, if any, could proceed to trial. The case was just beginning to pick up steam again in the trial court in the weeks leading up to this year’s election. Smith’s team in October filed a lengthy brief laying out new evidence they planned to use against him at trial, accusing him of “resorting to crimes” in an increasingly desperate effort to overturn the will of voters after he lost to Biden. In dismissing the case, Chutkan acknowledged prosecutors' request to do so “without prejudice,” raising the possibility that they could try to bring charges against Trump when his term is over. She wrote that is “consistent with the Government’s understanding that the immunity afforded to a sitting President is temporary, expiring when they leave office.” But such a move may be barred by the statute of limitations, and Trump may also try to pardon himself while in office. immunity afforded to a sitting President is temporary, expiring when they leave office. The separate case involving classified documents had been widely seen as legally clear cut, especially because the conduct in question occurred after Trump left the White House and lost the powers of the presidency. The indictment included dozens of felony counts accusing him of illegally hoarding classified records from his presidency at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, and obstructing federal efforts to get them back. He has pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing. The case quickly became snarled by delays, with U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon slow to issue rulings — which favored Trump’s strategy of pushing off deadlines in all his criminal cases — while also entertaining defense motions and arguments that experts said other judges would have dispensed with without hearings. In May, she indefinitely canceled the trial date amid a series of unresolved legal issues before dismissing the case outright two months later. Smith’s team appealed the decision, but now has given up that effort. Trump faced two other state prosecutions while running for president. One them, a New York case involving hush money payments, resulted in a conviction on felony charges of falsifying business records. It was the first time a former president had been found guilty of a crime. The sentencing in that case is on hold as Trump's lawyers try to have the conviction dismissed before he takes office, arguing that letting the verdict stand will interfere with his presidential transition and duties. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office is fighting the dismissal but has indicated that it would be open to delaying sentencing until Trump leaves office. Bragg, a Democrat, has said the solution needs to balance the obligations of the presidency with “the sanctity of the jury verdict." Trump was also indicted in Georgia along with 18 others accused of participating in a sprawling scheme to illegally overturn the 2020 presidential election there. Any trial appears unlikely there while Trump holds office. The prosecution already was on hold after an appeals court agreed to review whether to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over her romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she had hired to lead the case. Four defendants have pleaded guilty after reaching deals with prosecutors. Trump and the others have pleaded not guilty. Associated Press writers Colleen Long, Michael Sisak and Lindsay Whitehurst contributed to this story. ___ Special Counsel Jack Smith plans to step down before Trump’s inauguration, according to The New York Times. Among President-elect Donald Trump's picks are Susie Wiles for chief of staff, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state, former Democratic House member Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz for attorney general. Susie Wiles, 67, was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 presidential campaign and its de facto manager. Trump named Florida Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of state, making a former sharp critic his choice to be the new administration's top diplomat. Rubio, 53, is a noted hawk on China, Cuba and Iran, and was a finalist to be Trump's running mate on the Republican ticket last summer. Rubio is the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “He will be a strong Advocate for our Nation, a true friend to our Allies, and a fearless Warrior who will never back down to our adversaries,” Trump said of Rubio in a statement. The announcement punctuates the hard pivot Rubio has made with Trump, whom the senator called a “con man" during his unsuccessful campaign for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. Their relationship improved dramatically while Trump was in the White House. And as Trump campaigned for the presidency a third time, Rubio cheered his proposals. For instance, Rubio, who more than a decade ago helped craft immigration legislation that included a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. illegally, now supports Trump's plan to use the U.S. military for mass deportations. Pete Hegseth, 44, is a co-host of Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend” and has been a contributor with the network since 2014, where he developed a friendship with Trump, who made regular appearances on the show. Hegseth lacks senior military or national security experience. If confirmed by the Senate, he would inherit the top job during a series of global crises — ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian proxies to the push for a cease-fire between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah and escalating worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea. Hegseth is also the author of “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free,” published earlier this year. Trump tapped Pam Bondi, 59, to be attorney general after U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration. She was Florida's first female attorney general, serving between 2011 and 2019. She also was on Trump’s legal team during his first impeachment trial in 2020. Considered a loyalist, she served as part of a Trump-allied outside group that helped lay the groundwork for his future administration called the America First Policy Institute. Bondi was among a group of Republicans who showed up to support Trump at his hush money criminal trial in New York that ended in May with a conviction on 34 felony counts. A fierce defender of Trump, she also frequently appears on Fox News and has been a critic of the criminal cases against him. Trump picked South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a well-known conservative who faced sharp criticism for telling a story in her memoir about shooting a rambunctious dog, to lead an agency crucial to the president-elect’s hardline immigration agenda. Noem used her two terms leading a tiny state to vault to a prominent position in Republican politics. South Dakota is usually a political afterthought. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, Noem did not order restrictions that other states had issued and instead declared her state “open for business.” Trump held a fireworks rally at Mount Rushmore in July 2020 in one of the first large gatherings of the pandemic. She takes over a department with a sprawling mission. In addition to key immigration agencies, the Department of Homeland Security oversees natural disaster response, the U.S. Secret Service, and Transportation Security Administration agents who work at airports. The governor of North Dakota, who was once little-known outside his state, Burgum is a former Republican presidential primary contender who endorsed Trump, and spent months traveling to drum up support for him, after dropping out of the race. Burgum was a serious contender to be Trump’s vice presidential choice this summer. The two-term governor was seen as a possible pick because of his executive experience and business savvy. Burgum also has close ties to deep-pocketed energy industry CEOs. Trump made the announcement about Burgum joining his incoming administration while addressing a gala at his Mar-a-Lago club, and said a formal statement would be coming the following day. In comments to reporters before Trump took the stage, Burgum said that, in recent years, the power grid is deteriorating in many parts of the country, which he said could raise national security concerns but also drive up prices enough to increase inflation. “There's just a sense of urgency, and a sense of understanding in the Trump administration,” Burgum said. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ran for president as a Democrat, than as an independent, and then endorsed Trump . He's the son of Democratic icon Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated during his own presidential campaign. The nomination of Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services alarmed people who are concerned about his record of spreading unfounded fears about vaccines . For example, he has long advanced the debunked idea that vaccines cause autism. Scott Bessent, 62, is a former George Soros money manager and an advocate for deficit reduction. He's the founder of hedge fund Key Square Capital Management, after having worked on-and-off for Soros Fund Management since 1991. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the nation’s first openly gay treasury secretary. He told Bloomberg in August that he decided to join Trump’s campaign in part to attack the mounting U.S. national debt. That would include slashing government programs and other spending. “This election cycle is the last chance for the U.S. to grow our way out of this mountain of debt without becoming a sort of European-style socialist democracy,” he said then. Oregon Republican U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer narrowly lost her reelection bid this month, but received strong backing from union members in her district. As a potential labor secretary, she would oversee the Labor Department’s workforce, its budget and put forth priorities that impact workers’ wages, health and safety, ability to unionize, and employer’s rights to fire employers, among other responsibilities. Chavez-DeRemer is one of few House Republicans to endorse the “Protecting the Right to Organize” or PRO Act would allow more workers to conduct organizing campaigns and would add penalties for companies that violate workers’ rights. The act would also weaken “right-to-work” laws that allow employees in more than half the states to avoid participating in or paying dues to unions that represent workers at their places of employment. Scott Turner is a former NFL player and White House aide. He ran the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council during Trump’s first term in office. Trump, in a statement, credited Turner, the highest-ranking Black person he’s yet selected for his administration, with “helping to lead an Unprecedented Effort that Transformed our Country’s most distressed communities.” Sean Duffy is a former House member from Wisconsin who was one of Trump's most visible defenders on cable news. Duffy served in the House for nearly nine years, sitting on the Financial Services Committee and chairing the subcommittee on insurance and housing. He left Congress in 2019 for a TV career and has been the host of “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business. Before entering politics, Duffy was a reality TV star on MTV, where he met his wife, “Fox and Friends Weekend” co-host Rachel Campos-Duffy. They have nine children. A campaign donor and CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, Write is a vocal advocate of oil and gas development, including fracking — a key pillar of Trump’s quest to achieve U.S. “energy dominance” in the global market. Wright also has been one of the industry’s loudest voices against efforts to fight climate change. He said the climate movement around the world is “collapsing under its own weight.” The Energy Department is responsible for advancing energy, environmental and nuclear security of the United States. Wright also won support from influential conservatives, including oil and gas tycoon Harold Hamm. Hamm, executive chairman of Oklahoma-based Continental Resources, a major shale oil company, is a longtime Trump supporter and adviser who played a key role on energy issues in Trump’s first term. President-elect Donald Trump tapped billionaire professional wrestling mogul Linda McMahon to be secretary of the Education Department, tasked with overseeing an agency Trump promised to dismantle. McMahon led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s initial term from 2017 to 2019 and twice ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the U.S. Senate in Connecticut. She’s seen as a relative unknown in education circles, though she expressed support for charter schools and school choice. She served on the Connecticut Board of Education for a year starting in 2009 and has spent years on the board of trustees for Sacred Heart University in Connecticut. Brooke Rollins, who graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in agricultural development, is a longtime Trump associate who served as White House domestic policy chief during his first presidency. The 52-year-old is president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a group helping to lay the groundwork for a second Trump administration. She previously served as an aide to former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and ran a think tank, the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Trump chose Howard Lutnick, head of brokerage and investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald and a cryptocurrency enthusiast, as his nominee for commerce secretary, a position in which he'd have a key role in carrying out Trump's plans to raise and enforce tariffs. Trump made the announcement Tuesday on his social media platform, Truth Social. Lutnick is a co-chair of Trump’s transition team, along with Linda McMahon, the former wrestling executive who previously led Trump’s Small Business Administration. Both are tasked with putting forward candidates for key roles in the next administration. The nomination would put Lutnick in charge of a sprawling Cabinet agency that is involved in funding new computer chip factories, imposing trade restrictions, releasing economic data and monitoring the weather. It is also a position in which connections to CEOs and the wider business community are crucial. Doug Collins is a former Republican congressman from Georgia who gained recognition for defending Trump during his first impeachment trial, which centered on U.S. assistance for Ukraine. Trump was impeached for urging Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden in 2019 during the Democratic presidential nomination, but he was acquitted by the Senate. Collins has also served in the armed forces himself and is currently a chaplain in the United States Air Force Reserve Command. "We must take care of our brave men and women in uniform, and Doug will be a great advocate for our Active Duty Servicemembers, Veterans, and Military Families to ensure they have the support they need," Trump said in a statement about nominating Collins to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs. Karoline Leavitt, 27, was Trump's campaign press secretary and currently a spokesperson for his transition. She would be the youngest White House press secretary in history. The White House press secretary typically serves as the public face of the administration and historically has held daily briefings for the press corps. Leavitt, a New Hampshire native, was a spokesperson for MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, before joining his 2024 campaign. In 2022, she ran for Congress in New Hampshire, winning a 10-way Republican primary before losing to Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas. Leavitt worked in the White House press office during Trump's first term before she became communications director for New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, Trump's choice for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has been tapped by Trump to be director of national intelligence, keeping with the trend to stock his Cabinet with loyal personalities rather than veteran professionals in their requisite fields. Gabbard, 43, was a Democratic House member who unsuccessfully sought the party's 2020 presidential nomination before leaving the party in 2022. She endorsed Trump in August and campaigned often with him this fall. “I know Tulsi will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our Intelligence Community,” Trump said in a statement. Gabbard, who has served in the Army National Guard for more than two decades, deploying to Iraq and Kuwait, would come to the role as somewhat of an outsider compared to her predecessor. The current director, Avril Haines, was confirmed by the Senate in 2021 following several years in a number of top national security and intelligence positions. Trump has picked John Ratcliffe, a former Texas congressman who served as director of national intelligence during his first administration, to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency in his next. Ratcliffe was director of national intelligence during the final year and a half of Trump's first term, leading the U.S. government's spy agencies during the coronavirus pandemic. “I look forward to John being the first person ever to serve in both of our Nation's highest Intelligence positions,” Trump said in a statement, calling him a “fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans” who would ensure “the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.” Trump has chosen former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to serve as his pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency . Zeldin does not appear to have any experience in environmental issues, but is a longtime supporter of the former president. The 44-year-old former U.S. House member from New York wrote on X , “We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI.” “We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water,” he added. During his campaign, Trump often attacked the Biden administration's promotion of electric vehicles, and incorrectly referring to a tax credit for EV purchases as a government mandate. Trump also often told his audiences during the campaign his administration would “Drill, baby, drill,” referring to his support for expanded petroleum exploration. In a statement, Trump said Zeldin “will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet.” Trump has named Brendan Carr, the senior Republican on the Federal Communications Commission, as the new chairman of the agency tasked with regulating broadcasting, telecommunications and broadband. Carr is a longtime member of the commission and served previously as the FCC’s general counsel. He has been unanimously confirmed by the Senate three times and was nominated by both Trump and President Joe Biden to the commission. Carr made past appearances on “Fox News Channel," including when he decried Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris' pre-Election Day appearance on “Saturday Night Live.” He wrote an op-ed last month defending a satellite company owned by Trump supporter Elon Musk. Rep. Elise Stefanik is a representative from New York and one of Trump's staunchest defenders going back to his first impeachment. Elected to the House in 2014, Stefanik was selected by her GOP House colleagues as House Republican Conference chair in 2021, when former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney was removed from the post after publicly criticizing Trump for falsely claiming he won the 2020 election. Stefanik, 40, has served in that role ever since as the third-ranking member of House leadership. Stefanik’s questioning of university presidents over antisemitism on their campuses helped lead to two of those presidents resigning, further raising her national profile. If confirmed, she would represent American interests at the U.N. as Trump vows to end the war waged by Russia against Ukraine begun in 2022. He has also called for peace as Israel continues its offensive against Hamas in Gaza and its invasion of Lebanon to target Hezbollah. President-elect Donald Trump says he's chosen former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO. Trump has expressed skepticism about the Western military alliance for years. Trump said in a statement Wednesday that Whitaker is “a strong warrior and loyal Patriot” who “will ensure the United States’ interests are advanced and defended” and “strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability.” The choice of Whitaker as the nation’s representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an unusual one, given his background is as a lawyer and not in foreign policy. Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel. Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel's interests as it wages wars against the Iran-backed Hamas and Hezbollah. “He loves Israel, and likewise the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike will work tirelessly to bring about peace in the Middle East.” Huckabee, who ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and 2016, has been a popular figure among evangelical Christian conservatives, many of whom support Israel due to Old Testament writings that Jews are God’s chosen people and that Israel is their rightful homeland. Trump has been praised by some in this important Republican voting bloc for moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Trump on Tuesday named real estate investor Steven Witkoff to be special envoy to the Middle East. The 67-year-old Witkoff is the president-elect's golf partner and was golfing with him at Trump's club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 15, when the former president was the target of a second attempted assassination. Witkoff “is a Highly Respected Leader in Business and Philanthropy,” Trump said of Witkoff in a statement. “Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud." Trump also named Witkoff co-chair, with former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, of his inaugural committee. Trump asked Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Army National Guard officer and war veteran, to be his national security adviser, Trump announced in a statement Tuesday. The move puts Waltz in the middle of national security crises, ranging from efforts to provide weapons to Ukraine and worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea to the persistent attacks in the Middle East by Iran proxies and the push for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah. “Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda,” Trump's statement said, "and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!” Waltz is a three-term GOP congressman from east-central Florida. He served multiple tours in Afghanistan and also worked in the Pentagon as a policy adviser when Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates were defense chiefs. He is considered hawkish on China, and called for a U.S. boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to its involvement in the origin of COVID-19 and its mistreatment of the minority Muslim Uighur population. Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner , was a vocal spokesperson during the presidential campaign for Trump's priority of mass deportations. The 39-year-old was a senior adviser during Trump's first administration. Miller has been a central figure in some of Trump's policy decisions, notably his move to separate thousands of immigrant families. Trump argued throughout the campaign that the nation's economic, national security and social priorities could be met by deporting people who are in the United States illegally. Since Trump left office in 2021, Miller has served as the president of America First Legal, an organization made up of former Trump advisers aimed at challenging the Biden administration, media companies, universities and others over issues such as free speech and national security. Thomas Homan, 62, has been tasked with Trump’s top priority of carrying out the largest deportation operation in the nation’s history. Homan, who served under Trump in his first administration leading U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was widely expected to be offered a position related to the border, an issue Trump made central to his campaign. Though Homan has insisted such a massive undertaking would be humane, he has long been a loyal supporter of Trump's policy proposals, suggesting at a July conference in Washington that he would be willing to "run the biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.” Democrats have criticized Homan for his defending Trump's “zero tolerance” policy on border crossings during his first administration, which led to the separation of thousands of parents and children seeking asylum at the border. Dr. Mehmet Oz, 64, is a former heart surgeon who hosted “The Dr. Oz Show,” a long-running daytime television talk show. He ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate as the Republican nominee in 2022 and is an outspoken supporter of Trump, who endorsed Oz's bid for elected office. Elon Musk, left, and Vivek Ramaswamy speak before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at an Oct. 27 campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York. Trump on Tuesday said Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Ramaswamy will lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency" — which is not, despite the name, a government agency. The acronym “DOGE” is a nod to Musk's favorite cryptocurrency, dogecoin. Trump said Musk and Ramaswamy will work from outside the government to offer the White House “advice and guidance” and will partner with the Office of Management and Budget to “drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.” He added the move would shock government systems. It's not clear how the organization will operate. Musk, owner of X and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has been a constant presence at Mar-a-Lago since Trump won the presidential election. Ramaswamy suspended his campaign in January and threw his support behind Trump. Trump said the two will “pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.” Russell Vought held the position during Trump’s first presidency. After Trump’s initial term ended, Vought founded the Center for Renewing America, a think tank that describes its mission as “renew a consensus of America as a nation under God.” Vought was closely involved with Project 2025, a conservative blueprint for Trump’s second term that he tried to distance himself from during the campaign. Vought has also previously worked as the executive and budget director for the Republican Study Committee, a caucus for conservative House Republicans. He also worked at Heritage Action, the political group tied to The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Scavino, whom Trump's transition referred to in a statement as one of “Trump's longest serving and most trusted aides,” was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 campaign, as well as his 2016 and 2020 campaigns. He will be deputy chief of staff and assistant to the president. Scavino had run Trump's social media profile in the White House during his first administration. He was also held in contempt of Congress in 2022 after a month-long refusal to comply with a subpoena from the House committee’s investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Blair was political director for Trump's 2024 campaign and for the Republican National Committee. He will be deputy chief of staff for legislative, political and public affairs and assistant to the president. Blair was key to Trump's economic messaging during his winning White House comeback campaign this year, a driving force behind the candidate's “Trump can fix it” slogan and his query to audiences this fall if they were better off than four years ago. Budowich is a veteran Trump campaign aide who launched and directed Make America Great Again, Inc., a super PAC that supported Trump's 2024 campaign. He will be deputy chief of staff for communications and personnel and assistant to the president. Budowich also had served as a spokesman for Trump after his presidency. McGinley was White House Cabinet secretary during Trump's first administration, and was outside legal counsel for the Republican National Committee's election integrity effort during the 2024 campaign. In a statement, Trump called McGinley “a smart and tenacious lawyer who will help me advance our America First agenda, while fighting for election integrity and against the weaponization of law enforcement.” Associated Press writer Colleen Long contributed to this story. Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.DTX Exchange (DTX) has regained momentum after a slight dip in the Ripple (XRP) network diverted the massive flow of investors to its fiery presale. As of December 20, DTX’s presale stage 6 has raised over $10.44 million, with more whale activity anticipated by expert analysts in the coming weeks. While Ripple’s price retraction has sparked a panic, it could rebound shortly. Ripple (XRP) Retests Historic Support After Retraction After consecutive weeks of continuous rallies and significant gains, the crypto market has witnessed a flash crash. CoinMarketCap's data shows that Ripple’s XRP plunged to a weekly low of $2.05 from a high of $2.8. While XRP has bounced off this support level, some investors have raised concerns over the recent price drop. Similarly, several analysts have said that the Ripple coin merely retested historical support. According to the Charting Guy, Ripple (XRP) only retested the 2021 high in the latest dip. He further explained that the Ripple token still has the exact same structure as it did during its explosive rally in 2017. According to his analysis, the bull market for XRP, one of the top crypto coins, is still "on track perfectly." CryptoKnight890 shared a Ripple price chart that affirms the position of the Charting Guy. According to CryptoKnight890, the altcoin price could pump as high as $3.5168, representing an increase of more than 60% from the current price range of XRP. Saeed Zaman, popularly known as TraderSZ on Twitter, has confirmed this stance as well. However, he sets his Ripple (XRP) price target a bit lower for this bull run. In his opinion, the XRP bull run could cap off at around $3.3308, which is just short of XRP's ATH. Ripple vs. SEC Update: Conflict Nears Critical Point On Thursday, December 19, Fox Business journalist Eleanor Terrett shared the details of a meeting between staffers for SEC Commissioners Hester Peirce and Mark Uyeda and the Digital Chamber. The Digital Chamber reportedly set priorities for the SEC divisions by considering the incoming administration’s pro-crypto agenda. In August 2024, Judge Analisa Torres ordered Ripple to pay a $125 million penalty for violating US securities laws. The penalty amount fell well short of the SEC’s demand for a punitive $2 billion penalty. The court noted that investors did not suffer pecuniary harm because of the violations, nor did Ripple commit fraud. A stay on the Ripple case may prompt the SEC to withdraw its appeal, setting the Programmatic Sales of XRP ruling as a crucial legal precedent for the US digital asset market. An end to the Ripple case would be a boon for XRP, plagued with uncertainty about the SEC’s appeal plans. Invest In This Emerging Hybrid Platform Before It Breaks Out DTX Exchange (DTX) is a trading exchange that allows users to trade cryptos, forex, equities, and contract-for-differences (CFDs). The platform features cutting-edge infrastructure and unprecedented trading features to provide unparalleled opportunities. The platform offers access to over 120,000+ assets across crypto, stocks & bonds, forex, and commodities. Up to 1,000X leverage Distributed liquidity pools Non-custodial wallets No KYC requirements This next-generation hybrid platform enables traders to skyrocket their trading potential with up to 1,000x leverage on select assets. Investors can potentially 25x their gains and minimize risks by controlling large positions with minimal capital, unlocking a world of profit potential in the volatile crypto market. This $0.12 AI Crypto Could Make You Reassess Your Portfolio DTX Exchange’ s cutting-edge L1 blockchain technology enables it to offer insane trading protocols for users. Investors can trade free from limitations and explore endless possibilities with the platform’s diverse range of trading instruments. Whether it’s an experienced investor or a new trader, DTX Exchange offers something for everyone. This deFi project enables savvy investors to utilize the most robust trading reference material at their fingertips. DTX offers a wealth of charts, graphs, and analytical tools, empowering traders to make the best possible decisions and stay ahead of the curve. As the market nears the end of 2024, DTX Exchange (DTX) is poised to become the next big thing in the market. Join now! Buy Presale Visit DTX Website Join The DTX Community Join our WhatsApp Channel to get the latest news, exclusives and videos on WhatsApp _____________ Disclaimer: Analytics Insight does not provide financial advice or guidance. Also note that the cryptocurrencies mentioned/listed on the website could potentially be scams, i.e. designed to induce you to invest financial resources that may be lost forever and not be recoverable once investments are made. You are responsible for conducting your own research (DYOR) before making any investments. Read more here.Analog Devices Inc. stock underperforms Monday when compared to competitors despite daily gains
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UConn head coach Dan Hurley insists he's not overvaluing Wednesday night's game between his 25th-ranked Huskies and No. 15 Baylor in Storrs, Conn. Sure, it comes on the heels of the two-time reigning national champion Huskies (5-3) responding to losing all three games during the Maui Invitational with a blowout victory over Maryland Eastern Shore on Saturday. UConn, which had won 17 consecutive games entering the Maui tournament, fell 23 spots from No. 2 to nearly out of the Associated Press Top 25 poll released Monday. "I think it's such a long season and we're eight games in," Hurley said when asked about facing the Bears. "Our performance in Maui shocked the college basketball world and the sports world, and obviously a lot went on there." "I don't think it's a must-win game in Game Nine of the season, but it's an opportunity to play in Gampel (Pavilion), where we play great and are very comfortable, and we know we're gonna have a great crowd." "We also know we're playing a top-level team, so it's a big game for us and it's a big game for them." Wednesday's game signifies the start of a tough stretch in UConn's schedule. The Huskies will visit Texas on Sunday and challenge No. 7 Gonzaga in New York on Dec. 14 before beginning Big East play on Dec. 18 against Xavier, which fell from No. 22 to out of the poll on Monday. But let's go back to Saturday's 99-45 dismantling of the Hawks. Jaylin Stewart started in place of the injured Alex Karaban (head) and joined Liam McNeeley by scoring 16 points to put UConn back in the win column. Solo Ball contributed 12 points, Aidan Mahaney had 11 and Tarris Reed Jr. (10 points, 12 rebounds) and Jayden Ross (10 points, 10 rebounds) each recorded a double-double. "This experience they're getting, (Stewart), Jayden Ross, Solo Ball, these guys are going to keep getting better and better," Hurley said. "Jaylin Stewart has flashed. That Memphis game (in which he scored 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting), he flashed a lot in that one. "... These sophomores are just going to keep getting better and better. That's why I do think we do need the grace and support of our people here at UConn. Because they're going to be such different players in January and February." Coming off a split in the Bahamas, Baylor (5-2) bounced back from a 77-62 setback to then-No. 11 Tennessee on Nov. 22 with a decisive 91-60 victory over New Orleans last Wednesday. "I know we're all a little tired," Bears coach Scott Drew said. "Whenever you come back from the Bahamas and a trip like that, the first game, you can be playing in mud. And I think the guys did a pretty good job, for the most part." Jayden Nunn drained six of his seven 3-pointers in the first half and finished with a season-high 23 points to power Baylor past the Privateers. Robert Wright III scored 18 points, Jeremy Roach had 17 and Miami transfer Norchad Omier recorded his third consecutive double-double after finishing with 12 points and a season-high 13 rebounds. --Field Level MediaNew Delhi, Dec 22 In a rare show of co-operation between VK Saxena and the A dispensation, Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Sunday visited Rangpuri Pahari to take stock of the area's civic amenities that were flagged by the lieutenant governor. Ahead of elections to the Delhi Assembly, due in February, Saxena had on Saturday shared a clip of his visit to Rangpuri Pahari, detailing the plight of people, especially women, in the area. The lieutenant governor had said it was extremely disappointing and distressing to witness once again the helplessness and pathetic life conditions of lakhs of people of the national capital. He had referred to the local women, citing their problems of living in the area, with streets lined by overflowing sewers and lack of basic facilities. Earlier, a similar situation was seen in areas such as Burari, Kirari, Kalandar Colony, Sangam Vihar, Mundka and Gokulpuri, among others, he had said. "I urge the former chief minister, current chief minister and ministers of the Delhi government to visit such areas to themselves witness the hellish conditions. They should take immediate steps to improve this pathetic condition," he had said. Responding to the concerns, A supremo and former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal thanked Saxena for flagging the shortcomings, saying the Delhi government would take steps for improvements. "Earlier, the lieutenant governor had cited the bad condition of the Nangloi-Mundka Road. The road has been constructed and Chief Minister Atishi will soon inaugurate it. I urge the lieutenant governor to tell us about the shortcomings and we will correct them," Kejriwal said in a press conference. The lieutenant governor had called upon the stakeholders to come together and make Delhi great again. He had visited Rangpuri Pahari and Kapashera on the request of locals. He was accompanied by the BJP's former South Delhi MP Ramesh Bidhuri. There are no drains, leading to silt- and dirty water-filled streets, non-existent roads, uncertain electricity supply and shortage of drinking water that forces women to carry water in buckets from tankers coming to the area once in seven to eight days, Saxena had said. The locals also complained of power cuts for eight to 10 hours every day as well as huge power bills, contrary to the claims of free electricity by the Delhi government, he had said. Saxena had also given suggestions to officials of agencies, including the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board , to improve the situation. He had also assured the locals that a sanitation drive would begin and he would personally monitor the progress of steps being taken to improve the civic amenities. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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