The Acadiana Advocate 12-09-2025

Defining bisque vexes state health officials

Food safety rules about oysters, crawfish in question

BY ALYSE PFEIL

Staff writer

State health officials want to set stricter rules for reusing shells in certain seafood dishes which they say can risk exposure to a deadly flesh-eating bacteria that’s seen a resurgence this year

But along the way, they have run into a stumbling block and a very Louisiana dilemma: What counts as a bisque?

The state’s restaurant safety code for decades has said that “Mollusk and crustacean shells may not be used more than once as serving containers.”

Oysters are mollusks and crawfish are crustaceans.

Now, the Louisiana Department of Health wants to make clear that restaurants and food retailers can’t ever reuse oyster shells to serve meat that comes from a different oyster

“We had reports of folks taking shucked shells and using those as serving containers,” said Dr Pete Croughan, deputy secretary at the Health Department, speaking recently to members of the Senate

STAFF PHOTO By BILL FEIG

State health officials said they wanted to ensure stuffed crawfish heads sometimes used in bisque recipes aren’t implicated by the shell-reuse prohibition, and they carved out an exemption specifically for crawfish bisque.

health committee.

“You can still eat raw oysters and chargrilled oysters, as long as they’re used on the same shell that they came from,” he said.

The stricter rule raised a conundrum for regulators, however: What about soups that call for stuffed seafood shells, like crawfish bisque?

Health officials said they wanted to ensure stuffed crawfish heads sometimes used in bisque recipes aren’t implicated by the shell-reuse prohibition, and they carved out an exemption specifically for crawfish bisque.

Crawfish bisque doesn’t present a food safety risk, because the cooking heat will kill any bacteria, health officials said.

But some lawmakers raised concerns that the exemption wasn’t broad enough.

“What if I put crawfish heads in my gumbo, which isn’t a bisque, but it’s hot enough to kill the pathogens?” asked health committee chair Sen. Patrick McMath, R-Covington.

Others worried the exemption was too vague.

“A bisque in Alexandria and a bisque in Gueydan, La., is probably two different things You can be a lot more specific than saying ‘a bisque,’” said Republican state Sen.

ä See BISQUE, page 4A

Evelyn Griffin appointed surgeon general

Member of CDC advisory panel recently backed ending support for infant hepatitis B vaccine

BY MEGHAN FRIEDMANN Staff writer

Gov Jeff Landry has appointed Evelyn Griffin, a doctor who has worked on maternal mortality and voiced skepticism about vaccines, to be Louisiana’s next surgeon general.

“Her clinical experience, her leadership in advancing maternal health, and her dedication to strengthening the doctor-patient relationship make her the exact right choice for this role,” Landry said in a release Monday announcing Griffin’s appointment “With Dr. Griffin stepping in, I’m confident Louisiana is in

ä See GRIFFIN, page 4A

Advocates raise alarm over new HUD policies

Funding shifts could disrupt housing support

BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL Staff writer

The Trump administration has proposed new policies for the Department of Housing and Urban Development that could result in deep cuts to funding for long-term housing and shift money toward transitional housing that requires work and addiction treatment. Acadiana advocates say the changes have created chaos and will exacerbate visible homelessness in the region.

ä See HUD, page 4A

BY SEUNG MIN KIM, JOSH FUNK and DIDI TANG Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump announced a $12 billion farm aid package on Monday a boost to farmers who have struggled to sell their crops while getting hit by rising costs after the president raised tariffs on China as part of a broader trade war He unveiled the plan Monday afternoon at a White House roundtable with Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, law-

makers from farm states, and farmers who thanked him for the help.

“With this bridge payment, we’ll be able to farm another year,” Iowa farmer Cordt Holub told Trump during the event. Rollins put the immediate value of the program at $11 billion — money that the White House said will offer one-time payments to row-crop farmers. Another $1 billion will be put aside for specialty crops as the administration works to better understand the circum-

stances for those farmers, Rollins said. The aid will move by the end of February she said.

“We looked at how they were hurt, to what extent they were hurt,” Trump said, explaining how the administration came up with the size of the package. Trump said the money for the program will come from tariff revenue.

Farmers have backed Trump politically, but his aggressive trade policies and frequently changing tariff rates have come under increasing scrutiny because of the impact on

the agricultural sector and because of broader consumer worries.

The aid is the administration’s latest effort to defend Trump’s economic stewardship and answer voter angst about rising costs. Trump has been dismissive of the affordability issue at times, but on Tuesday, he is set to travel to Pennsylvania to talk about how his administration is trying to address a concern that is important for voters.

ä See FARMERS, page 6A

STAFF FILE PHOTO By LESLIE WESTBROOK

State health officials want to make sure that restaurants and food retailers can’t reuse oyster shells, such as in oysters Rockefeller, to serve meat that comes from a different oyster

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALEX BRANDON

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, right, sits next to President Donald Trump during a roundtable on farm subsidies Monday in the Cabinet Room of the White House.

Griffin

Benin says coup bid left casualties on both sides

LAGOS, Nigeria The short-lived coup in Benin left “casualties on both sides” of the government forces and the mutinous soldiers, authorities said Monday as security forces intensified the search for the coup leader who was on the run.

The military takeover attempting to overthrow President Patrice Talon, which lasted a few hours before authorities announced it had been foiled, was the latest in a series of recent coups across Africa most following a similar pattern of disputed elections, constitutional upheaval, security crises and youth discontent.

In a statement detailing Sunday’s events, Government Secretary Edouard Ouin-Ouro said the mutinous soldiers attacked Talon about 5 a.m. before being “overwhelmed by the fierce resistance of the loyal soldiers.”

Authorities said although several arrests have been made over the coup, its apparent leader remained on the run and was being hunted. Two senior military officers held hostage by those attempting the coup had also been released, officials said. Authorities did not specify the number of casualties.

An ongoing investigation into the coup will “identify all the perpetrators and their sponsors whoever they may be” and will assess the damage in the aftermath, Ouin-Ouro said in the statement issued after a highlevel cabinet meeting chaired by the Benin leader

100 children abducted in Nigeria released MINNA, Nigeria A total of 100 of the schoolchildren abducted from a Nigerian Catholic school last month and released over the weekend were hosted at a government-organized ceremony on Monday, many of them looking lost but relieved. Details surrounding their release were not made public and the government has not said if any ransom — common in such abductions was paid.

At least 303 schoolchildren were seized in Niger state together with 12 of their teachers when gunmen attacked St. Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri community on Nov 21. Fifty escaped in the hours that followed and at least 150 are still held, together with the teachers.

The freed schoolchildren arrived at the Niger Government House in the state capital of Minna in several buses accompanied by military trucks. They were then received by officials who hugged and shook hands with some, before posing with them in front of cameras.

The Niger state governor, Mohammed Bago, said health workers and experts would “thoroughly examine” the children before they are returned to their parents in Papiri.

Man marks 15K spins on Disney ‘Cars’ ride

SANTA ANA, Calif. — For a Disneyland enthusiast who marked his 15,000th spin Monday on an auto-racing attraction inspired by the animated film “Cars,” it’s not about winning.

It’s about the ride.

Jon Alan Hale said he was eager to try out the Radiator Springs Racers ride at Disney California Adventure after undergoing gastric bypass and knee replacement surgeries in 2010 and 2011. He said he quickly found himself hooked on the ride, which debuted in 2012, and began tracking his races in a notebook, jotting down his car’s color, lane and whether he wins or loses “I fell in love with the ride,” said the television technician from Brea, California. Hale said he started carrying a sign to mark every hundredth ride, and remembered how Disneyland workers clapped when he reached 1,000. On Monday, Hale took the ride with friends who work at the theme park while wearing a “Cars” themed cap and holding a 15,000 sign. Hale said he’s visited the Anaheim, California, resort known as the “Happiest Place on Earth” more than 1,100 times. He said he’s taken the ride on average 13 times each visit, largely thanks to the fast-moving line for single riders.

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By MARIAM ZUHAIB

A rider bikes on Nov 24 past construction in front of the U.S Supreme Court in Washington. The high court on Monday seemed likely to expand presidential control over independent federal agencies.

Justices likely to back Trump’s firing power

High court hears case on removing independent agency board members

BY MARK SHERMAN Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Supreme Court on Monday seemed likely to expand presidential control over independent federal agencies, signaling support for President Donald Trump’s firing of board members.

The court’s conservative majority suggested it would overturn a unanimous 90-year-old decision that has limited when presidents can fire agencies’ board members — in part to try to ensure decision making free of political influence — or leave it with only its shell intact

Justice Brett Kavanaugh said the crux of the issue is that the officials who direct the agencies “are exercising massive power over individual liberty and billiondollar industries” without being accountable to anyone.

Liberal justices warned that a ruling sought by the administration to overturn the decision known as Humphrey’s Executor would give the president, as Justice Elena Kagan said, “massive unchecked, uncontrolled power.”

Agencies that have been in place for a century or more also would be robbed of their expertise, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said.

“So having a president come in and fire all the scientists and the doctors and the economists and the Ph.D.s and replacing them with loyalists and people who don’t know anything is actually not in the best interest of the citizens of the United States,” Jackson said.

No president before Trump has sought to wrest control of the agencies that regulate wide swaths of American life, including nuclear energy product safety and labor relations But the six conservatives, including three appointed by Trump, seemed more concerned about issuing a ruling that would endure than handing too much power to Trump.

Their rhetoric was reminiscent of the presidential immunity case in 2024 that allowed Trump to avoid prosecution for his efforts to undo the 2020 election results. The court is writing a decision “for

the ages,” Justice Neil Gorsuch said then.

Solicitor General D John Sauer, who argued the immunity case for Trump, defended the president’s decision to fire Federal Trade Commission member Rebecca Slaughter without cause and called on the court to jettison Humphrey’s Executor

Sauer said the decision “hasn’t withstood the test of time” and had enabled a “headless fourth branch” of government, the administrative state that conservatives and business interests have been taking aim at for decades.

Chief Justice John Roberts referred to Humphrey’s Executor as “a dried husk.”

The conservative side of the court already has signaled support for the administration’s position, over the liberals’ objection, by allowing Slaughter and the board members of other agencies to be removed from their jobs even as their legal challenges continue.

Members of the National Labor Relations Board, the Merit Systems Protection Board and the Consumer Product Safety Commission also have been fired by Trump.

The only officials who have so far survived efforts to remove them are Lisa Cook, a Federal Reserve governor, and Shira Perlmutter, a copyright official with the Library of Congress The court has suggested that it will view the Fed differently from other independent agencies, and Trump has said he wants her out because of allegations of mortgage fraud Cook says she did nothing wrong.

A second question in the Slaughter case could affect Cook Even if a firing turns out to be illegal, the court wants to decide whether judges have the power to reinstate someone.

Gorsuch wrote earlier this year that fired employees who win in court can likely get back pay, but not reinstatement.

That might affect Cook’s ability to remain in her job. The justices have seemed wary about the economic uncertainty that might result if Trump can fire the leaders of the central bank. The court will hear separate arguments in January about whether Cook can remain in her job as her court challenge proceeds.

Kavanaugh signaled that he is inclined to side with Cook, describing as an “end run” the idea that an illegally fired official would only be entitled to her salary

Bullets in Mangione’s bag convinced police he was suspect in CEO’s death

BY MICHAEL R. SISAK Associated Press

NEW YORK Moments after Luigi Man-

gione was handcuffed at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s, a police officer searching his backpack found a loaded gun magazine wrapped in a pair of underwear

The discovery, recounted in court Monday as Mangione fights to keep evidence out of his New York murder case, convinced police in Altoona, Pennsylvania, that he was the man wanted in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan five days earlier

“It’s him dude It’s him 100%,” an officer was heard saying on body-worn camera video from Mangione’s Dec. 9, 2024, arrest, punctuating the remark with expletives as the officer combing the bag, Christy Wasser, held up the magazine

Wasser, a 19-year Altoona police veteran, testified on the fourth day of a pretrial hearing as Mangione sought to bar prosecutors from using the magazine and other evidence against him, including a 9 mm handgun and a notebook found during a subsequent bag search.

The testimony shed light on the critical minutes after Mangione was spotted at the McDonald’s and the sometimes unusual steps police officers took in collecting evidence critical to tying him to the crime

Mangione’s lawyers argue the items should be excluded because police didn’t have a search warrant and lacked the grounds to justify a warrantless search. Prosecutors contend the search was legal and that police eventually obtained

a warrant.

Wasser, testifying in full uniform, said Altoona police protocols require promptly searching a suspect’s property at the time of an arrest, in part for dangerous items.

On body-worn camera video played in court, Wasser was heard saying she wanted to check the bag for bombs before removing it from the McDonald’s Despite that concern, she acknowledged in her testimony Monday that police never cleared the restaurant of customers or employees.

Mangione, 27, has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges. He appeared in good health on Monday pumping his fist for photographers and chatting with his lawyers as testimony resumed

The hearing, which was postponed Friday because of Mangione’s apparent illness applies only to the state case. His lawyers are making a similar push to exclude the evidence from his federal case, where prosecutors are seeking the death penalty

Prosecutors have said the handgun found in the backpack matches the firearm used in the killing and that writings in the notebook showed Mangione’s disdain for health insurers and ideas about killing a CEO at an investor conference.

Thompson, 50, was killed as he walked to a Manhattan hotel for his company’s investor conference on Dec. 4, 2024. Surveillance video showed a masked gunman shooting him from behind. Police have said “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were written on the ammunition, mimicking a phrase used to describe how insurers avoid paying claims.

Habba resigns as top federal prosecutor in N.J.

Court had ruled ex-Trump lawyer had been serving unlawfully

BY JAKE OFFENHARTZ and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press

President Donald Trump’s former personal attorney, Alina Habba, resigned Monday as the top federal prosecutor for New Jersey leaving the job after an appeals court said she had been serving in the post unlawfully

In a statement posted on social media, Habba assailed the court’s ruling as political, but said she was resigning “to protect the stability and integrity” of her office.

“But do not mistake compliance for surrender,” she said, adding that the administration would continue its appeal of the court rulings ousting her from the position. “This decision will not weaken the Justice Department and it will not weaken me.”

Habba is one of several acting U.S. attorneys around the country to have their appointments by the Trump administration challenged on the basis that they stayed in the temporary jobs longer than the law allows. She said she would remain with the Justice Department as a senior adviser to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. Her former duties will, for now, be split between three Justice Department lawyers.

Habba, 41, was appointed in March to serve a temporary term as acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey a powerful post charged with enforcing federal criminal and civil law

Once a partner in a small New Jersey law firm, Habba was among Trump’s most visible legal defenders before his return to the

White House, representing him in court and frequently appearing on cable TV news on his behalf. But she had a partisan bent and no experience as a prosecutor New Jersey’s two Democratic senators indicated they would block her confirmation in the U.S. Senate. She brought a trespassing charge, eventually dropped, against the Democratic mayor of Newark, New Jersey, stemming from his visit to an immigration detention center Habba later charged Democratic U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver with assaulting a federal agent during the same incident McIver says she didn’t assault anyone. The case is pending. As ke d abo ut Habba’s resignation on Monday, Trump lashed out at the Senate over its tradition of refusing to act on nominees if they are opposed by the senators representing the state involved.

“It’s a horrible thing. It makes it impossible to appoint a judge or a U.S. attorney,” Trump told reporters at the White House “I guess I just have to keep appointing people for three months and then just appoint another one, another one. It’s a very sad situation. We’re losing a lot of great people.”

When Habba’s term expired in July, a panel of federal judges appointed one of her subordinates to the role. But Bondi promptly fired the replacement, blaming Habba’s removal on “politically minded judges.”

A lower-court judge’s finding that Habba was unlawfully serving in the position soon triggered a monthslong legal standoff, prompting confusion and delays within New Jersey’s federal court system. Then, earlier this month, a federal appeals court in Philadelphia disqualified her from serving in the role.

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Habba

Zelenskyy meets with European allies in London

Leaders discuss U.S. peace plan, Ukrainian security

BY JILL LAWLESS and ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press

LONDON President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met British, French and German leaders in London on Monday in a show of European support for Ukraine at what they called a “critical moment” in the U.S.-led effort to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer held talks with Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the British leader’s 10 Downing St. residence to try to strengthen Ukraine’s hand amid mounting impatience from U.S. President Donald Trump. After the meeting, Starmer Zelenskyy and the other leaders called Kyiv’s European allies, urging them to keep up the pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“The leaders all agreed that now is a critical moment and that we must continue to ramp up support to Ukraine and economic pressure on Putin to bring an end to this barbaric war,” Starmer’s office said in a statement.

“This is the furthest we’ve got in four years, and we welcome the fact that these talks are continuing at every level,” said Starmer’s spokesman, Tom Wells. He added that “intensive work” will continue in the days ahead, although “there are still outstanding issues.”

Macron’s office said the session allowed the leaders “to continue joint work on the U.S. plan in order to complement it with European contributions, in close coordination with Ukraine.”

Answering reporters’ questions in a WhatsApp chat later Monday, Zelenskyy said the current U.S. peace plan differs from earlier versions in that it now has 20 points, down from 28, after what he called some “obvious anti-Ukrainian points were removed.”

On security guarantees, Zelenskyy said the main

questions to be resolved are:

“What if after the end of the war, Russia will start another aggression? What will the partners be ready for? What could Ukraine count on?”

The answers to these questions “must be in the core of the security guarantees for Ukraine,” he said. In an exchange with re-

porters on Sunday night,

Trump appeared frustrated with Zelenskyy, claiming the Ukrainian leader “hasn’t yet read the proposal.”

Zelenskyy said Monday that Trump “certainly wants to end the war Surely, he has his own vision. We live here, from within we see details and nuances, we

perceive everything much deeper, because this is our motherland.”

Starmer, Macron and Merz took a more supportive stance toward Kyiv in comments before their Monday meeting, which lasted about two hours. The U.K. leader said the push for peace was at a “critical stage,” and

stressed the need for “a just and lasting ceasefire.” Merz, meanwhile, said he was “skeptical” about some details in documents released by the U.S. “We have to talk about it. That’s why we are here,” he said. “The coming days could be a decisive time for all of us.” European leaders are working to ensure that any ceasefire is backed by solid security guarantees both from Europe and the U.S. to deter Russia from attacking again Trump has not given explicit guarantees in public.

Zelenskyy said late Sunday that his talks with European leaders this week in London and Brussels will focus on security, air defense and long-term funding for Ukraine’s war effort. He said Monday that Ukraine needs support from both Europe and the U.S.

“There are some things we can’t manage without the Americans, things which we can’t manage without Europe, and that’s why we need to make some important decisions,” he said at Downing Street.

Palestinian aid agency: Israeli police ‘forcibly entered’ compound

BY MEGAN JANETSKY and JULIA FRANKEL Associated Press

JERUSALEM Israeli police

forcibly entered the compound of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees in east Jerusalem early Monday, escalating a campaign against the organization that has been banned from operating on Israeli territory The U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, or UNRWA, said in a statement that “sizable numbers” of Israeli forces, including police on motorcycles, trucks and forklifts, entered the compound in the Palestinian neighborhood of

Sheikh Jarrah.

“The unauthorized and forceful entry by Israeli security forces is an unacceptable violation of UNRWA’s privileges and immunities as a U.N. agency,” the statement said

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s Office said that he will meet with President Donald Trump on Dec. 29, although Israel did not confirm the location of the meeting. On Monday, Netanyahu met with U.S officials in Jerusalem about collaboration on the U.S.-brokered plan on the future of Gaza. The raid was the latest in Israel’s campaign against the agency, which provides

aid and services to some 2.5 million Palestinian refugees in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem, as well as 3 million more refugees in Syria, Jordan and Lebanon.

Photos taken by an Associated Press photographer show police erecting an Israeli flag on the compound, and police cars on the street. Photos provided by UNRWA staff show a group of Israeli police officers in the compound.

Police said in a statement they entered for a “debt-collection procedure” initiated by Jerusalem’s municipal government, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Judge wants whistleblower to testify in Noem contempt probe

BY SUDHIN THANAWALA

Associated Press

A federal judge investigating whether Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem should face a contempt charge over flights carrying migrants to El Salvador said Monday he wants to hear from a whistleblower and top Justice Department official.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington ordered the government to make Deputy Assistant Attorney General Drew Ensign available for testimony on Dec 16 Boasberg wants to hear a day earlier from fired Justice Department attorney Erez Reuveni.

The order for testimony ratchets up the extraordinary clash between the judicial and executive branches. In March, Boasberg ordered the Republican administration to turn around two planes carrying Venezuelan migrants.

Instead, t he planes landed in El Salvador hours later, touching off the contempt probe. Boasberg is trying to determine whether the administration willfully ignored his order and should be referred for prosecution on a contempt charge.

Reuveni has filed a whistleblower complaint alleging a Justice Department of-

ficial suggested the Trump administration might have to ignore court orders as it prepared to deport Venezuelan migrants it accused of being gang members. The administration has said the allegations are untrue.

The Justice Department has said Ensign conveyed Boasberg’s oral order and a subsequent written order to the Department of Homeland Security In a written declaration submitted to the court Friday, Noem said she made the decision not to return the planes to the U.S. after receiving “privileged legal advice” from the Homeland Security Department’s acting general counsel and “through him from the senior leadership of the Department of Justice.”

The agency was established to help the estimated 700,000 Palestinians who fled or were driven out of what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding the creation of the Israeli state. UNRWA supporters say Israel hopes to erase the Palestinian refugee issue by dismantling the agency Israel says the refugees should be permanently resettled outside its borders.

For months following the start of the Israel-Hamas war that began on Oct. 7, 2023, UNRWA was the main lifeline for Gaza’s population during Israel’s offensive there.

Throughout the war, Israel has accused the agency of

being infiltrated by Hamas, using its facilities and taking aid — claims for which it has provided little evidence. The U.N. has denied it Israel also has claimed that hundreds of Palestinian militants work for UNRWA UNRWA has denied knowingly aiding armed groups and says it acts quickly to purge any suspected militants.

After months of attacks from Netanyahu and his farright allies, Israel banned UNRWA from operating on its territory in January The U.S., formerly the largest donor to UNRWA halted funding to the agency in early 2024. UNRWA has since strug-

gled to continue its work in Gaza, with other U.N. agencies, including the World Food Program and UNICEF, stepping in. Tamara Alrifai, UNRWA’s director of external relations and communications, said UNRWA has been excluded from ceasefire talks.

“If you squeeze UNRWA out, what other agency can fill that void?” Alrifai said. On Monday, Israeli government spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian called UNRWA “a stain on the United Nations” which has “perpetuated the problem” of Palestinian refugees. “UNRWA has proven its enormous failures and it’s time for it to be dismantled,” she said.

BY ERIC TUCKER Associated Press

WASHINGTON Twelve former FBI agents fired after kneeling during a 2020 racial justice protest in Washington sued Monday to get their jobs back, saying their action had been intended to de-escalate a volatile situation and was not meant as a political gesture. The agents say in their lawsuit that they were fired in September by Director Kash Patel because they were perceived as not being politically affiliated with President Donald Trump. But they say their decision to take a knee on June 4, 2020, days after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, has been misinterpreted as po-

litical expression.

The lawsuit says the agents were assigned to patrol the nation’s capital during a period of civil unrest prompted by Floyd’s death Lacking protective gear or extensive training in crowd control, the agents became outnumbered by hostile crowds they encountered and decided to kneel to the ground in hopes of defusing the tension, the lawsuit said. The tactic worked, the lawsuit asserts — the crowds dispersed, no shots were fired and the agents “saved American lives” that day

“Plaintiffs were performing their duties as FBI Special Agents, employing reasonable de-escalation to prevent a potentially deadly confrontation with

American citizens: a Washington Massacre that could have rivaled the Boston Massacre in 1770,” says the lawsuit which was filed by attorneys with the Washington Litigation Group. The FBI declined to comment Monday The lawsuit in federal court in Washington represents the latest court challenge to a personnel purge that has roiled the FBI, targeting both top-ranking supervisors and line agents, as Patel has worked to reshape the nation’s premier law enforcement agency Besides the kneeling agents, other employees pushed out in recent months have worked on investigations involving Trump or his allies and in one case displayed an LGBTQ+

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By KIN CHEUNG

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, from left, talks Monday with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on the doorstep of 10 Downing St. in London.

Noem

BISQUE

Continued from page1A

BobHensgens, alifelong resident of Acadiana.

The Health Department had originally sought an emergency rule that would allow them to immediately enforce the prohibition against reusingseafood shells “as serving containers.” But after the questions from lawmakers, officials agreed to come back fora more permanentrule that would clarify the bisque issue.

“Wedoneed legal specificity, of course, aroundthe

HUD

Continued from page1A

The new rules, which are expected to affect at least half of the 350 households in permanent housing or rapid-rehousing programs, will collide head-onwith overwhelmed emergency shelters in Lafayette, which are at nearly 100% capacity at any given time,said Elsa Dimitriadis, executive director of the Acadiana Regional Coalition on Homelessness.

Dimitriadis painted a bleak picture for the region’sunhoused population at arecent meeting, where she discussedwhat impact the administration’spriorities would have on ARCH and agencies under its continuum of care

“There will be households that were stably housed across Acadiana, some for years, that will no longer have access to housing resources,” Dimitriadis said. “Our (continuum of care) is working closelywithone another to minimize what acatastrophic effect these changes are going to make in our community.”

The changes were announced by HUD in adelayed Nov.13Notice of Funding Opportunity following the federal government’sreopening. The delay has compressed atypical 12week process of review and application writing into nine weeks, Dimitriadis said.

The delay wouldn’tbe much of an issue if it didn’t include such adramatic shift in priorities, advocates said. Awards are also expected to be delayedat least until May,resultingin funding gaps because grants expire in January

The changes will have a direct impact on guaran-

bisque,” Croughansaid. “But the goal is not to empower us to go find folks that are bisquelikeand thentry to cite them for it.”

What aretheytryingto fix?

Reused oyster shells can present food safetyrisks because they are so porous and have “a lotofopportunity to trap pathogens and bacteria,” Croughan said. They couldexpose diners to food poisoning, includingfrom Vibriovulnificus, a dangerousflesh-eating bacteriumthatcan be found in undercooked seafood, especially raw oysters. Vibrio infectionsinLouisianaand across the Gulf

“There willbehouseholds that were stably housed across Acadiana,some for years, that will no longerhaveaccess to housing resources. Our (continuumofcare) is workingcloselywith one another to minimize what acatastrophic effect these changes are going to makeinour community.”

ELSADIMITRIADIS,executive directoroftheAcadiana Regional Coalition on Homelessness

teed, or Tier 1, funding, according to an analysis by the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

Previously,90% of continuumofcare funding was protected under Tier 1and made up much of the funding in Acadiana. That guaranteed funding has now droppedto30%,withthe remaining funding subject to anational competitive process.

Programs can be disqualifiedif they use language that definessex beyondthe binary,show racialpreferences, or participate in harmreduction models. Harmreduction models in public housing offer nonjudgmental, low-barrierhousingto peoplewho use drugs,prioritizing safety and well-being over immediate abstinence Merit-based funding can also be rejected based on media reports, public complaintsorifanorganization has a“history of subsidizing activities” thatconflict with the new rules,according to theanalysis.

ARCH could receive up to $4.2 million from HUD, whichprovidesfor nearly two dozen programs across thecontinuum of care. Un-

surged this year.Two Vibriorelated deaths were linked to oysters thatcamefrom Louisianawaters.

StateSen. Jay Luneau, DAlexandria,askedwhether it would be OK to reuse shells forchargrilled oysters andifthat cooking process would kill diseasecausing pathogens.

“Tocook the oysterso you’re notovercookingit, it’salower temperature than thetemperature it would take to sterilize the shell, significantly lower,” Croughan said. What’s abisque?

Luneau,anattorney, alsoasked healthofficials,

der thepolicy changes, only 30% of that can be used to provide permanent supportive housing programs, down from 80%, Dimitriadis said.

“That was guidedby HUD’spriorities. That was notadecision that we made locally,”Dimitriadis said “So we, as aCoC, built a whole system of care around that expectation.”

Whatthat means in practice is that people, some of whom live with mental illness and otherswho’ve been housed for up to adecade, will find themselves placed back onto thestreets, increasing visible homelessness in Lafayette and the Acadianaregion.

Those newly unhoused people will needtoseek emergency housing through Lafayette’s shelters, which are overwhelmed despite a decrease in the numberof homeless in Acadiana.

HUD’spolicy shift places moreemphasis on transitional housing with access to servicessuch as substance abuse treatment and workforce development. Transitional housing programs now require 40 hours of services per week, withother requirementsincluding onsite24/7 detox and inpatient services,Dimitriadis said.

Dimitriadis said it appears those services can be shared across theentire continuum of care, though it’sunclear because the administration has not responded to questionsabout the notice.

But staffing those services in such ashortperiod of time will prove challenging, Dimitriadis said.

“That’s not somethingthat we’ve had to provide before for housing. It’s always been about, ‘We’re ahousing organization,’” she said.

TheNational Alliance to End Homelessness filed a challenge to Trump’sefforts to reshape the criteria for

“What’sthe legaldefinition of bisque?”

“Thereisnot adefinition that I’m awareofanywhere in Louisiana law,”Luneau said. “I don’tknowthat there’sone in therestaurant world.”

Tiffany Meche, director of theBureau of Sanitation Services at theHealth Department,noddedinagreement. “Everybody hastheir own version,” she said. Health Departmentofficials ultimately agreed to go back to thedrawing board and come up with aclearer rule withlawmakers’ help. “Wewon’tleave ‘bisque’ up to interpretation,” Croughansaid.

continuum of care grants in September,claiming that they are part of a“partisan agenda” and are unconstitutional and unlawful.

In particular,the lawsuit focuses on theimpacts of permanent supportive housing going unfundeddue to support of harm-reduction models, cities with sanctuary protections and programs that support transgender people.

Theorganization filed anotherlawsuit forinjunctive relief on Dec. 1, allegingthat thenotice violated the Administrative ProcedureAct andthe Constitutiondue to the timing requirement and the impositionofretroactive conditions on federal funds, according to thePublic RightsProject.

GRIFFIN

Continued from page1A

good hands and headed toward ahealthier,stronger future.”

Griffin is amember of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices,the topvaccine advisory panel to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. She was appointed to the committeeby U.S. Secretary of Health andHuman ServicesSecretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who hascampaigned against vaccines.

Last week,ACIP voted to enda three-decade-old recommendation that all infantsget thehepatitisB vaccine and instead issue weakerguidance for some newborns. Griffin supported that decision.

The decisionenraged many in the medical community,including U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy,R-Baton Rouge, who also is amedical doctor.Hesaid the rate of hepatitis Binfections among infants dropped dramatically after the birth dose recommendation was introduced. “This makes America sicker,” he said of the ACIP vote.

In anews release announcing her appointment, Landry’soffice said Griffin’s“work includeda focus on reducing maternalmorbidityand mortality.”Inrecentyears, Louisiana’s maternal mortality rate, which hasbeen ranked as the fifth-highest in the nation, has caused alarm, as hasits high infant mortality rate.In 2020,infants died at nearly twicethe rate as thosein other states.

Griffin replaces Ralph Abraham, who recently left the statewide post to take atop position at the CDC. He drewscrutiny for his decision to end mass vaccination campaigns in thestate andfor casting doubt over COVID-19 vaccines. Griffin praised Abraham’sleadership in a statement abouther appointment.

“The outstanding leadership of Dr.Ralph Abraham, his dedication, vision, and steady guidance have shaped the Surgeon GeneralOffice that Inow have the privilege to build upon,”she said. “I am committedtosafeguarding the integrity of the patientdoctor relationship by upholdinginformedconsent

andrespecting individual rights.”

As surgeon general —a new position created by Landry’sadministration Griffin will be responsible forguiding health policyin the state. Griffin hasrepeatedly questionedthe COVID-19 vaccine, though medical consensus says the vaccine lowers the risk of significant illness fromthe virus and saved millions of lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I am very,veryskeptical,” Griffin told achurch congregation in 2024. “For alot of us, the COVID experience hasreally opened oureyes. Youknow that Ihave alot of concerns. One of those concerns, Iwould say,isabout the COVID vaccine.” In aDecember 2021 meeting of the Louisiana House Committee on Health & Welfare, Griffin questioned the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, noting that doctors in the 1950s said smoking was safe.

“I am vaccinated; however, Idonot believe in cookie-cuttermedicine or mandates, especially for new therapeutics,” Griffin said.

TheCOVID-19 vaccine has been shown to be safe in most instances,the CDC said in previous statements before changing its guidance this year under Kennedy In a2023 Louisiana Senate Health &Welfare Committee meeting, Griffin also testified in support of aban on genderaffirming carefor transgender youth.

Griffin is an obstetriciangynecologist. Sheattended the Ross University School of Medicine and completed her residency at LSU in NewOrleans, according to Landry’soffice. She is one of the first robotically trained gynecologic surgeons in the region, it said. On Monday,Landry’soffice and the Louisiana Department of Health did not provide further details about Griffin’sexperience working on maternal morbidity and mortality.Aspokesperson for the latter agency said Griffin wasnot available for an interview Griffinisanative of Poland.Her family immigrated to Canada, where she grew up. She moved to Baton Rouge with her husband after college.

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL DUNLAP

Tony’s Seafood Market employeeElroyWilliams, left, handsDarryles Simmons agallon of oystersonSaturday.

FARMERS

Continued from page1A

Chinapurchases slow Soybeans and sorghum were hit the hardest by Trump’strade dispute with China because more than half those crops are exported each year with mostof the harvest going to China.

In October,after Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea, the White House said Beijing had promised to buy at least 12 million metrictons of U.S. soybeans by theend of the calendar year,plus 25 million metric tons ayear in eachofthe next three years. China is the world’s largest buyerofsoybeans, but in recent years it has increasingly been shifting its purchases over to Brazil and other South American nations

China has purchased more than 2.8 million metric tons of soybeans since Trump announced the agreement at the end of October.That’s only about one quarterof what administration officials said China had promised, but Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said China is on track to meet its goal by the end of February, which is two months later than theWhite House originally promised.

“These prices haven’t come in, because the Chinese actually used our soybean farmers as pawns in the trade negotiations,” Bessent said on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” explaining why farm aid was needed. The size of the $12 billion aid package is roughlythe value of total U.S. soybean exports to China in 2024 and half the total exports of U.S. farm goods to China in 2024.

Surgingcosts

Farmers appreciate the aid package, but they say it’slikely only adown payment on what’sneededand government aid doesn’t solve the fundamental problems of soaring costs and uncertain markets. During Trump’sfirst term, he gave farmers more than $22 billion in aid paymentsin2019 at the start of his trade war

Soybeans areharvested in Manteno, Ill. Soybeans and sorghum were hit the hardest by PresidentDonald Trump’s trade dispute withChina, the world’slargest buyer of soybeans.

with China and nearly $46 billion in 2020, although that year also included aid related to theCOVID pandemic.

Farmers say wanttomake aprofit off sellingtheir crops —not relyongovernment aidtosurvive

“That’sastart, but Ithink we need to be looking for some avenues to find other funding opportunities and we need to getour markets going. That’swhere we want to be able to makea living from,” said Caleb Ragland, aKentuckyfarmer who serves as president of the American Soybean Association.

Most at risk are younger farmers andthose who rent —insteadofown —their land becausethey don’t have much abilitytoborrow againstthe equity in their farms. If farmers can’t make ends meetthis year, there could be additional consolidation in the industry with giant industrial farms gettingbigger andthe number of smaller family farmers continuingtoshrink.

Iowa farmer Robb Ewoldt is in adifficult position because he only owns 160 of the 2,000 acres he farms. So he says he’sselling some of his equipment that’snot essential and looking into whether he can pick up some overnight trucking jobstohelp raise some cash.

“Itistothe point where I don’twant to saddle my kid with thekindofstress that my wife andIare under right now,” Ewoldt said.

Butfourth-generation Minnesotafarmer Darin Johnson said he’s moreoptimisticthatmost farmers will be able to endure this latest trade war “A lotoffarms arepretty well-established andthey have theequitytobeable to still keep borrowing money to getthrough tougher times like this,” Johnson said.

Trump has also been underpressure to address soaring beefprices. Trump has asked the Department of Justice to investigate foreign-owned meatpackers he accused of driving up the price of beef, althoughhe hasnot provided evidence to back his claims.

On Saturday,Trump signed an executive order directing theJustice Departmentand Federal Trade Commission to look at “anti-competitive behavior” in food supply chains— including seed,fertilizer andequipment —and consider taking enforcement actionsordeveloping new regulations.

Associated Press writers Michelle L. Price in Washington,Bill Barrow in Atlantaand Jack Dura in

JanRisher

LOUISIANA AT LARGE

Cooking up something different

Insects find their placeonmenus at theBug Cafe

Most chefs work with butter, herbs and maybealittle spice. Alexandra Lambert works with crickets —and loves every minute of it. As an entomologist at the Audubon Insectarium in New Orleans, Lambert calls herself the Insectarium’shead chef.

“I make all the food here at the Bug Cafe,” Lambert said. “I don’t really cook much outside of here, but Ilike it because bugs are easy They just taste like whatever you cook ’em with —and Ihavea heavy seasoning hand.”

Watching people approach the Bug Cafe’scounter and take that first hesitant crunch delights her She said she gets alot of joy out of other people enjoying her entomological culinary creations, with her favorite being the Cricket King Cake she makes herself.

Like most chefs, she likes to switch up the menu —dips one week, drygoods the next, then some form of insect cookie Just before Thanksgiving, the Bug Cafe, located in the Insectarium inside the Audubon Aquarium, was servingthe Cricket Pumpkin Pie she had made, along with cheesy garlic crickets, sweet and salty mix (powdered sugar,cinnamon and salt-roasted crickets) and Jazzy Crix (roasted crickets with honey mustard seasoning).

“It’stotally safe, Ipromise,” said Blaze Weir,who works at the Insectarium. “They taste a little bit like sunflower seeds. You already eat bugs —you can see here howmany bugs the typical American will have in just one year.”

As he shared the chart with rather shocking bug numbers, we talked about getting over the mental hurdle of eating abug. He said that we’ve been told most of our lives that bugs are dirty but, in fact, they are just another animal that can be raised in controlled environments, fed clean lettuce and treated like any other food source.

Which is exactly how the crickets they cook with at the Insectarium are grown on ahygienic farm in Toronto.

“They reproduce really fast so it’sasustainable food source, that’sfor sure,” Weir said He had my attention. Ibegan studying the chart showing how many insects or insect fragments are allowed in common foods per 100 grams —roughly half acup. Still, Weir and Iagreed: with enough seasoning,you almost forget the bug at the center.Infact, the cheesy garlic crickets were tasty —and when Ihelped make thepeppermint chocolatecricket bites, Imean, who can argue with chocolate?

Fair warning that you may want to skip the following list if the thought of eating bugs still grosses you out, buthere are the facts regarding the potential number of insects or insect fragments consumed each year by food products, according to the Food and Agriculture Organizationof the United Nations and based on the maximumallowablenumber of insects.

It’simportant to note that not all food contains insects, but here is the data:

n In canned or frozen berries, about 2; n In frozen broccoli, up to 60; n In ground cinnamon, up to 800;

n In ahalf cup of ground pepper, about 950;

n In macaroni or noodle products,about 7,000;

n In hops, about 25,000;

n In coffee beans, about 136,080.

Children playina snowmachine during the Noël

entertainment were on hand before the annual

Noël àBroussard

Annual Christmasparadenames

4-year-old grandmarshal of event

BY JOEL THOMPSON Staff writer

Broussard rang in theChristmas season Saturdaywithits yearlyNoël àBroussard celebration in the city’sdowntown area. Festivities were highlightedbya parade,droneshow and marketfeaturingbusinesses from acrossthe Acadianaarea.The Papa Noel marketplace offered family activities such as face painting, balloon animals and asnowmachine

The parade, which featured 67 floatsranging from businesses to civicorganizationsinall corners of theBroussard area, marched down Morgan Avenue, beginning near the Broussard Commons shopping center,through downtown Broussard, before finishingits route at Arceneaux Park.

The parade’sgrand marshal wasZoe Morrow,a 4-year-old Broussard resident with cerebral palsy

Zoeisthe adoptedchild of Ryan andAshley Morrow,who have called Broussard home since2018.Zoe’s parents were shocked to learnofher selection as thegrand marshal this year, after having initially only sought to have the city sponsor aparade float.

“Wehad reached outtothe mayor to seeifthey wouldsponsorafloat. He ended up makingher grand marshal, which was definitely abonus,” said Ryan Morrow.“I’m glad they picked her, notonlybecause she’smydaughter,but because it’simportant forpeople to seekids with disabilities in thecommunity leading good livesand participating.”

That sentiment was secondedbyhis wife,Ashley, whodescribed how the Morrow family hasplaced an emphasis on including Zoe in activities that might at first seem difficultfor a child with physical disabilitiestoengage in.

“Raising achild with cerebral palsy can be alot sometimes, but we don’tshy away from doing things withher,” said Ashley Morrow. “Wegoonhiking trips.One of us will carry heronour back andthat wayshe gets to participate in afamily activity.” Other times they go to the local water park, an activity Zoeconsiders apersonal favorite

Judgetosseslawsuit in fatalshooting

Victim’s mother claimedofficerused excessiveforce

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer

Afederal lawsuit filedagainst Lafayette Consolidated Government and others by the mother of aman killed in 2023 by apolice officer outside anightclub has been dismissed.

U.S. District Court Judge David Joseph on Fridaydismissed with prejudice all claims against LCG;Lafayette police Officer ClaytonGreen; Noise, aclub doing businessasLaBambaon Johnston Street; andthe Lafayette Municipal Fireand Police Civil Service Board On April 9, 2023, Green was providing off-duty security

at La Bamba nightclub when several fights brokeout in the parking lot,according to court documents.

While attempting to break up the fights, Green heard someone say,“‘I gotsomething for you,’” which he understoodtomean the manhad agun, according to the court documents.The officer retrieved hispatrol riflefrom hisvehicleasseveral otherofficers respondedtothe parking lot to break up the fights Amid the chaos, Green saw a man, later identified as DeiondreSolomon,removeahandgun from his waistbandand shoot anotherman,later identifiedas GeorgeAndrews. Green shouted at Solomon andpointedhis rifleathim, authorities said. Solomon looked at the officer then turned and

“Zoe neverlets her disability define her,”said Broussard Chamber of Commerce community engagement director Katie Harris in anews release. “She loves advocating forindividuals with disabilities, including herself, andshe hasaremarkable understanding of herown CP.Rather than shy away fromit, Zoe embraces it as part of who she is —and usesher voicetobring awareness and encouragement to others.”

As Saturday afternoon drew to aclose, crowdsgot to seethe annual lighting of the Christmas tree by GolfCartSanta, an organization that brings Santa Claus performers to different neighborhoods and common areas around Broussard using signature golfcarts as aform of transportation.

Following theChristmas treelighting was aChristmas-themed drone show that the Chamber of Commerce billedasthe first of itskindinAcadiana.

Broussard Mayor RayBourquesaidhewas pleased with the efforts of the community in comingtogether to put on theevent.

“We’re alwaysexcited to put this event on every year,tohave allthese people and businesses come together,all visibly in downtown Broussard,” said Bourque. “It’sreally agreat pleasure to be able to put on these types of freefamily events in our community”

ACalcasieuParish sheriff’s deputywas arrested and fired after an alleged domestic disturbance. Around11:30 p.m. Saturday, multiple deputiesresponded to a scene at an apartmentcomplex on Nelson Road in Lake Charles followinga call aboutadomestic dispute, according to anewsreleasefromthe office. After the initial investigation, 28-year-old Ashley E. Roy,who was adeputywiththe Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’sOffice, was arrested and booked into the Calcasieu Correctional Center on adomestic abuse battery count. SheriffGary“Stitch”Guillory fired Roy,who wasinthe corrections divisionand hadovertwo years with theoffice.

Juvenile arrested in shooting that injured one Ajuvenile has been arrested in Youngsville afterpolicedeterminedthey were involved in criminal activity that led to shots being fired. On Sunday,the Youngsville Police Department responded to a report of ashooting in the area of Cage Wagon Drive in the Youngsville city limits. Authorities located ajuvenile whosuffered agunshot wound to the hand. The juvenile was treated on scene and taken for medical evaluation. Officials saidthey obtained evidence indicating the juvenile wasinvolved in criminal activity related to the incident. On Monday,the juvenile was booked into juvenile detention. The investigation is ongoing.

STAFFPHOTOSByBRAD BOWIE

àBroussard celebration on SaturdayatBroussard City Hall. Vendors, food and

Christmas parade rolled.

Zane Foret, 10, checks out hisGrinch face painting by Tina Touchet.

Tulane’s CFP berthgives statereason to cheer

Even adecade ago, any mention of the Tulane University football team seriously competing forthe nationalchampionship would have sounded like the punch line for ajoke. Now, though, all eyesare on Tulane, whichpunched its ticket to the College Football Playoffover the weekend.

All of Louisiana should congratulate theGreen Wave for reaching the championship playoffs and creating asecond program in the state (in additiontoLSU) that consistently competes at such ahigh level. Congratulations also arein order for the manner in which thisNew Orleans university has handled the coaching carousel that is now atrademark of collegefootball. Finally,please allow us thisslightly puckish suggestion: Isn’tittime for Tulane andLSU to resume an annual rivalry?

Let’srecap: This season marksthe seventh in thepasteight in which Tulane will play in abowl game. Its record in the last four years is43-12, andthree years ago it won an epic 46-45 Cotton Bowl victory overatraditional powerhouse, the University of Southern California. This is heady stuff for aprogram that in the prior 19 years had won only 78 of 225 games.

Tulane earned its trip to the playoffs this year even as head coach Jon Sumrall is leaving for much greenerfinancial pastures at the University of Florida, aschoolwith some 40,000undergraduates compared to Tulane’s8,500. Tulane and Sumrall, though, are handlingthe transition with composure and class, with Sumrall enthusiasticallycontinuing to coach theWaveintothe postseason.

Louisiana, meanwhile,benefitsfrombeing a state known for two consistently winning programs, not just one. With playerrecruiting being anational rather thanregional matterthese days, it behooves astate to look likeafootball mecca,withthe two programs mutually reinforcing that impression.

All of which leads to thebenefitsthatcan accrue to both schoolsifthey renewtheir oncetraditional annual game. Just as theIronBowl betweenAlabama and Auburn drives home the impression of that state’sfootball supremacy,a game between LSU and Tulane could become a nationaldrawing card for both.

People forget just how big adeal theTulaneLSU game once was. After Tulane fell asingle yard short of upsetting LSU at theend of the 1972 season, the 1973 rematch drewanastonishing 86,598 fans —which then byfar wasthe largest football crowd ever in the South. The rivalry remained supremely competitive for thenextnineyears, with LSUwinning sixtoTulane’sthree, with two of LSU’swinsbeing nailbiters withinthree points.

Imagine what ahuge andbeneficialspectacle —what ahelluva hullabaloo —sucharenewed in-state rivalry could be.

Either way,asTulane enters the playoffs, let’s all say avery hearty “Roll, Wave!”

Commerce secretary doesn’tunderstandthe role of university research

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has proposed that the governmentseize half of university patent royalties because he believes taxpayers get “zero” from public money invested in university research.

LSUProfesor Shafiqul Chowdhury ably illustrates why this is misguided in his guest column, “University innovation helps to power La., but a federal plan could put stop to that,” published Nov.28. While expedient, Lutnick’s “businessman’s” approach to this (perceived) problem ignores constitutional limits on government power as well as collateral economic damage his proposal would cause. Chowdhury clearly points out how thefederal proposal would kill universityresearch, which yields real solutions to serious and practical problemsconfronting industries we rely on, such as the cattle industry (I would add theseafood, agriculture and energy industries, to say nothing of solutions to environmental problems.)

Lutnick’s proposal also illustrates a larger,persistent flaw in thepresent

administration’sapproach to many problems: It ignores the proper role of government in afree-market economy.AsWilliam McGurn observed in The Wall Street Journal on Nov.17, ”The classic free-market approach is to recognize that the government’s job is to create the conditions for Americanstobetter themselves. The government ensures asound currency,the rule of law and space for people to use their talents in the marketplace. We elect Republicans (or used to) not because they better managethe economybut because they know it is hubris to assume that thesmartpeople with political power can pick winners and losers and what theright price should be.”

That Lutnick may believe his meansare justified by his ends cannot establish the validity or legitimacy of governmental action.“I’m from thegovernment; I’mhere to help you” has long been ajoke. Sadly, Lutnick’s proposal demonstrates the cruel truth behind it.

MYRON WALKER Baton Rouge

NewOrleans needs fiscal oversight

Yes, Gov.Jeff Landry should have appointed afiscal administrator to govern spending decisions in New Orleans. We are just now attempting to stave off afiscal crisis that threatened to leave city employees without pay

GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name, occupation and/or title and the writer’scity of residence

TheAdvocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address andphone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@ theadvocate.com. TO SEND USA LETTER, SCANHERE

How did we get to this crisis? Why was it only just discovered after our most recent election? Why did city leaders “find” newmoney when threatened by afiscal administrator? In thelast election, voters were asked to compound New Orleans’ fiscal calamity by voting for morethan half abillion dollars in new bonds. The goals were laudatory: affordable housing and infrastructure improvements. These are pressing mattersofconcern, but we cannot afford to issue these new bonds. We must pursue these goals with more exacting means. New Orleanians are struggling to stay in their homes with thehigh cost of living, taxes and viciously high insurance rates.

The question on theballot deceived voters by saying that no one would face atax increase in the first year Butwewill, after the first year.And we’re all going to pay it —not just wealthy individuals or corporations. The interest rate alone is breathtaking —upto8%interest —roughly double theaverage for every other municipalityinthe United States. Why is theinterest rate so high? Years of fiscal mismanagement that these new bonds would exacerbate. Votersshould not be deceived. No one in New Orleans wants to give up local control to Baton Rouge. That is understandable. But fewresidentsofNew Orleanslikely believe that our fiscal house is in order —our current crisis would belie any such belief. It is unfortunatelyhigh time that Landry impose afiscal administrator to preside over our city’s bankruptcy JOHN EAST NewOrleans

Trumpclueless on the historical stakes of Ukrainewar

The defining periodofmyfather’s life wasasa combat soldier in World WarII. He sawthere the mass death of humans andtheir morals. He was proud of his part in defeating thatscourge andproud of ourcountry forstanding against it. He would be heartbroken andashamed to seewhatnow passes for American leadership in the world. President Donald Trump’sbackroom dealings with the Russian dictatorVladimir Putin arenow revealed to sell ourally Ukraine down the river,whichwas the plan from the start. He cynically calledUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy,who hasshown extreme bravery in the face of Russianaggression, adictator while cooing lovingly to the murderer Putin, who threatensthe world with nuclear war while ruthlessly destroying anothercountry Thatdoesn’tmakeAmerica great at all; these arethings we are supposed to oppose Ihavealways been proud to be an American;now thatpride is tarnished.

We have triedisolationism before with disastrous results. There is immense powerinbeing ahelping hand, anditgenerates agreat deal of influence. China andRussia stand ready to replace us as world leaders; all we need to do is turn ourbacks.

Trump hassaidofhimself: “That’s what Ido, Idodeals, my whole life is deals, that’sall Iknowisdeals,” as if selling outanally is equivalent to selling some schlocky real estate. If Trump wasa student of history,he might knowthatappeasing dictators neverworks; people like Hitler and Putin cannotbeappeased. Weakness to themislike the scent of blood to ashark and they will soon be at ourdoor,teeth bared. In betraying Ukraine,Trump will cement his place as oneofthe worst leaders in world history

JAMES WILKINS Baton Rouge

Tammany, EBRmoney woes signal deeperproblems

At first glance,the St. Tammany ParishMosquito Abatement Districtand the East Baton Rouge Parish library system may appear to have little in common. One kills insects; the otherlends books. But over the last year, both agencies have foundthemselves in a similar pickle:being targeted by otherelected officials over their budgets. The reason is simple. Thoseagencies, because of dedicated taxes,are well funded. And others are not.

AndasLouisiana voters have grown increasingly tax-averse in recent years, especially when it comestothe undedicated taxes over which local officials have authority, theshare of revenue over which parish councils and police juries have authority has shrunk. But the demands on that funding have not. And that has left parish government officials, like East Baton Rouge MayorPresidentSid Edwardsand St. Tammany Parish President Mike Cooper, in atough position. Not only are they required to provide theregular services that many of us think the parish is responsible for, such as roads, drainage, permitting and thelike, they are also required by the LouisianaConstitution to provide some funding for certain officesand facilities, like the district attorney, coroner and the jail. And per the constitution, those requirements do not fall on cities or towns. So in East Baton Rouge Parish, the city of St. George appropriated its share of the 2% salestax that previously flowed into the city-parish general fund. But none of St. George’s revenue is going to the constitutional offices. The city-parish mustbear the full burden.

The EBR budget crunch hasforced Edwards to begin amassive seriesof cuts. District Attorney HillarMoore’s office is looking at more than a10% cut in his local funding, something he has said is untenable.

In St. Tammany,the situationissimilarly grim. In the budget approvedearlier this month, District Attorney Collin Sims’ office is looking at a30% cut in itsparish funding for prosecutions No one denies that criminalprosecutions are an essential formofgovernment. These officialsdon’twanttocut the funding for district attorneys. But they have no choice.

That’show the EBR libraryand St.

While only asmall number of us live to be 100, everyone’sbirthday has acentenary date. For historians who seem mostly to be of the liberal persuasion and obituary writers (ditto)the 100th anniversary of aconservative’sbirth usually resultsin one of the following: ignored, diminished with attachment of “right-wing” or “so-called ” and my personal favoritethat is rarely attached to aliberal, “controversial.”

Tammany mosquitoabatement ended up in the crosshairs.

In BatonRouge, Mayor-President Sid Edwards’ Thrive EBRplan would have rededicatedsomeofthe library tax and$52 millioninreserve funds to the general fund. Thatwould have, in turn, helpedminimize cutstothe district attorney and other constitutional offices among others.

In St.Tammany,Simsand his allies have takenaim at the parish’smosquito control, arguing that it is overfunded andinefficient. The play here may be to save voters money on mosquito control in the hopes it will later help persuade themtodevotemoretothe court system. The obstacletoboththese plans?

Voters EastBaton Rouge voters rejected Edwards’ Thrive EBR planinNovember.

In St.Tammany,votershaven’tyet been asked to reconsider the mosquito controltax. But Sims and others would do well to be wary Six timesinthe last several years, voters have rejected taxes to fund criminal justice. They might well agreewith Sims to reduce themosquito controltax, but then decline to send that extra money his way.And he would be back tosquare one. It would be easy todismiss theseaslocal politicalsquabbles whose outcomes barely stretch beyond parish lines.

But they’re emblematic of abigger problem. And that goes back, in part, to the constitutional offices mentioned above. Putting theburden for their local funding on parish governments is unnecessary and forces them into a yearly political competition for fund-

ing. This has two bad outcomes. First, some services,like district attorneys, suffer and are forced todo morewithless. Second, the formula creates confusionamong voters. District attorneys areelected on acycle completely apart from parish government.Some of their districts include multiple parishes Sims, for instance, oversees prosecutions in St.Tammany and Washington parishes.

Theyare notapartofparishgovernment.Yet it’s parish government thatis requiredbythe constitution to provide some of their funding.

And becauseit’sparishgovernment thatneeds funding and so often asks voters for new taxes,district attorneys end up suffering at the ballot box becausefolks aredissatisfied with how their road has been fixed.

This may have seemed aworkable structure when the Louisiana Constitutionwas ratifiedmorethan ahalf-century ago, but it makes little sense now The only solution is somesortof significant constitutional overhaul. Louisiana desperately needs asimpler and moretransparent structure that lays out theresponsibilities and mechanisms for fairly funding essential government functions. And it’s time to split criminaljusticefunding from parish governments entirely Given today’spolitical environment, arational, sober, methodical approach to this seems like atall ask. But the need isn’tgoing away

Email Faimon A. Roberts III at froberts@theadvocate.com.

Respectabilityisoverrated thesedays, or so oneinfers from reading thedueling romantic narrativesoftwo formerlytop-tierjournalists, whose sagaofheartbreak andbetrayal has captured themedia’s attention andprobably that of a fewmovie directors.

It’s allwildly delicious. Imean,it’sterrible, just terrible

The past week’sbreathless chatter is about theonce-engagedcouple,Olivia Nuzzi and Ryan Lizza, who can’t stop sharing their downfalls anddenouements.If you’re just tuning in, Nuzzi was 21 in 2014 whenshe beganwriting for theDaily Beast aboutPresident Donald Trump. She landeda plum job at age24asWashington correspondent forNew York magazine Somewhere alongthe line,she andanother star political writer Ryan Lizza, who was fired by theNew Yorker on allegationsofsexualmisconduct(whichhe denied) during the#MeToohysteria, fell in love, became engagedand secured acontract to cowriteabook aboutthe 2020 election. Then news brokethatNuzzi hadbeen “sexting”withRobert F. Kennedy Jr., while covering him during his run forpresident. Thisisthe ultimate no-no in the universe of journalismethics

The engagement went bustalong with the book, andNuzzilosther magazine gig. Whereupon she went into exile, moved to Los Angelesand wrote asoon to be released book,“American Canto,” reportedly typedonher cellphone while hiking. Sure.

Nuzzi,now 32, hasreinvented herselfinHollywood fashion. The NewYork Times recently publisheda splashy storyabout herbook, accompaniedbyphotos of avampyblack-clad, platinum-blond Nuzzi, who nowlivesinMalibu andgets around in awhiteMustangconvertible. I’mremindedofa populargirlsleuthbook series from childhood that starred Connie Blair, who was always tossing on asummerfrock and jumpingintoher sporty roadster while also employing herfeminine wiles to gettothe bottom of things. Youhavetogive agirl herdue.From ayoung age, Nuzzi seemstohaveknown andgotten what shewants, notjustjobsbut also men.Kennedy, aboutwhomshe wrote in 2023, wasapparently too delicious to pass up. Calling him “the politician”throughout herbook,she said she loved hiseyes, “blueasthe flame” andhis insatiable appetites in allthings.She hasmaintained they weren’t sleeping together but writes in the book aboutseeinghim floss his teeth.When do people usually floss, areporter might wonder Reacting to Nuzzi’s stage-managed resurrection,Lizza just addedextra spicetothissaucy story.Herevealed in his Substack newsletter that his former bride-to-be also hadanaffair with 2020 presidential candidate MarkSanford, while crafting aprofile of theformer South Carolina governor alreadyinfamous for his own extramarital proclivities.In2009, Sanford disappeared from home andofficefor several days, allegedly to hike theAppalachianTrail, when he was really visiting his loverinArgentina,who happened to be ajournalist. His forayintosmall-brainactivities washardly afirst forpolitics, but Sanford’s very public betrayal of his family and his state, as he tearfully put it in anews conference apologia, foreshadowed theease withwhich he apparently entered intoalustyalliancewithNuzzi while shewas datingLizza.

This year is the centenary of two towering individuals in the conservative movement, neitherofwhom received the respect they deserved among the ruling political, historical and media classes. Ispeak of William F. Buckley Jr.and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Before 2025 expires, Ioffer some reflectionsand admiration for these two. Bill Buckley almost single-handedly held the conservative fort until reinforcements arrived. Far from being mean-spirited, Buckley used his extensive vocabulary and rapier wit to disarm liberal opponentsinways they didn’trecognize until it was too late to respond. His line about preferringto “entrust the governmentofthe United States to the first 400 people listed in the Boston telephone directory than to the faculty of HarvardUniversity” wasaclassic undermining of what we now call the “woke” agenda of that school of “higher learning.” Aquestioner once asked Buckley,

“On television, you are always seated. Does this mean you can’tthink on your feet?”Buckley’simmediate response: “It’svery,very hard to stand up carrying the weight of what Iknow.” Coming from anyoneelse that might sound prideful,but theline had aconsiderable amount of truth in it and theaudience laughed. He was incredibly smart and was hisown encyclopedia. Ionce introduced him at aWashington event: “Bill, Idon’tmind you writing acolumn,orbeing the author of many books, or piloting ayacht, but when youbuilt aharpsichord from scratch and played it at Carnegie Hall, don’t you think that’s pouring it on alittle too much?” Clearly,hewent through thegift line more than once. Margaret Thatcher was hated by theBritish Left because she almost single-handedly destroyed thesocialist programsthat had harmed much of thecountry’s social, economic and political infrastructure. Herpolitical opponentswould never admit they were wrong, despitethe evidence. Respondingtothe collectivism and overreliance on government in her day,Thatcher recalled abasic principle:“Thereisnosuch thing as society There are individual men andwomen, andthere are families. Andnogovernment candoanything except through people, andpeople must look tothemselvesfirst.”

Another Thatcher line that should have been quoted during therace for

New York Citymayor,which was won by Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani: “The problem withSocialism is that you eventually run out of other people’smoney.”

In an article for theperiodical Modern Age: AConservative Review titled “The Woman Who Made Britain Great Again,” Christopher Sandfordwrites: “In her first termalone, she oversaw measures that lowered inflation from an annual rate of 18 percent (andrising) to 5.5 percent (andfalling). She introduced legislation to curb union militancy (and) privatize(d) inefficient stateindustries,” among many other reforms. Sandford wraps up his summation of Thatcher’sremarkable life: “Toher critics, Thatcher will always be the steely-eyed operator more concerned with advancing her essentially puritanical view of theworld than with the consensus politics we seem to demand in the West today.For others, she remainsthe last recognizably great Britishprime minister,one who embodies theparadox of serving as her nation’sall-but-unchallenged leader for eleven years, while seeing herself as an outsider constantly beset by an inert political establishment.” Count me amongthe “others.” Twogreat minds whose ideas and philosophies would still work should modernpoliticians again embrace them.

Email Cal Thomasattcaeditorstribpub.com

The image of Lizza burrowedinhis Substack bunkerbanging outhis lamentations while his sexyexhawksabook from thepages of the Times feels tragic andsad.This newiteration of Nuzzi, though entertaining, is abackstab not just to herformer fiancé, but to alljournalists who, toiling forinsubstantial compensation, wouldn’t considergetting romantically involved with a source or subject. The last thing female journalists need is ahigh-profile climberglamorizing theHollywood-created impressionthat female reporters tradesex forscoops. Some do, I’ve noticed,but they arethe rare exceptions. Nuzzi’s canto, which came outDec. 2, is saidto be primarily abouther RFK affair,Trumpworld andthe twisted effects she thinks the latter had on herand thecountry.MuchasIdislikecontributing to thefurther diminutionofthe Fourth Estate, I’ll read thebook,aswellas“Unscripted,” a newmemoirbyCheryl Hines, RFK’s wife.Hines reportedly is fuming aboutNuzzi’sclaim in the Times story that Kennedy wanted her to have his baby andthathe’d takeabulletfor her Mainly,I’m piquedbycuriosity. What makes someonelike Nuzzi tick?Why doesn’tshe care aboutthe things other ethically minded journalists obsess about— transparency, credibility, integrity andthe trust they build withreaders? Whatever theanswers,Nuzzi andothers likeher are badfor journalismand, therefore, bad forthe country.Evenifshe’s self-aware enough to reveal truthsabout theworld she helpedshape, thisis surelyone instance where it isn’tquite fair to blame Donald Trump.

Email Kathleen Parker at kathleenparker@washpost.com

Faimon Roberts

Cal Thomas

Kathleen Parker

STAFF FILEPHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

East Baton RougeMayor-PresidentSid Edwards chats withstaffers after his tax proposalswere defeated on Nov. 15

AscensionEpiscopal

namesnew head of school

SarahDavenport previously served as interimleader

BY ASHLEY WHITE Staff writer

Sarah Davenport will serveasAscension Episcopal School’s permanent head of school.

Davenport is afamiliar face for staff, stude nts and families; she’sserved as the interim head of school since May,school spokesperson

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ran toward Johnston Street with the gun in his hand, authorities said.Heran through alarge group of people and towardtwo other police officers on the scene, authorities said. At thatpoint,the court ruling states, Green fired one shot, striking Solomon, 28, who was pronounced dead at ahospital.

ALouisiana StatePolice investigation concluded therewas no probable cause to charge Green or anyone else involved in the incident and the District

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Man gets nine years for theft ring

ABroussard man convicted in federal court of crimes tied to amultistate theft ring has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison. Christopher Byerley,45, was sentenced to 115months after being convicted for conspiracy to transport a stolen motor vehicle; altering, removing and obliterating avehicle identification number; possession of 15 or more unauthorized access devices; possession of an unregistered silencer; and being aprior convictedfelon in possession of afirearm. He was ordered to serve three years of supervised release after servinghis prison term and ordered to pay $127,000 in restitution to thevictims. Byerley and co-conspirators coordinated amultistate operation in Louisiana,

RachelDelcambre said in anews release. Before that, she served asthe head of the upperschool division.

Since Davenport assumedthe role ofinterim headofschool, Ascension’s School Board has worked closely withDavenport.

“Her leadership has already made avisible impactonthe school community,”Delcambre said in the release. “Her professionalism, enthusiasm and deep commitmenttothe mission of Ascension Episcopal School have energized the leadership team, faculty and students across all divisions.”

Ascension DaySchool founderJeanette Parker said she was delighted to

Attorney’sOffice refused to chargeGreen on Nov 16, 2023.

Elsie Solomon, the mother of DeiondreSolomon, filed alawsuit on April8 2024, in Lafayette’s15th Judicial District for wrongful death

She said her son “posed no danger to anyone,”that the use of gunfire was unwarranted and excessive useofforce andthatGreen actedwith“wantondisregard for human life,” the lawsuit states Elise Solomon also alleged that the other defendants in the lawsuitwere guiltyofnegligence.

Thecase was transferred to federal court on May 15,

Mississippi, Alabama and Texas involving stolen tractors, excavators, forklifts anda pickup valued at over $250,000 between October 2021 andMarch 2022, accordingto the Department of Justice.

Officialssaidcrimes involved tampering with vehicle identification numbers, using achopshop, fraudulent documentation, false business fronts to sell, unauthorized possession of over 400 identitiesand access devices.

Ashoplifting investigation in Livingston Parish in February 2022 led investigators to Byerley Man hit by car while walking onroaddies

AMaurice man was killed Sunday night when he was hit by acar while walkingon Johnston Street in Lafayette Parish.

RickyVerret, 37, was walking on the right shoulderofsouthbound Johnston Street,also known as U.S. 167, about8 p.m. Sunday,

congratulate Davenporton herpromotion.

“I believe themost significant qualities (Davenport)bringstoAscension areher deep Christian commitment and herview of the position as acalling from the Lord,”Parker said in astatement. “I am optimistic thather leadership will enable our school to shine in the coming years.”

As head of school,Davenport will overseeAscension Episcopal School’sthree Lafayette Parish campuses thatservestudents in PK3 through 12th grades.

ContactAshley White at ashley.white@theadvocate. com.

2024. On Sept. 10, the defendants filed amotion for summary judgment and an instant motion to dismiss, according to court filings

ElsieSolomonwas granted two extensions granting her additional time to respond. She failedtodoso. Joseph did not find it proper to simply grant the instant motion to dismiss,but made aproper inquiry of thefacts, he wrote.

On Friday, he denied ElsieSolomon’s claims and dismissedthe lawsuit.

Email Claire Taylor at ctaylor@theadvocate.com.

aLouisiana State Police spokesperson said in anews release.

For reasons under investigation, when Verret was near Leblanc Road, he stepped intothe roadway into the pathofa southbound Jeep Wranglertowing a trailer,police said. Verret suffered fatal injuriesand died at the scene. The crash remains under investigation.

State Police urges pedestriansand motorists to be aware of their surroundings. Pedestrians are also encouraged to cross roadwaysatwell-lit intersections and wear reflective clothing when walking near traffic, especially at night.

LOTTERY

SUNDAY,DEC. 7, 2025

PICK 3: 3-6-1 PICK 4: 2-0-4-2 PICK 5: 6-0-0-2-3 Unofficial notification, keep your tickets.

RISHER

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After my head stopped spinning, Lambertarrived and explained that we had to put on our “bug chef gear” before we started cooking.

She removed asilicone mold of avariety of insects and containerslabeled “chocolate,” “peppermint” and “crickets.” Though Ihad never deliberately cooked with insects before, from there the recipe was just like normal cooking. We melted bothwhiteand dark chocolate, carefully added it into the molds, along with crushed peppermint and crickets.

At one point, Lambert suggested Itake over puttingthe chocolate in the molds.Icouldn’thelp but experiment with the swirling of the chocolates as I added in the crickets Meanwhile, families weresteadily eating the other insect treatsatthe nearby counter.The kids never hesitated.

As Lambertand Ifinished each mold of holiday treats,Lambertplaced theminthe fridge so they could harden. Then, we popped them out of the

molds to save for future adventurous eaters —and Ihave to admit, they were delicious. I’m not suggesting that crickets will replace gumbo anytimesoon. However, the more time Ispent at

the Bug Cafe, the more I realized the real surprise wasn’tthe crickets. It was how quickly curiosity can beat out fear —especially in astate where trying something new is practically alove language.

Davenport

PROVIDED PHOTO

Columnist Jan Risher,left, works with AlexLambert, entomologist at the Bug Cafe in the AudubonInsectarium in NewOrleans, to prepare cricket peppermint chocolates.

STAFFPHOTO By JANRISHER AlexLambertspoons crushed roasted crickets into peppermint chocolate treats.

SPORTS

LOUISIANA TECH AT

Big improvement

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

The plan for Kate Koval was clear

Once she transferred from Notre Dame to the LSU women’s basketball team, she’d help the Tigers replace what they had lost in the offseason. Rebounding. Rim protection. Interior scoring.

It was obvious that Koval, a 6-foot-5 sophomore, had the size and skill to address those needs. She just needed to prove she could do so in the large role she was expected to play for coach Kim Mulkey at LSU — one of the teams the

BY KEVIN FOOTE

Staff writer

It was adding insult to injury

After 6-foot-3 Morehead State center Kate Dike dominated in the lane for 40 minutes, the native of Kiev, Ukraine, stepped out to the top of the key and drained a 3-pointer to ice the Eagles’ 61-54 road victory over UL on Sunday at the Cajundome.

“She’s a physical player,” UL

center from Ukraine considered joining when she was one of the five best recruits in her high school class.

Koval had potential. But after she helped turn the tide of the No. 5 Tigers’ (10-0) win over Duke, then turned in a career-best scoring night Sunday against UNO, it looks like she’s starting to live up to it.

“(Koval’s) a big presence in there for us,” Mulkey said Sunday “She played good against Duke, and I think her confidence is really, really high right now.

“Not that she wasn’t confident (before), but she’s finishing shots that

coach Garry Brodhead said.

“She likes the physicality.”

The Cajuns had no answer for Dike all night. She came in averaging 11.3 points and 6.0 rebounds a game but was a scoring machine against the Cajuns.

Dike finished with 35 points on 12-of-18 shooting to go along with 12 rebounds. And the late-game 3 wasn’t a fluke, because she made all three of her 3-pointers in the game.

make us better.”

Koval started each of LSU’s first five games, but after she struggled Nov 17 in a win over Tulane, Mulkey began toying with different starting frontcourt combinations. Koval has come off the bench in each of the five contests the Tigers have played since they beat the Green Wave a string of games in which she’s found ways to play some of the best basketball of her career Last year, Notre Dame played Duke twice — once in the regular season and

“We just couldn’t box her out,” Brodhead said of Dike. “I thought she played pretty good. She’s very good going right or left, over her right shoulder, left shoulder So once the ball came inside, I thought in the second quarter we did OK against her because we stopped middle drives. It kept her kind of having to go out more. She had to go out more in the perimeter But the second half, we played a

3-2 (zone), it sort opened up the game for her.”

The Cajuns fell to 0-9 with the loss while Morehead State improved to 4-5. UL will take a week and a half off for finals before beginning Sun Belt play at Texas State on Dec. 17.

“It’s disappointing,” Brodhead said. “I’ve never been 0-9 before.

BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

The bad news continues for the UL men’s basketball team. Coming off Saturday’s 70-63 home loss to UNC-Wilmington to fall to 1-9, coach Quannas White confirmed Monday his Ragin’ Cajuns won’t be getting help from some injured performers any time soon.

BY ROD WALKER Staff writer

Mason Tipton touched the football only once Sunday in the New Orleans Saints’ game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But what he did in those nine seconds he had the ball in his hand set the tone for the Saints’ best win of what has been a trying season. The speedy Tipton returned the opening kickoff 54 yards, allowing Tyler Shough and the offense to take the first snap at the Bucs’ 45-yard line. The Saints scored six plays later on their way to a surprising 24-20 victory over the NFC Southleading Bucs.

“It’s really just read, see the hole, and hit it with speed and

ä Panthers at Saints, 3:25 P.M.SUNDAy FOX

make it happen,” Tipton said.

It was just the 12th time the undrafted second-year receiver has returned a kickoff. He never did it in high school in Akron, Ohio, and he never did it in college at Yale. He returned punts, but never kickoffs.

It became a bigger role for him when the Saints traded Rashid Shaheed to the Seattle Seahawks in November

“Sheed was one of my closest homies,” Tipton said. “For what a great dude he is, he is also a good teacher So seeing what Sheed could do and taking what he did and applying some of

White said Louisiana Tech transfer Sean Elkinton will miss the entire season with a foot injury, and Oklahoma State transfer Jamyron Keller will be re-evaluated in two weeks to make a determination whether he’ll return this season after suffering his foot injury The most optimistic injury projection is Vanderbilt transfer Karris Bilal, who has the best chance of returning during the Sun Belt season, which begins at Southern Miss on Dec. 18.

ä UL at Louisiana Tech, 2 P.M.SATURDAy,ESPN+

“We will make a decision on Jamyron Keller in two weeks,” said White, whose Cajuns next play at 2 p.m. Saturday at Louisiana Tech. “So unfortunately, no news right now Hopefully, they tell me something later on this afternoon — a miracle.”

Asked whether Keller’s injury could end his season, White responded: “It could.”

White insisted the decision will be made with Keller’s best interests in mind.

“I always put our kids first,” White said. “I put our guys’ careers before mine. First and foremost, we want to do what’s right by him and that goes for all the kids.”

White said the expectation is for Elkinton to play for the Cajuns next season.

Bilal is a combo guard who could help with some of the point guard duties without Keller

“He will help a ton,” White said of Bilal. “Basketball’s a game of adjustments. When you have injuries and you got guys that play certain positions that you don’t have out there, then, yeah, it forces you to change some things and put some guys in positions that they’re not comfortable being in, because they hadn’t done it”.

True freshman Michael Collins who played only four minutes Saturday but 28 minutes in the previous loss at Lamar last week could see more consistent time.

“He’s right there, but it’s earned,” White said of Collins’ playing time. “Everything is earned in practice. I tell our guys every single day I meet with them. Every single day, we watch film that you have to earn your keep. So he can help, definitely

“I thought he played well in the first half at Lamar, but again, he’s a freshman. He’s still learning.”

The Cajuns also lost sophomore center Jeremiah Evans to a concussion against UNC-Wilmington.

“Not having Jeremiah Evans out there, who’s developing into a really good low-post presence, hurt us,” White

STAFF

PHOTO By BRAD KEMP

STAFF PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK

LSU forward Kate Koval defends against Charlotte guard Tanajah Hayes on Nov. 12 at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center

Big Ten ties record for Top 25 teams

BY DOUG FEINBERG

AP basketball writer

The Big Ten matched The Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball record with nine ranked teams as Nebraska entered at No. 24 on Monday

The conference set the mark last year on Dec 2 and this week has three teams in the top 10 alone.

UConn still is No. 1, receiving 23 first-place votes from a national media panel. Texas garnered the other nine votes to remain second The top 10 was unchanged this week. South Carolina and UCLA stayed third and fourth with LSU and Michigan next. Maryland was seventh after rallying to beat Minnesota in double overtime Sunday TCU, Oklahoma and Iowa State rounded out the first 10. The Cyclones play in-state rival No 11 Iowa on Wednesday Other Big Ten teams in the poll include No. 16 USC, No. 20 Washington, No. 21 Ohio State and No. 25 Michigan State. The Cornhusk-

ers are ranked for the second consecutive season after starting 9-0.

“I’ve been honored to be a part of this league for the last 13 seasons, working on year 14, where I’ve watched the league just get better and better,” Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico said. “And then when you have that type of improvement, and then add the four West Coast teams that are tremendous as well, I just think it added another top four teams to an already great league.”

Tennessee’s milestone ranking

The 18th-ranked Lady Vols appeared in the poll for the 800th time in the 50-year history of the rankings. Tennessee had a stretch of being in the Top 25 for 565 straight weeks, a record later surpassed by UConn. Conference supremacy

The Big Ten took over the top spot with nine teams while the Southeastern Conference was next with eight. The Big 12 has four and

the Atlantic Coast Conference has three. The Big East has one.

Struggling ACC

The ACC had a rough week, going 3-13 against the SEC in the conference challenge The ACC saw its run of having at least one top 10 team in every poll end earlier this season after 453 consecutive weeks.

Games of the week

No 1 UConn at No. 16 Southern California, Saturday The Huskies head across the country for one of the few ranked games left on their schedule. The two teams have met a few times over the last couple of seasons, including in the NCAA Tournament regional final in 2024 and 2025. UConn won both of those matchups while the Trojans were victorious in Connecticut during a regular-season game.

No. 2 Texas vs No. 13 Baylor Sunday The two former Big 12 rivals will tip off in the Sprouts Farmers Market espnW Invitational in Fort

Arizona takes No. 1; Purdue slides to No. 6

BY DAVE SKRETTA AP basketball writer

Arizona took over the top spot in the AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll on Monday, a reward for a perfect start to the season that includes a quartet of wins against ranked foes, including a lopsided victory over Auburn last weekend. Purdue, which had spent the past three weeks at No. 1, slid to sixth following its 81-58 home loss to Iowa State and the entire poll got a shakeup as only two teams remained in the same spots from last week.

The Wildcats received 33 of 60 first-place votes from a national media panel to claim No 1 for the first time since Dec. 11, 2023, and only the third time since the 201314 season. They edged No 2 Michigan, which earned 19 first-place votes, thanks in part to wins over Florida, UConn and UCLA, along with their 97-68 romp over the thenNo. 20 Tigers on Saturday night

“Obviously it’s nothing you shy away from,” Wildcats coach Tommy Lloyd said of being No 1. “You know, you’re at Arizona. The big stage It’s part of being at a program like this. But we have bigger things on our mind.”

The Wolverines also moved up one spot for their best ranking since March 2021 Duke claimed seven first-place votes and moved up to No. 3. And the Cyclones parlayed their big win in West Lafayette, Indiana, into a six-spot climb to No. 4 and a first-place vote. Iowa State has never been ranked No 1 in the AP poll era, which began with the 1948-49 season.

“They stole our spirit,” said Purdue coach Matt Painter, whose team tied a record for largest margin of defeat at home as the nation’s No. 1 team. “Our reason for having a high frustration level was them They’re damn good. They took us

to the woodshed.”

UConn remained ahead of Purdue at No. 5 after beating Kansas inside Allen Fieldhouse last week. Houston was seventh, Gonzaga climbed three spots to eighth, Michigan State was ninth and BYU rounded out the top 10 after a week of high-profile matchups across college basketball. Louisville dropped five spots to No. 11 after losing to Arkansas. Alabama remained at No. 12, followed by Illinois, North Carolina and Vanderbilt, the only unbeaten team left in the SEC and one of just eight left in Division I men’s basketball. Texas Tech was next, followed by the Razorbacks who jumped eight spots after also beating Fresno State last week. Florida fell to No. 18 following its 67-66 loss to the Blue Devils, while Kansas moved up to No. 19 and Tennessee finished out the top 20.

The last five in the poll were Auburn, St. John’s, Nebraska, Virginia and UCLA. The No. 23 Huskers are 9-0 for only the third time in school history, and they have won 13 straight dating to last season, the thirdlongest run in school history. The ranking is their best since they were 21st the second week of the 2014-15 season. Rising and falling Arkansas was No. 14 in the preseason poll, nearly dropped out entirely, but made a big jump this week back to No. 17 following its two wins. Iowa State’s climb to No. 4 has been a steady one since it was ranked 16th in the preseason poll. Tennessee tumbled seven spots to No. 20 this week following loss-

es to Syracuse and Illinois. Purdue and Louisville each fell five spots.

In and out Nebraska and Virginia both made their poll debuts, replacing Indiana and USC. The Cavaliers did not receive a single vote last week but earned enough to join the rankings at No. 24. UCLA also returned to the rankings while Kentucky dropped out. Conference watch The Big 12, Big Ten and SEC lead the way with six ranked teams apiece, but the Big 12 has the nation’s No 1 team. It also has four in the

LSU DT Breaux reveals he plans to enter portal LSU defensive tackle Ahmad Breaux is planning to enter the transfer portal, he confirmed Monday on social media.

Breaux, a Ruston native, joined the Tigers in 2024 as an edge rusher The former three-star recruit moved to the interior of the defensive line not long after he enrolled, then carved out a role at that spot in both seasons he played at LSU. In 2025, he played roughly 25 snaps per game in a rotational role, according to Pro Football Focus, tallying 2.5 tackles for loss and 0.5 sacks.

Now, Breaux is leaving LSU alongside defensive line coach Kyle Williams. The portal doesn’t officially open until Jan. 2, but players on teams that fired their head coaches can enter before then.

Commanders TE Ertz out for the season after injury

ASHBURN, Va. Washington Commanders tight end Zach Ertz will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL in his right knee, coach Dan Quinn said Monday

The 35-year-old Ertz was injured when he was hit on an incomplete pass from backup quarterback

Marcus Mariota in the third quarter of Washington’s 31-0 loss at the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday

“I hate seeing those happen. Got a chance to connect with Zach last night a little bit just because I’ve had a relationship with him,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said. “I’ve always just thought the absolute world of him as a player.”

This was Ertz’s second season with the Commanders and his 13th in the NFL. He ranks fifth in league history among tight ends with 825 catches.

Colts QB Jones out for season, backup also hurt

INDIANAPOLIS The Indianapolis Colts will be without starting quarterback Daniel Jones the rest of this season.

Coach Shane Steichen confirmed Monday the expected news Jones tore his right Achilles tendon and the surprise news backup Riley Leonard injured his right knee Sunday, too.

Jones was injured in the first half of Sunday’s 36-19 loss in rainy Jacksonville. He crumpled to the ground, reaching toward his calf despite not being hit on the play Leonard replaced Jones on Sunday, going 18 of 29 for 145 yards and one interception in his most extensive action since Notre Dame lost last year’s national championship game.

Memphis hires Huff as Silverfield replacement MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis has hired Charles Huff as its football coach after his one season at Southern Miss.

Athletic director Ed Scott announced the hiring Monday with Huff replacing Ryan Silverfield, who left for Arkansas on Nov 30. Huff went 7-5 with Southern Miss this season after taking over a program that went 1-11 in 2024. That was the program’s best regular-season record since 2019. The six-win turnaround was one of the biggest improvements in the Football Bowl Subdivision this season. The Tigers are playing North Carolina State in the Gasparilla Bowl on Dec. 19 in Tampa. Interim coach Reggie Howard will oversee the Tigers in the bowl game.

Magic star Wagner out with high-ankle sprain

ORLANDO, Fla Orlando Magic leading scorer Franz Wagner has a high sprain of his left ankle that will likely keep him out for multiple weeks. The Magic announced the diagnosis on Monday after an MRI exam on Wagner, who was injured in the first quarter of their game at New York on Sunday when he was fouled hard while going up for a dunk and landed awkwardly on his left leg The team said Wagner’s return would depend on his response to treatment, but high sprains often take about a month to heal. Orlando hosts Miami on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By RICK SCUTERI

Arizona guard Brayden Burries celebrates after scoring against Auburn during a game on Saturday in Tucson, Ariz.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By CAROLINE BREHMAN

UCLA center Lauren Betts, left, and forward Angela Dugali, right, reach for the ball during a game against Oregon on

in

McMahon admits recent shooting ‘concerning’

BY TOYLOY BROWN III Staff writer

LSU basketball suffered its first setback of the season Sunday after a solid start to the campaign.

Coach Matt McMahon’s team thoroughly was outplayed in its 82-58 loss to No. 16 Texas Tech (7-2) on Sunday at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, in the Coast 2 Coast Challenge. McMahon said LSU (8-1) was overwhelmed from the 3-point line, which was the difference in the game.

The Tigers went 4 of 24 from beyond the arc, and Texas Tech was 13 of 27, making nine in the first half. The putrid 3-point shooting followed LSU from its previous game, when it went 3 of 19 in a 78-69 overtime win at Boston College on Wednesday.

“It’s concerning,” McMahon said after the game Sunday. “You come off the second half where we struggled to make shots on the road at Boston College then you come out today, and once again, 26% from the field, 2 of 13 (from the 3-point line).

“I thought we rushed a couple, but we got pretty good looks from behind the line in the first half, but we didn’t make any And so now you’re playing in transition against a really explosive offensive team. Texas Tech made us pay for our offensive shortcomings.” LSU’s primary strategy was to limit post player JT

KOVAL

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once in the ACC Tournament. Koval played nine minutes in the first game then 15 in the second. She scored a combined 11 points Koval’s role is much larger now No LSU post player saw more run than Koval last Thursday when the Tigers beat the Blue Devils on the road. She scored 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting that night to pair with four rebounds, two assists, three steals and a block. LSU outscored Duke by 27 points in the 26 minutes she played. On Sunday against UNO, Koval scored 22 points on 9-of-9 shooting. That performance was her seventh double-digit scoring output of the season. Last year, Koval scored at least 10 points only

SAINTS

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what he did to what I can do, just sitting behind him and seeing his examples is what helped me.”

The 54-yard kickoff return was Tipton’s secondlongest of the season. He had a 75-yarder two weeks ago against Atlanta to start a drive at the Falcons’ 16

The goal, of course, is to take one to the house.

“I’m going to keep hearing about it until I do,” Tipton said. “It takes everybody to spring the holes I’m proud that we are putting it all together.”

Tipton was also a star baseball player in college so he can appreciate his role as a returner being compared to a leadoff batter

“That’s a good way to put it,” he said. “If I can start the game with a big return, it kinda ignites the whole team, especially the offense. Great field position and really get the drive going I definitely

UL MEN

Continued from page 1C

said. “We like to throw the ball inside to him. We’ve been doing that over the last four or five games, and he’s continuing to get better When you take that away from us, then, you know we become more perimeter-oriented.”

Being shorthanded also could speed up the process of true freshman Joshua Lewis playing a larger role.

“Joshua Lewis is a tal-

six times.

Across her last five games, she’s averaging 14.2 points and 6.6 rebounds while shooting 72% from the field — the kind of production that Mulkey envisioned Koval could give LSU when she was recruiting her out of high school

“(LSU) was a better fit for me,” Koval said Oct. 30. “I feel like my game and me as a person, I needed something new I needed a change.” Koval is grabbing 7.4 rebounds per game enough to narrowly edge East Carolina transfer Amiya Joyner for the team lead. She’s already pulled down at least 10 boards in four games this season after she did so only three times all of last year That’s all the rebounding work the Tigers have needed Koval to provide so far Through 10 games, LSU is

look at it that way as a play to get everybody going.”

Tipton received one of the game balls from coach Kellen Moore after the win.

“It was big,” Moore said Monday of Tipton’s return. Start fast. Obviously (slow starts) was something that we’ve tried to navigate for a number of weeks now and obviously there has been some frustration associated with that. No better way to start the game that way than to have the kick return to put us in the plus-50 category Then for our offense to play execution football early in that football game and score a touchdown was big for our team.”

It was just the second time the Saints have scored a touchdown in the first quarter all season. The other time was against the Buffalo Bills in the fourth game of the season. The players on defense appreciated the fast start from the special teams and offense.

“I think momentum is a big part of the game and

ented, talented freshman,” White said. “We’re still finding ways, we’re just sitting in our staff meeting, you know to make him more involved in the offense and just continue to develop. All those things take time. This is a process “He’s a freshman, so he’s gonna have some good games, he’s gonna have some inconsistent games, but sooner or later, you know, he’ll get comfortable.” Lewis took just four field goals in each of his last two games.

Toppin, a preseason AllAmerican who entered Sunday as the only player in the nation averaging more than

corralling even more boards each night this season (50.2) than it did in its nonconference matchups last year (47.2), when Aneesah Morrow was grabbing misses at one of the top rates in NCAA history

Only two Division I teams are rebounding at a higher rate than the Tigers. Koval’s improvement is a large reason why

“She doesn’t get too high, doesn’t get too low,” Mulkey said after LSU’s Nov 20 win over Alcorn State. “I always like to pick on her and say she’s like the grandmother-type. She’s always encouraging everybody, and she understands you’re gonna have good days and bad days.”

Except Koval has had more good days than bad days lately, which is an encouraging sign as SEC play nears.

people underestimate it,” safety Terrell Burgess said.

“To open the game like that definitely showed Tampa and their fans that we are coming here to win the game, and we weren’t going to just lay down and let them win.”

For Tipton, the goal is to keep improving at a role that he wasn’t familiar with when he reached the NFL.

“The way I’ve looked at it, I can get the ball in my hands,” Tipton said. “I’ve got speed and I’ve got space, and with that I can make plays. I look forward to getting better at that and mastering that

“I’m a wideout at heart and that’s what I’ve always done. Being a kick returner is a way to help the team and improve field position and create explosive plays. I have the talent and capabilities to make the returns, and that’s how I’m trying to take it every day.”

Email Rod Walker at rwalker@theadvocate. com.

“We need to find more ways to make him more involved in the offense,” White said “A couple of times, he passed up some opportunities. Watching film with him yesterday, that’s what I showed him. And so, but now we definitely have to involve him more. He’s talented, and he definitely can help us, and he needs to be more aggressive in some areas, not just offensively.”

Email Kevin Foote at kfoote@theadvocate.com.

22 points and 11 rebounds per game. While the LSU frontcourt held him to 11 points and 15 rebounds,

UL WOMEN

Continued from page 1C

It is the first time in my life in a long time, so it’s kind of hard to deal with. There are some things that are not in our control, sometimes.”

Morehead State’s only other double-figure scorer was Laura Toffali with 10 points and six rebounds.

The Cajuns countered with two double-digit scorers in Bianca Silva and Kahlen Norris. Silva led the way with 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting, three rebounds, three assists, three turnovers and three steals.

“We are 0-9,” Silva said. “I’m not happy If I need to be more aggressive, if I need to play better defense, like, I’m going to play I hope my teammates match the same energy Like, we’re going to match the same energy and we’re going to do good things.”

Norris made a trio of 3-pointers and both of her free throws for 11 points.

“I think that my coaches and my teammates have kind of helped me with my confidence,” Norris said.

“At the beginning of the season, I wasn’t getting as many minutes but I know they told me what I needed to do. I need to have more confidence. So whenever I have the opportunity, I’m ready to knock it down.”

After the Cajuns trailed 24-23 at the half, the Eagles poured in 22 points in the

Texas Tech was on fire from the perimeter. Christian Anderson, the second-leading scorer

for Texas Tech, scored 27 points and made 5 of 9 shots from beyond the arc, primarily pull-ups. McMahon said the 6-foot-3 point guard “just dictated the whole flow of the first 20 minutes” on his way to scoring 20 in the first half. As Texas Tech followed his lead from deep range, the Tigers were unsuccessful in that area.

LSU shooting guard Max Mackinnon, a teambest 44% 3-point shooter, missed all five of his attempts and was 0 of 9 from the field. Starting forward Marquel Sutton, who has made the second-most 3s for LSU, went 0 of 4 from beyond the arc.

Remedying this shooting problem will be a priority for McMahon’s team ahead of its game against SMU (91) at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. “There’s disappointment, but I think our players need to know we have a good team,” McMahon said. “We have high-character guys who are all about the team They’ll be hungry to get back on the practice floor this week and get better and prepare for our next opportunity against a really good SMU team.”

third quarter to build a 4634 lead entering the final quarter

UL cut that lead to six points several times but never could quiet Dike, who scored 12 points in the fourth quarter “We can’t improve a little bit,” Brodhead said. “We’ve got to improve a lot on every aspect.” The Cajuns were outrebounded 39-25 but did limit the turnovers to 14 while forcing 18 by Morehead State.

“It’s about them wanting to play hard, play with the energy,” Brodhead said. “Our starters get beat every day (in practice). They got beat into at the shooting drill, they got beat at 5-on-5, they get beat, you know? And maybe we had the wrong starters, but the other ones have such bad attitudes that we can’t start. I’m sorry to say that, but it is what it is.” Email Kevin Foote at kfoote@theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP

UL guard Bianca Silva led the Cajuns with 13 points in Sunday’s home loss to Morehead State.

NBA Cup quarterfinals get underway this week

BY TIM REYNOLDS Associated Press

All eight teams left in the running for the NBA Cup are now playing for a shot at going to Las Vegas for the tournament semifinals, along with a chance of picking up more than $500,000 per player as a reward for claiming the title. And for the Oklahoma City Thunder there’s something more: History is at stake.

The NBA Cup quarterfinal games — Miami at Orlando, New York at Toronto, Phoenix at Oklahoma City and San Antonio at the Los Angeles Lakers — are scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. The winners will head to Vegas for semifinal games this weekend.

If the Thunder beats the Suns, it will improve to 24-1 this season and tie Golden State for the best 25-game start in NBA history

There are also cash incentives: Players on the quarterfinalist teams have already assured themselves of $53,093 apiece in a bonus, with two-way players getting half that much. A trip to the semifinal round doubles that to $106,187. A semifinal win guarantees players $212,373 in bonus money, and players with standard contracts on the Cup-winning roster will get $530,933 apiece Again, two-way players get half of whatever the bonus amount is.

Where to watch and listen

All seven remaining games — the quarterfinals, semifinals and ti-

tle game — are on Amazon Prime. Some quarterfinal games will also get local-market coverage, while the semifinals and final are Primeexclusive.

ESPN Radio will also broadcast the three games from Las Vegas — the semifinals on Saturday and the title game on Dec. 16

Heat at Magic

5 p.m. Tuesday

Records: Heat 14-10, Magic 14-10

Season series: Magic leads 2-0 (Magic 125, Heat 121 in Orlando on Oct. 22; Magic 106, Heat 105 in Orlando on Dec. 5).

NBA Cup history: Heat is 7-5 all-time in Cup games, in quarterfinals for first time, qualified for knockout stage this year by winning Eastern Conference wild-card at 3-1; Magic is 10-3 all-time in Cup games, in quarterfinals for second consecutive year, won East Group B this year at 4-0, seeking first semifinal appearance.

Outlook: It’ll be the third of five meetings between the Sunshine State rivals this season, and the first two were down-to-the-wire thrillers in Orlando Heat has lost three straight for the first time this season Magic just got Paolo Banchero back from an injury, then lost Franz Wagner to an injury in a loss at New York on Sunday Knicks at Raptors

7:30 p.m. Tuesday

Records: Knicks 16-7, Raptors 15-10 Season series: Knicks lead 1-0 (Knicks 116, Raptors 94 in New York on Nov 30).

Thunder players Chet Holmgren, rear, Isaiah Hartenstein, left, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander celebrate during the second half of an NBA Cup game on Nov. 26 in Oklahoma City. The Thunder can tie for the best 25game start in league history with a win over Phoenix on Wednesday.

NBA Cup history: Knicks are 10-4 alltime in Cup games, are the only team in the NBA to reach the Cup quarterfinals in all three years of the event, won East Group C with 3-1 record, seeking first semifinal berth; Raptors are 6-6 all-time in Cup games, in quarterfinals for first time, won East Group A this year at 4-0.

Outlook: Knicks have won seven of their past eight games and 14 of their past 18. Knicks are 0-2 in quarterfinal games in Cup play, losing by a combined 32 points. Raptors have had wild ups and downs this season. They started 1-4, then went unbeaten in four Group Stage games in Cup play

during a stretch where they went 13-1. Problem is, they’re 1-5 since that stretch. Suns at Thunder 6:30 p.m. Wednesday Records: Suns 13-10, Thunder 23-1 Season series: Thunder leads 1-0 (Thunder 123, Suns 119 in Oklahoma City on Nov 28). NBA Cup history: Suns are 9-4 alltime in Cup play, in quarterfinals for second time (2023), seeking first semifinal appearance, qualified for knockout stage this year by winning Western Conference wild card at 3-1; Thunder is 10-5 all-time in Cup play, in quarterfinals for second consecutive year

SCOREBOARD

High school basketball Tuesday’s games

Boys Acadiana at Abbeville, Church Point at Carencro, St. Thomas More at New Iberia, Southside at Lafayette Christian, Mamou at Beau Chene, Eunice at Jennings, North Vermilion at Lake Arthur, Erath at Delcambre, Johnson Bayou at Iota Kaplan at Welsh, Loreauville at Ascension Episcopal, South Beauregard at Midland, Glencoe at Gueydan, Highland Baptist at Hanson, Vermilion Catholic at Westminster, Bell City at Westminster-LAF, Episcopal of Acadiana at Jehovah-Jireh, Northside Christian at Notre Dame.

Girls Acadiana at Abbeville, Southside at ED White, Mamou at Beau Chene, Breaux Bridge at North Central, Cecilia at Teurlings, Eunice at Lafayette Renaissance, North Vermilion at Lake Arthur, St. Thomas More at Acadiana Renaissance, Church Point at Lafayette Christian, Erath at Delcambre, Johnson Bayou at Iota, Welsh at Kaplan, St. Martinville at Franklin, South Beauregard at Midland, Highland Baptist at Hanson, Vermilion Catholic at Westminster.

Sacked-Yards Lost

Fumbles-Lost

Penalties-Yards

Time of Possession

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING—Houston, Marks 26-68, Ogunbowale 1-5, Stroud 2-5, Chubb 1-3, Noel 1-1. Kansas City, Mahomes 7-59, Pacheco 9-30 Hunt 12-30, B.Smith 1-7. PASSING—Houston, Stroud 15-31-0-203. Kansas City, Mahomes

A&M (11-1), 11 a.m. (ESPN/ABC) No. 17 Tulane (11-2) at No. 6 Mississippi (111), 2:30 p.m. (TNT/HBO Max) No. 19 James Madison (12-1) at No. 5 Oregon (11-1), 6:30 p.m. (TNT/HBO Max)

Dec. 22

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Boise, Idaho Utah St. vs. Washington St., 1 p.m. (ESPN) Dec. 23 Boca Raton Bowl Boca Raton, Fla. Louisville vs. Toledo, 1 p.m. (ESPN) New Orleans Bowl New Orleans Western Kentucky vs. Southern Miss, 4:30 p.m. (ESPN) Frisco Bowl Frisco, Texas Ohio vs. UNLV, 8 p.m. (ESPN) Dec. 24 Hawai’i Bowl Honolulu Cal vs. Hawaii, 7 p.m. (ESPN) Dec. 26 GameAbove Sports Bowl Detroit, Mich. Central Michigan vs. Northwestern, noon (ESPN) Rate Bowl Phoenix New Mexico vs. Minnesota, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN) First

lost last year’s final to Milwaukee, won West Group A this year at 4-0.

Outlook: Oklahoma City needs a win to match Golden State (24-1 in 2015-16) for the best 25-game start in NBA history Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has scored 445 points in Cup games, second-most in tournament play behind Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo (453). Phoenix is 10-0 when holding teams to 113 points or less, 3-10 otherwise. Spurs at Lakers

9 p.m. Wednesday

Records: Spurs 15-7, Lakers 17-6 Season series: Lakers 1-0 (Lakers 118, Spurs 116 in Los Angeles on Nov 5). NBA Cup history: Spurs are 5-7 alltime in Cup games, are in quarterfinals for first time and won West Group B this season at 3-1; Lakers are NBA-best 13-2 in Cup games, are in quarterfinals for second time, won West Group C this season at 4-0 and won the inaugural title when the event was called the In-Season Tournament in 2023. Outlook: Lakers guard Austin Reaves is having a breakout season and looking very much like an All-NBA player, plus has appeared in more Cup game wins (13 wins in 15 contests) than anyone still in this year’s tournament. LeBron James is coming off a season-high 29 points in Lakers’ win at Philadelphia on Sunday Spurs are 8-4 with Victor Wembanyama in the lineup — and have more than held it down since he strained his calf, going 7-3 in his absence.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GERALD LEONG

Tips to prepare your plants for freezes

In Louisiana, our weather can turnonadime —especially this time of year.One day will be cool and crisp; the next, unseasonably warm. Then, surprise! There’sa freeze in the forecast. That’swhy it’simportant to stay ahead of the game. If you make afew preparations now,you won’tbecaught off guard and scrambling to protect your plants when acold front approaches

Here are our tips for getting ready for freezes

Keep plants healthy, hydrated

Taking good care of your plants and making surethey are in good health is one of the most important defenses against cold damage. Keep plants thoroughly watered throughout the season. Cold fronts oftenare accompanied by drying winds thatsap plants’ moisture levels,causing stress.

Damp soil does not freeze as readily as dry soil. So, when a freeze is on the way,makesure to water all of your plants particularly container plants, which tend to dry out more quickly

LSU AGCENTER FILE PHOTO

Items such as sheets and blankets can be used to cover plants duringa freeze. It is important that thecover contacts the ground and is securedin place with objects such asbricks

Refreshmulch

Mulch is amultipurpose tool in the landscape. It helps retain soil moisture, insulates roots from extreme temperatures, suppresses weed growth and it looks great.

A2-to4-inch layer of mulch around plants willhelp keep them safe this fall and winter Do some research

Get online and search for information about the cold tolerance of plants in your garden That way,you’ll know which plants need attention when temperatures plummet. Citrus trees and tropical plants native to warmer climates are most vulnerable to freeze damage. But many other plants —including established trees and woody shrubs along with cool-season bedding annuals and many herbs —can handle chilly weather withoutany special care. Youmay still want to protect bedding plants to prevent damage to their flowers and tendergrowing tips. Move containerplants

Even before afreeze appears in the forecast, you can preemptively move cold-sensitive plants that are in containers to

ä See FREEZES, page 6C

Children whoare members of Baton RougeBallet Theatre’s‘partyscene’ cast for‘The Nutcracker —A Tale From TheBayou’ rehearse in the Dancers’ Workshop

Christmaswouldn’tbethe

BY ROBIN MILLER Staff writer

Christmaswouldn’tbeChristmasinBaton Rouge withoutits “Nutcrackers,” so plantocelebrate the holiday season with these two stage productions.

‘A Tale From theBayou’ Harrison Muñoz jumpsup, arms wide, ready for his close-up. It’s just rehearsalsnow,but he’ll gethis spotlight moment soon enough in Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre’sproduction of “The Nutcracker —A Tale From The Bayou.”

The company will offer four performances of theballet at 2p.m. and 6p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday,Dec. 20 and 21, in the Raising Cane’sRiverCenter Theatre forPerforming Arts. The dancers will be accompaniedbythe Baton RougeSymphonyOrchestraconducted by David Torns. “Whenthe boys and girls greet

HaileyPourciau, left, and Elizabeth Hinson, right, whowill share the lead role of Maria, will join Presston Edmonds as the Nutcracker in TriParishBallet’sholiday production

PROVIDED PHOTO

PROVIDED PHOTOSByMATTGRINER

Emmy Wesley, left, will dance the part of Clara and Jeremy Wesley will portrayUncle Drosselmeyer in Cangelosi Dance Project’s‘Holiday Nutcracker.’

each other during theparty scene, agirl will give him (Harrison) akiss on thecheek,” said Anna White,ateacher assistantfor the ballet company.“Both of their reactions are really cute.”

‘THE NUTCRACKER —A TALE FROM THEBAYOU’

Baton Rouge Ballet Theater’s annual holiday production.

WHEN: 2p.m. and 6p.m. on both Dec. 20 and 21

WHERE: Raising Cane’s River CenterPerforming Arts Theater,240 St.Louis St

ADMISSION: $40-$95

TICKETS: Visit batonrougeballet.org.

‘HOLIDAY NUTCRACKER’

Cangelosi Dance Project’s annual holiday production.

WHEN: 1p.m. and 4p.m. Dec. 20

WHERE: Dunham School’sBrownHold Theatre,11111 RoyEmerson Drive

ADMISSION: $30-$50

TICKETS: Email cangelosidp@gmail. com or cangelosidanceproject.com. ä See 'NUTCRACKER', page 6C

Staff report

It’sthe timeless holiday ballet that has captured hearts forgenerations. Livingston Parish’sTri-Parish Ballet will againpresent its production of “The Nutcracker” this weekend. The ballet will feature more than 80 youth dancers along with afew professional guest dancers.

Baton Rouge radio personality Scotty Mac will narrate. “JoinMaria on Christmas Eve as her beloved Nutcracker comes to life, battling the wicked Rat King andwhisking herawayon awondrous

STAFFPHOTO By ROBIN MILLER

Thinkoutside the wrap forholiday gifts

Dear Heloise: We’ll be spending hours wrapping Christmas and Hannukah gifts in afew weeks, using alot of paper sourced from forest trees that would be better left standing. I hate wrapping! I’ve come up with an alternative that has saved me hours of work —and saves trees as well!

Ibuy pretty holidaythemed cloth on sale. I then make simple rectangular bags in avariety of sizes and sew aribbonon the outside near the top of the bag. These bags can be used over and over again, and they take only seconds to “wrap” apresent in!

on Mondaysand on most holidays.Icertainly donot want to eat breakfast in front of my computer while Itry to read the news (and perhapsspill coffee on my keyboard). So, that is my word on newspapers. —Marvin Tiffany, in York, Nebraska Watershut-offhint

FREEZES

Continuedfrom page5C

Hints from Heloise

Dear Heloise: Be sure to warn readers that if they’returning off the water in their house, they should first turn off any appliances (water heaters) that depend onthe house water supply to function,soastoavoid any damage —Duane Goza, via email

Youcan even chooseprints that reflect the recipient’sfavorite activity (fish for my fisherman husband). Youdon’tneed to be fussy about the size; Ijust makebook-sized, shirt-sized,and large toy-sized bags. By using a variety of prints, my treelooks very festive on Christmasmorning! Thanks for sharing. —Kathleen Braico, via email

Physical newspapers

Dear Heloise: At 83 years of age, Ipreferaphysical newspaper that gets delivered to thefront door before breakfastasIlike to eat and read the newspaper.Our newspapercompany has stopped printing aphysical newspaper

Pickingupdoggy doo-doo

Dear Heloise: Ikeep asmall pail with awell-fittinglid at my house and place atrashbag liner into the pail. When walking the dog,Iuse doggy bags to pick up thepoop,carry it home, and put it into the pail. When the weekly garbage collection is due, Itie a knot in the liner andplace it in the trash.

It’sbest to keep thepail ashort distancefromyourdoor and in the shade. Rinse it out weekly and let it air-dry.Problem solved! —C.Bram, viaemail

Send ahint to heloise@heloise. com.

TODAYINHISTORY

By The Associated Press

Today is Tuesday,Dec. 9, the 343rdday of 2025. There are22 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On Dec. 9, 1979, scientistscertified the global eradication of smallpox, adisease which killed an estimated 300 million people in the 20th century

Also on this date:

In 1965, “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” the first animated TV special featuring characters from the “Peanuts”comic strip by Charles M. Schulz,premiered on CBS.

In 1990, Solidarity founder LechWałesa won Poland’sfirst free presidential election since 1926.

In 1992, the first U.S. Marines made apredawn beach landing in Somalia in support of Operation Restore Hope; they were met by hundreds of reporters awaiting their arrival.

In 2006, the space shuttle Discoverylaunchedonamission to add to and rewire the International Space Station.

In 2013, scientists revealed

TRI-PARISH

Continued from page5C

As is tradition, the troupewill give abenefit performance, this year at the Independence Park Theatre, 7800 Independence Blvd., Baton Rouge, at 6p.m. Saturday.Admission is nonperishable items for the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bankand the Community Hands food pantryatthe First United Methodist Churchof

that NASA’s Curiosity rover had uncovered signs of an ancient freshwater lake on Mars.

In 2019, an island volcano off New Zealand’s coast called Whakaari, or WhiteIsland, erupted,killing22touristsand guides and seriously injuring several others. Most of the 47 peopleon theisland were U.S. and Australian cruise ship passengers on awalkingtour with theguides.

In 2021, acargotruck jammed with migrants crashed in southern Mexico, killingatleast 53 peopleand injuring dozens more.

Today’sBirthdays: Actor Judi Dench is 91. Actor Beau Bridges is 84. World Golf Hall of Famer TomKite is 76. Actor John Malkovich is 72. Singer Donny Osmond is 68. Actor Felicity Huffman is 63. Empress Masako of Japan is 62. Democratic Sen. Kirsten GillibrandofNew York is 59. Rock singer-musician Jakob Dylan (Wallflowers) is 56. Actor Simon Helbergis45. Olympic gymnastics gold medalist McKayla Maroney is 30. Actor Nico Parker is 21.

Denham Springs. Apay performance will begin at 2p.m.Sunday.Tickets are $25 in advance at etix.com,or$30 at the door

“Featuring Tchaikovsky’siconic score —including the‘Dance of theSugarPlumFairy’ and ‘Waltz of the Flowers’ —breathtaking choreography, dazzling costumes, and stunning sets, ‘The Nutcracker’isa feastfor thesensesand a cherished holidaytradition for the wholefamily,” the release also states.

warm locations where they can safely spend thefall and winter Otherwise, bring container plants of reasonable size indoors before temperaturesdrop to the freezing mark. If you don’thave space inside your homefor your plants, moving themtoanenclosed space like agarage, sunroom or porch is the next best thing. Place the plants as close to your home as possible —preferably along asouth-facing wall, which will retain the most heat during the day Coverimmovable plants

Not all of our tender plants can be moved to safety before a freeze. Some are planted in the ground, and othersare in containersthat are too big or heavy to lift For theseplants, you can offer someprotection withacovering material of some kind. The gold standardissomething called frostcloth. This white, woven material trapsheat from the ground while remaining breathable. Frostcloth becomes ahot commoditywhen freezes threaten, so you may want to go ahead and pick up aroll or twofromyour local garden center to have on hand.

Items such as old blankets and sheetsalso work just fine. So do tarps and plastic sheeting —but you must removethese covers during theday.Solar heating will

‘NUTCRACKER’

Continuedfrom page5C

White understands Harrison’s excitement. She danced in avariety of “Nutcracker” roles in childhood,culminating in the lead as Clara.

Andspeaking of Clara, this year there are four dancers whose Christmas gift is aNutcracker whowhisks themaway to asouth Louisiana style Land of theSweets. “Weeach dance in one of the four performances,” said14-year-old Ai Nguyen. Shesits in acornerofthe Dancers’Workshop studio withher fellowClaras—Merci Higdon, 13; Sarah Lavigne, 13; and KateTorrance, 12. All watch while the party scene children dancers warm up. Ai takesspecial interest since she’ll be dancing thepart of Clara in this day’sfull party rehearsal of kids and adults. She’ll be the one tussling with Clara’syounger brother, Fritz, played in alternate productions by Theo Whidden and Bristol Mayo.

Andall eyes will be on her when she,asClara, lovingly liftsthe Nutcracker from alarge gift box at center stage. Butthat will come later when the kids join theadults in the Dancers’ Workshop’ssecond studio.

Fornow,Harrison and the rest of the boys line up along the barre and wait for their cue to join the girls on the floor Harrison, like most boys in the party scenecast, isn’tstudying ballet. But that doesn’tmean he isn’tlearning some dancesteps along the way

When he spotsacamera pointed his way before arecent Sunday evening rehearsal, he waves his arms, shouting, “Takemypicture,” andthe photographer complies. Aburst of giggles eruptsfrom the girl dancers watching Harrison’santics. All study danceeither withthe company or other area dance companies.

“Westartedrehearsing in Octo-

spike thetemperature inside a closed tarp and burn the leaves and tender stemsofa plant. When installing any type of cover,make sure it completely covers theplant and goes all the way to theground. Secure the material with sod staples or heavy objects such as bricks to maximize heat retention and keep wind from blowing off the cover.The key is to trap the earth’sground heat not just cover thetop of the plant.

If you are covering afragile plant,you can drive stakes into thegroundtocreate aframefor thecover to rest on so it doesn’t crush delicate stemsand leaves. It’s OK to letsomethingsgo

Sometimes freeze prep is just

ber,”saidJonna Coxwho serves as the company’sco-artistic director with Rebecca Acosta. “Each scene is rehearsed separately,and thedancers won’tsee it come together until we rehearse the entire ballet on the River Center Theatre stage.”

That’swhen it becomes real for thekids.

“They’re suddenly standing among the big sets, andeveryone is there,” Cox said.

“Everyone” includes the production’s200 kids,mostofwhomwill dance such roles as cherubs, mice andlambs in other scenes —and mostare girls.

“We’d love to have more boys,” Coxsaid. “This year,alot of the boys in ourparty scenewere coaxed by family members of other dancers, because we didn’t have enough boys comeout forthe auditions.”

In theend,plentyofboys showed up to march across the stage carrying toy swords for this annual holiday production, created in 1992 by retired co-artistic directors Sharon Mathewsand Molly Buchmann.

At the rehearsal, Buchmann stands in foranabsent Leonard Augustus in Augustus’ signature role of UncleDrosselmeyer

Theproduction also will feature Baton Rouge Ballet alumna Emelia Perkins as the Sugar Plum Fairy andHarlemDance Theatrecompany memberSanford Placide as her Cavalier

Harrison’sexcitement is contagious,spinning “Nutcracker” magiceven amongthe adults —a magic that surely will spread to the audience on opening night.

‘Holiday Nutcracker’

TheCangelosi Dance Project’s “Holiday Nutcracker” is continuously evolving, offering patrons somethingdifferent each year

And this year will be no different as the company takes the Dunham School’sBrown-Holt Theatre stage for two performances at 1p.m. and 4p.m. Saturday,Dec. 20.

“So, this year,weare tweaking

too timeand labor intensive. If you can only protect someplants and have to leave others to their own devices, don’tfeel bad. Prioritize plants that are most valuable —whether economically or sentimentally.Don’tstress over plants that are easy and inexpensive to replace.

Anotherthing to keep in mind is that, although tropical plants’ foliage is sensitive to freezing temperatures, many of the species we grow here in Louisiana —like elephant ears and gingers —are root hardy.Freezes will turn these plants’ leaves into mush, but their underground root structureswill typically survive andsendupnew growth in the spring.

it,’”said Kris Cangelosi, the company’sfounder,artistic director and choreographer.“One thing I’m doing is bringing in several guest artists from all over to do someofthe major roles. This year, we’ve invited professional ballerina Maddie Kucensky from Ballet Spartanburg in Greenville,South Carolina, to perform Sugar Plum Fairy.”

Also taking the stage with the Cangelosi dancers will be internationally renowned professional dancer Daniel Therrien to perform the “Russian.”

“I’ve also beenchoreographing theMississippi Gulf CoastBallet Theatre’s‘Nutcracker’ this year in Biloxi forthe past five months, andI’m bringing in pre-professional dancers from that company to dance with us, including Oliva Burns, who will dance the‘Spanish,’ and Leila Pitcovich as the Angel Queen.”

In the meantime, Cangelosi has expandedthe “angel”section of her “Nutcracker”and added company dancer Courtney Davidto perform the role of Guardian Angel.

Cangelosi’scast of 50 also will include Jeremy Wesley as Uncle Drosselmeyer,who presents Clara with the gift of the Nutcracker; Angelique Francoisperforming the mechanical doll and the “Arabian”; NicoleCrochet as theparty maid andMother Ginger; Philip Wesleyasthe Butlerand the Rat King; and John Henry Overton as the Butler and Nutcracker Prince.

And in the spotlight as Clara will be Emmy Wesley,while Mary Bowman Staples will play her little sister,Grace.

“Holiday Nutcracker” is choreographed as atraditional “Nutcracker” performance to composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s 1892 “Nutcracker Suite.”

But with the Cangelosi Dance Project, each holiday season brings something newtospread Christmas cheer

Email RobinMilleratromiller@ theadvocate.com.

LSU AGCENTER PHOTOByRANDyLABAUVE

LSU AgCenter horticulturist Jason Stagg spreads frost cloth over bedding plants.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Address emotional and financial situations and ease your mind. Fretting instead of being proactive will affect your health and well-being. Be honest with yourself and others.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Look for opportunities by attending functions that integrate what you enjoy doing with professional possibilities. Be bold, unique and confident as you blaze forward.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Reinvent yourself and how you want to use your skills. A change of location or people in your life requires common sense. Don't believe everything you hear.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Talks, discipline and innovative ideas will flourish. Communication will help you plan to move forward and deal with people who are trying to stop you from achieving your goals.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) You can build a solid platform if you are positive and forthright. Traveling, communicating and finishing what you start are the keys to your success.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Think twice before you let your emotions escalate and lead you down a slippery slope. Know your limits, your attributes and your goals, and focus on what's possible.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Change is within reach. Thoughts, followed by actions, will get you where you want to go. Don't

hesitate to walk away from situations that are standing between you and happiness.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) Go through the proper channels, and you'll have no regrets. Talk to authority figures, map out a plan and head in a direction that encourages growth and prosperity.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) Time is money, and the journey you start today will help expand your awareness. Attend events that offer insight and help you make connections that allow you to express your attributes.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept 22) Fixate on what's important. Focus on domestic matters that need tweaking to ensure nothing festers behind closed doors. Change begins with you and your ability to lead the way.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Get into the fast lane before someone beats you at your own game. Reach out; be the one to make a difference by leading the way. Refuse to let laziness cost you or cause you to cut corners.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Let your creative imagination lead, and you'll dazzle others with your insight and innovative suggestions. Don't hesitate to broaden your horizons and to venture into new territory.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2025 by NEA, Inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

FAMILY CIrCUS

Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

TODAy'S CLUE: T EQUALS B

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe peAnUtS

And erneSt

Forth

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

SherMAn’S LAGoon

bIG nAte

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. Theobject is to place the numbers 1to9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

THewiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS

CurTiS

BY PHILLIP ALDER Bridge

Molieresaid,“Ifyousuppressgrieftoo much, it can redouble.” Atthebridgetable,suppressingknowledge about responder’s redouble can cause grief. Yesterday, we learnedthat after the opener bids one of asuit and the next player makes atakeout double, responder’sredouble promisesatleast 10 highcardpointsand denies good support forpartner’s suit.Intoday’s deal,you will seethat responderredoubles,then supports hispartner’sheart suit. This shows exactly three-card supportand game-invitational values, 10-12 support pointsand eight losers. (With astronger hand,responderwouldjump-rebidthree hearts, agameforce.)Opener leapsto four hearts. Notethat opener’ssecond-roundpass wasforcing.Eithertheopeningsidebuys thecontractortheinterveningsideplays in something doubled for penalty. And if Southhad immediately rebidinhearts, it would have shown aminimum (or subminimum) opening bid. Also, East’s twodiamond advance promised no strength. He wasjust indicatingapreference for thatsuit over spadesand clubs Against four hearts, West leads the diamond queen. Easttakes dummy’s king with hisace, cashes the diamond 10, then shifts to aspade. How should Southcontinue?

West surely has the spade king for his double. So Southisthreatened with four losers: one spade, one heart and two diamonds.Heshouldwin withhis spade ace,cashthe club king, playa club to dummy’s queen, and discard the spade queen on the club ace. Then he leads a trump and claims shortlythereafter ©2025 by NEA,Inc., dist.

By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Each Wuzzle is awordriddlewhich creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON

Previous answers:

word game

InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of fourormore letters. 2. Words that acquire fourletters by the addition of “s,”such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3 Additional words made by adding a“d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit wordsare not allowed toDAY’s WoRD FIctItIous: fik-TISH-us: Imaginary.

Average mark12words

Timelimit 30 minutes

Can you find 20 or morewords in FICTITIOUS?

YEstERDAY’s WoRD —PAssIVItY

rewards evil forgood,evilshall not depart from his house.” Proverbs 17:13

wuzzles

loCKhorNs

Opposing God and good is abad mistake.Think it over G.E. Dean

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles hidato

mallard

BRIEFS

FROM WIRE REPORTS

Boeing’s acquisition of Max supplier complete

Boeing said Monday it has completed a $4.7 billion purchase of key supplier Spirit AeroSystems, which builds fuselages for the giant aerospace company’s 737 Max jetliners, including an Alaska Airlines aircraft that suffered a doorpanel blowout last year

The deal, in the works for over a year, also brings Boeing’s largest provider of spare parts in-house. CEO Kelly Ortberg called it a “pivotal moment” for Boeing’s future.

“As we welcome our new teammates and bring our two companies together, our focus is on maintaining stability so we can continue delivering high quality airplanes, differentiated services, and advanced defense capabilities for our customers and the industry,” Ortberg said in a statement Boeing previously owned Wichita, Kansas-based Spirit but spun it off in 2005. Reabsorbing the company, which is not related to Spirit Airlines, reverses a longtime Boeing strategy of outsourcing major work on its passenger planes — an approach that faced mounting criticism in recent years as manufacturing problems at Spirit disrupted production and delivery of popular Boeing jetliners, including 737s and 787s. ICEBlock app sues

Trump administration

The maker of an iPhone app that flagged sightings of U.S. immigration agents sued the Trump administration for free speech violations on Monday alleging that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi used her “state power” to force Apple to remove the app. Apple in October removed ICEBlock and other apps from its app store after Bondi said they put Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at risk by enabling people to track ICE activity in their neighborhoods. The lawsuit from ICEBlock app maker Joshua Aaron argues that the government’s actions violated the First Amendment.

“We’re basically asking the court to set a precedent and affirm that ICEBlock is, in fact, First Amendment-protected speech and that I did nothing wrong by creating it,” Aaron said in an interview Monday “And to make sure that they can’t do this same thing again in the future.”

The lawsuit asks a federal judge to protect the Texasbased software developer from prosecution, alleging “unlawful threats made by Attorney General Bondi, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, ICE Acting Director Todd M Lyons, and White House Border Czar Tom Homan to criminally investigate and prosecute Aaron for his role in developing ICEBlock.” IBM buys Confluent data streaming platform IBM said Monday it’s buying data streaming platform Confluent in a deal worth $11 billion that will help bolster the technology company’s artificial intelligence strategy

The two companies signed a “definitive agreement” for IBM to acquire all of Confluent Inc.’s issued and outstanding common stock for $31 per share in cash, which represents a value of $11 billion. Confluent is an open source data streaming platform that “connects, processes and governs” data and events in real time, the companies said in a joint statement. It specializes in preparing data for AI and keeping it “clean and connected across systems and applications,” they said.

The deal means IBM’s client companies can deploy AI services better and faster “by providing trusted communication and data flow between environments, applications and APIs,” IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said. “Data is spread across public and private clouds, data centers and countless technology providers.”

BY CHRISTOPHER PALMERI Bloomberg News (TNS)

The fight over the future of Hollywood just got nastier

Paramount Skydance Corp. launched a hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. at $30 a share in cash on Monday, just days after the company agreed to a deal with Netflix Inc.

The bid tops Netflix’s offer of $27.75 in cash and stock. Paramount’s offer is for the entirety of Warner Bros., while Netflix is only interested in the Hollywood studios and streaming business.

“WBD shareholders deserve an

opportunity to consider our superior all-cash offer for their shares in the entire company,” Paramount Chief Executive Officer David Ellison said in a statement on Monday. “Our public offer, which is on the same terms we provided to the Warner Bros. Discovery Board of Directors in private, provides superior value, and a more certain and quicker path to completion.” Paramount, the parent of CBS, MTV and other media businesses, instigated the battle several months ago when it made multiple offers for Warner Bros. The company decided to put itself up for sale in October and received sev-

eral rounds of bids from Netflix and Comcast Corp. Under terms of the Friday deal announced with Netflix, Warner Bros. will continue with plans to spinoff its cable TV networks, including CNN, TNT and Discovery Channels, before the planned merger closes. Paramount had privately argued that its $30 a share offer was greater than Netflix’s, although that depends on the value investors place on the shares they receive in the spin off.

BY LUKE RAMSETH The Detroit News (TNS)

New car prices didn’t spike after President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs in the spring, as some experts and dealers projected.

But prices on many models are now pushing notably higher — and analysts said carmakers recouping Trump’s higher import costs is a key factor

Consider a recent analysis that found automakers are implementing more aggressive price increases on 2026 model-year vehicles compared to when 2025s were hitting dealership lots last year

Cloud Theory, which tracks car inventory on dealer websites across the country, found the average marketed price increase on 2026 models was nearly $2,000, compared to an approximately $400 uptick during last year’s model year changeover This year, 23 models have at least a $2,000 price hike; last year, there were just nine.

“What I think is different this year is you have a lot of cost increases that are $1,000 or $1,500 or more, $2,000 or more,” said Rick Wainschel, Cloud Theory’s vice president of data and analytics, whose analysis looked at 2026 models with at least 2,000 vehicles in inventory

“I think that’s a big change and a big shift that’s occurred, and it’s hard to point to any other catalyst for that (except for) tariff costs that the OEMs have had to absorb for the last eight months, and will likely have to absorb going forward,” he said.

Any increase comes on top of average car prices that were already hovering around $50,000. Pair that with stubbornly high interest rates, and the average monthly car payment is now $766, according to Edmunds. com Inc., up more than 3% from a year ago.

A record share of subprime borrowers has been falling behind on their auto loans this fall.

Yet the huge car sticker price increases tied to tariffs — which analysts originally warned might tally anywhere from an extra $5,000 to $15,000 per vehicle haven’t come to pass.

Among the reasons: competitive pressures between rival automakers, concern over blowback from Trump, large pre-tariff vehicle inventories that gave companies a lag time before pricing adjustments were needed, as well as policy adjustments that reduced the pain of the tariffs themselves.

Automakers opted to absorb many of the extra costs in the near term. But if you’re shopping for a new car right

NEW YORK U.S. stocks pulled away from their record

“We’re really here to finish what we started,” Ellison said, speaking on CNBC. When asked about the deal on Sunday, President Donald Trump said the Netflix transaction will “go through a process” and that “it is a big market share. It could be a problem.”

If Warner Bros. does break its current agreement it

The company said Monday its offer for the entirety of Warner Bros. gives shareholders $18 billion more in cash than the Netflix bid. Paramount has also argued that its transaction is more likely to be approved by regulators because Netflix has a much larger share of the streaming TV market than Paramount+.

now or plan to in the coming months, experts said it is likely tariffs will cost you in one way or another, even if it’s tough to discern exactly how Automakers haven’t been eager to publicly disclose any connection between tariffs and their pricing adjustments.

Vehicle destination charges those mandatory fees for transporting the car to the dealership are rising, revealing one area where automakers “might be trying to make up a little bit of the costs,” said Erin Keating, an executive analyst at Cox Automotive Inc.

There are also signs of automakers pulling features out of certain models in a bid to trim costs while holding the same sticker price, a phenomenon known as shrinkflation. And then there are indications of carmakers offsetting their tariff costs with higher 2026 model-year MSRPs.

“Automakers really held their prices throughout the ’25 model year, and we’re starting to see a bit (of an impact) in ’26,” said Stephanie Brinley, an auto analyst with S&P Global Mobility “But it’s being wrapped up in different ways, so it’s very difficult to suss out.”

Car companies often adjust pricing on new model-year vehicles, whether due to minor repackaging of features and trim levels, or full overhauls that include new technology and freshened sheet metal. Brinley said that means there’s no clear way for consumers to figure out where those extra tariff costs might’ve been tacked on.

Keating agrees the tariff impacts have been hard to pin down. Average car prices

composite edged down by 0.1%. Berkshire Hathaway weighed on the market and fell 1.4% after announcing a shake-up of some of its top leadership. Todd Combs, who had been CEO of the company’s GEICO insurance business, is leaving for a job at JPMorgan Chase, while Chief Financial Officer Marc Hamburg will retire next year Netflix dropped 3.4% after Paramount announced a bid in hopes of trumping Netflix’s deal to buy Warner Bros., which was announced

have been rising steadily much of this year — with September reaching an all-time high above $50,000 — but she said some of that uptick would have been expected anyway because of normal inflation.

The analyst now feels confident that those initial shocking projections of price hikes in the 10% to 15% range aren’t going to happen: “The market just won’t bear it,” she said. Automakers appear to be settling into their new normal under Trump. They’ve secured at least some tariff relief on parts and vehicles imported from certain countries, while simultaneously feeling the benefits of Trump’s moves to loosen federal vehicle emissions and fuel economy standards.

A September J.P Morgan report estimated combined tariff costs on vehicles and parts will amount to $41 billion in the first year, rising to $45 billion in year two and $52 billion in year three.

The bank expects automakers and consumers to ultimately share the burden equally, which could lead to a 3% increase in new vehicle prices: “This will hit consumers hard,” the report said, “especially as many are already struggling to afford new vehicles.”

Wainschel, the Cloud Theory analyst, said average prices listed on dealer websites have only increased a few hundred dollars per vehicle since the tariffs took effect in early April. But that’s because automakers have pushed an increasing number of affordable models and trims into the market, which has helped hold the overall average price down.