But in an administration full of people willing to act like social media trolls, Rubio stands out for being serious. But just because Rubio made a serious argument, that doesn’t mean it was wholly persuasive. In Rubio’s story, America and Europe embraced policies in the 1990s that amounted to the “managed decline” of the West. Armies fight for a people; armies fight for a nation. Armies fight for a way of life.”I agree with some of this — to a point.
As we approach the beginning of the season, we’re going to be doing some questions for y’all about your thoughts about the San Francisco Giants and baseball in general! Today’s question goes out to all the armchair GMs out there: If you were the GM for one move and one move only, what would you do to improve the team? I’m choosing to interpret this question as a blank check for mayhem, rather than a realistic move that the team might actually make. Feel free to use this prompt as a blank check for mayhem like I did, or make a more serious proposition! What move would you make if you were GM for a day?
Moody’s logged higher profit and revenue in the fourth quarter, as the company said efforts to scale new technologies across its business were paying off. - angela weiss/Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesMoody’s logged higher profit and revenue in the fourth quarter, as the company said efforts to scale new technologies across its business were paying off. Revenue jumped 13% to $1.89 billion, just ahead of the $1.86 billion that Wall Street had modeled. Moody’s Investors Service, the credit-ratings agency, generated revenue of about $946 million, marking a 17% increase from last year. Write to Connor Hart at Connor.Hart@wsj.comMost Read from The Wall Street Journal
Unlike the secret inner workings of these proprietary systems, there are “open source” voting systems that are cheaper, more transparent and more secure. Open source voting systems use source code that is publicly available, so government jurisdictions and independent experts can verify that the software counts votes impartially and accurately. The nonprofit VotingWorks has an open source voting system used in other states, but certification by California’s Secretary of State would cost up to $1 million. Open source systems, being freely available, have no such revenue stream, making certification a significant barrier without help from the state. For about $1 million dollars — a rounding error in the budget — California could save taxpayers many times more and gain a more transparent, secure, publicly owned voting system.
By Faisal Kutty / Los Angeles TimesEvery February, Black History Month invites Americans to honor the giants of the civil rights movement. Many institutions that now proudly invoke King’s legacy insist that protest today be carefully managed and, above all, non-disruptive. From university campuses to city halls to cultural institutions, leaders regularly invoke the legacy of civil rights while struggling with how to accommodate protest, disagreement and moral urgency in practice. The irony is that the very qualities once condemned in civil rights leaders — their urgency and their willingness to unsettle and to insist that justice delayed is justice denied — are now celebrated in retrospect. It should force a harder question: Whether we recognize the logic of the civil rights movement when it reappears — in contested spaces and inconvenient demands.
Shia LaBeouf’s Mardi Gras celebrations in New Orleans allegedly took a violent turn Tuesday morning, landing him in the hospital and facing charges of battery. The New Orleans Police Department confirmed that officers arrested the “Megalopolis” and “Honey Boy” actor, 39, at 12:45 a.m. in the city’s famed French Quarter. TMZ published bystander video of multiple men standing over LaBeouf as he lies shirtless on a street. Other bystanders can be heard telling both the man hitting and LaBeouf to “chill.” The video ends with two men holding LaBeouf down. AdvertisementTMZ also published video of LaBeouf sitting shirtless in the trunk of a police vehicle and video of LaBeouf walking through the French Quarter on Monday.
From Behind ig Blue ViewOther Giant observationsNew York Giants: LB Bobby Okereke. Jermaine Eluemunor interviewOL: Tyler Linderbaum Best Fit: New York Giants. Pick from Mock 1.0: S Caleb Downs, Ohio State. New York Giants: LB Sonny Styles, Ohio State. New York Giants: CB Colton Hood, TennesseeJaxson Dart (+4500): Hat tip to SportsLine lead NFL analyst R.J. White for this suggestion.
Emerald Fennell via Associated PressThis article contains spoilers for Wuthering Heights. Wuthering Heights director Emerald Fennell is opening up about one of the biggest changes she made to the original story for her new big-screen adaptation. AdvertisementOne of the most polarising aspects of the new film involves Alison Oliver’s character Isabella, and what transpires between her and Heathcliff. In the original film, Isabella and Heathcliff’s relationship is depicted as coercive, violent and abusive, with the latter even killing the former’s dog as an act of cruelty shortly after marrying her. Advertisement“I had so much fun because it’s at that point that Isabella and Heathcliff are completely off the deep end.
LOADING ERROR LOADINGPiers Morgan has forecasted that President Donald Trump will become “a lame duck president” if the GOP loses the House in the 2026 midterms. Morgan also predicted that Trump was “going to get the whiplash back from” the deadly ICE raids during the 2026 midterms. “[The Republicans are] gonna lose the House, and then he’ll become effectively, as everyone does in that scenario, a bit of a lame duck president,” Morgan said. “And if that happens, he’ll only have himself to blame for going too far with the way that ICE has been on the streets.”AdvertisementPiers Morgan and President Donald Trump. He also defended Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime performance against criticism from Trump and his MAGA supporters.
CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten said on Tuesday that a growing number of Americans who voted for President Donald Trump in the 2024 election now regret it. And if given a mulligan, they’d pick former Vice President Kamala Harris, according to a new poll. Enten said Trump won the popular vote in 2024 by about a point and a half, but the new “redo” poll finds Harris now ahead by 8 percentage points. Enten said that 89% of Harris voters plan to vote for a Democrat in this year’s midterm elections, versus just 83% of Trump voters who plan to choose a Republican. Big implications for 2026: Dems for Congress are holding onto Harris voters more than the GOP is holding onto Trump voters.
Dear Miss Manners: I’m fortunate to have had a dear friend ever since kindergarten. Miss Manners, these gatherings were tough for me as an introvert. Miss Manners suggests that you call her and propose an event that does not involve other people, transcontinental travel, or apologies. New Miss Manners columns are posted Monday through Saturday on washingtonpost.com/advice. You can send questions to Miss Manners at her website, missmanners.com.
They’re expected back in Washington this week for a meeting of the Board of Peace — Trump’s personal big-dollar private global diplomacy network. Trump’s hopes for a deal with Iran, as he masses a vast armada within shooting distance, only crawled forward Tuesday. Ali Jadallah/Anadolu/Getty ImagesWitkoff and Kushner’s latest efforts come at a perilous moment for the world and a politically tenuous one for Trump’s presidency. Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty ImagesTrump’s impatience also means Witkoff and Kushner are under the kind of pressure that can lead to superficiality. But Trump’s evisceration of the department has deprived his administration of institutional memory and expertise that might have built on any breakthroughs by Kushner and Witkoff.
LOADING ERROR LOADINGA special education teacher was killed in a car crash in Savannah, Ga., on Monday morning that involved Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “However, the Chatham County Police Department was not a part of the DHS/ICE operation, attempted traffic stop, or pursuit. The Chatham County Police Department was also not aware of the DHS/ICE operation or pursuit until after the crash,” the department said. “We have a no-chase policy [in Chatham County], and the no-chase policy is to help protect our citizens more than it is anything else,” Chester Ellis, chairman of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners, told WTOC-TV. Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley told the local news outlet that Davis’ death was “more than likely preventable.”Conversely, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin rejected any ICE culpability in Davis’ death.
At least eight other states — Washington, Illinois, California, Oregon, New Jersey, Maine, Delaware and Connecticut — have either prohibited or set restrictions on 287(g) partnerships involving local police and sheriff’s offices. Abigail Spanberger (D) recently ordered state law enforcement agencies to dissolve any partnership agreements with federal immigration enforcement agencies, and state lawmakers there and in New York are weighing 287(g) bans. Frederick County Sheriff Charles A. Jenkins said Tuesday that he was “very frustrated and disappointed” in the new 287(g) ban in Maryland. The legislation signed by Moore on Tuesday applies to all four types of ICE partnerships: the Task Force Model, the Tribal Task Force Model, the Jail Enforcement Model and the Warrant Service Officer Program. “This bill is so important because Maryland is speaking,” House Speaker Joseline A. Peña-Melnyk (D-Prince George’s), an immigrant from the Dominican Republic who co-sponsored last year’s 287(g) ban, said Tuesday.
