The Acadiana Advocate 06-06-2026

‘ITWAS OURDUTY’

National WWII Museum honors Rosiethe Riveters with American Spirit Awards this weekend

DelphineKlaput posesbyacanvasdepicting Rosie the Riveter made withphotographs of

The American Spirit Awards at The National WWII Museum on Friday

More than 30 women travel to N.O. to share theirstories

BY VIOLETBUCARO Staff writer

The heads of thefactory told Delphine Klaput to guardthe aircraft blueprints with her life. Whenever she needed to bring them out, which was often as a leader of ateam of men building planes to be sent overseas,she kept them close so they wouldn’tbelost or seenbysomeone who shouldn’t know about them.There was awar on, after all.

It was afar cry from herlife growing up in aPennsylvania coal mining town, and she rememberswalking through Glenn L.Martin Aircraft factory in Baltimore asking herself, “What did Iget myself into?” Klaput, 101, worked at the aircraft factory during thelast years of World WarII. From 1944 to 1945, she was one of the millions of young women who tookjobs in the factories that built the planes and tanks and ships and trucksthat helped the U.S. and its allies winthe war America’smassivemanufactur-

AgroupofRosies attend WWII veteran Melvin McMullen’s101st birthday celebrationatThe National WWII Museum on Friday.

ing capability came to be known as theArsenal of Democracy.Itwas powered by women like Klaput, who later cametobeassociated withthe wartimeicon known as Rosie the Riveter

The Rosie the Riveter propaganda poster,created by J. Howard Miller in1943, depictsa woman with rolled-up sleeves, red lipstickand apumpedfist,with theemblematic motto “WeCan Do It.” It was made to

motivate women in the labor force. Earlier thisweek, Klaput was among morethan 30 “Rosie the Riveters” whotraveled to New Orleans to attend The American Spirit Awards at The National World WarII Museum, where they are honorees. The awards are given to people who reflect the spirit andcontribution of themen andwomen whoserved

ä See DUTY, page 4A

Statejudge accused of newethical violations

Manpreviouslysuspended for taking ‘$100handshake’

BY JOHN SIMERMAN Staff writer

Whenthe Louisiana Supreme Court suspended a state judge last month for20days foraccepting a “$100 handshake” from alocal resident, the high court called the misconduct “a single isolated incident that nevertheless seriously tainted the integrity and reputation of the judiciary.”

Judge John Reeves of the 7th Judicial District Court had insisted that hispocketing the money was outofcharacter as he testifiedlastDecember before the Louisiana Judiciary Commission. “I have an unbelievable record,and thisisnot like me,” he told the body,which recommends discipline forjudges.

Yetinearly March, the commissionagain charged Reeves, aveteran judge in rural Catahoula and Concordia parishes, with afresh set of ethical lapses in four other instances. Among them,Reeves in 2024 allegedly authorized twocourt staffmembers to secure commissions as reserve sheriff’s deputiesinCatahoula Parish so they could carry concealed weapons in the courthouse fortheir safety

Their new badges were swiftly rescinded whenadefense lawyer sought to recuse Reeves,

BY JONAH MEADOWS Staff writer

The offshorefacility will initially produce 4.4 million tons of LNG annually,enough to power about3million homes for afull year.The company hopestoeventually rampupproductionto13.2 million tons, about half as much as someofthe state’slargest facilities. Delfin CEO Dudley Poston described theinvestmentdecision as a“monumental achievement,” secured by a commitment from Global Infrastructure Partners,a subsidiary of private equitygiant Blackrock,which joined other global investors in the deal. Nation’s

Along-delayed projecttobuild the United States’ firstfloating liquefied natural gasexportterminaloff the Louisiana coast has secured the $5 billion in financing it needs to move forward, company officialsrecently announced, further cementingthe state’s key role in globalLNG markets. Delfin Midstream aimstobuild the largest floatingLNG facilityinthe world connected to an underseapipeline the Houston-based firmisrepurposingtobring natural gasfromonshore to aplatform about40 miles off

thecoast of Cameron Parish. Delfin’sannouncementcomes as Louisiana is emerging as thecenter of gravityfor theAmericanLNG boom The state is already home to four operatingexport terminals, and the planned floating terminal is the third to receive afinal investment decision so far this year “U.S.LNG production is thebiggest in the worldright now —particularly with our friends in Qatar shut in,”said Eric Smith, associatedirector of the EnergyInstitute at Tulane University “Arguably,Louisiana has more LNG export capabilitythananywhereelse on earth.”

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer

Students returning to thecampus of the University of Louisiana at Lafayettethissummerand fall will find posters of the TenCommandments displayed in classrooms.

The university has begun hanging the posters across campus this week in accordance with Act 676 of the 2024 regular session of the Louisiana Legislature.

ä See LNG, page 4A

STAFF PHOTOSByENAN CHEDIAK

theRosies attending

3 Siberian tiger cubs born at Slovenian zoo

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia A zoo in Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana has presented its newest residents: three Siberian tiger cubs who were born there under two weeks ago.

The Siberian tiger is one of the world’s most endangered big cat species, with experts estimating that about 500 remain in the wild. Their survival is threatened primarily by habitat loss and poaching.

Zoo workers said the cubs were born to mother Arisa and father Ussuri, which arrived in Ljubljana in 2004, after careful planning and much hoping

“We were not really expecting, but hoping, working on it because we have a good breeding pair,” she said. Though the couple were introduced to each other at the right time “we weren’t completely sure,” she added.

“So we were also a bit surprised and of course very happy,” Strus said.

Breeding wild animal species in enclosed spaces is known to be hard and often does not succeed.

The cubs, born on May 27, are highly vulnerable and need to be isolated from others except their mother, but zoo staff and visitors have been able see them on a screen streaming live video footage.

According to Strus, tiger cubs open their eyes and begin hearing about two weeks after birth

She said the mother is expected to bring them out of the den for the first time when they are one month old.

Astronauts briefly take shelter during repair

NASA on Friday temporarily ordered astronauts to take shelter during repairs to fix a fresh leak aboard the International Space Station.

The five astronauts moved into the SpaceX capsule that is docked at the station while cosmonauts worked to fix the leak, which is on the Russian side of the orbiting laboratory.

The decision was made “out of an abundance of caution,” NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens said via X.

The crew left the capsule and returned to regular operations after repair work was paused.

That part of the space station has suffered from cracks and leaks over the years. NASA said Roscosmos decided to do a more extensive repair after fresh problems were found.

The space agencies have been working to determine the cause of the cracks.

Trump to headline rally marking nation’s 250th

President Donald Trump said he would headline a rally in Washington on June 24 to mark the 250th anniversary of the United States, a week after several artists pulled out of planned shows on the National Mall.

“We don’t want singers with no talent, but big fees to put you to sleep, we’ve told them all to stay home,” Trump said in a social media post a nod to the wave of cancellations by artists who said they wouldn’t be performing shortly after they were announced as featured acts.

“All we want is you, me, a few speakers, and the Greatest Music ever played, the same Music you have listened to for years!” he said.

At least five of the nine announced performers pulled out of the previously planned shows on the National Mall, saying the event was more political than they had been led to believe. Freedom 250, which is organizing the events, is a group described by Trump as a publicprivate nonprofit that also organized an overtly Christian prayer meeting on May 17 that included a video message from the president.

Cancellations for the Freedom 250 shows included country music icon Martina McBride, hip hop artist Young MC, The Commodores, Morris Day and The Time and Bret Michaels. Rapper Vanilla Ice defended the event in a social media video saying it was “not a political platform Trump said the musical acts for his own rally would include “God Bless the USA” singer Lee Greenwood and opera tenor Christopher Macchio.

Congo radio station battling misinformation

Fight against Ebola complicated by skeptism, attacks

BY JUSTIN KABUMBA and OPE ADETAYO Associated Press

BUNIA, Congo The rare Bundibugyo type of Ebola that Congo is battling took locals by surprise after weeks of spreading unnoticed. Hundreds of cases were suspected when Congolese authorities announced the outbreak on May 15, but many dismissed the news as a “Western conspiracy.”

At least 63 people have died from 397 confirmed cases, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday Yet the outbreak has been challenged by skepticism, attacks on health workers and misinformation.

Vérité Johnson, a journalist and editorial secretary at the Radio Télévision Mont Bleu station in Bunia, the capital city of the eastern Ituri province where the outbreak is concentrated, decided to produce a new program to combat rumors.

The radio show has emerged as a vital tool to win over some residents who have been unaware or skeptical about the facts of Bundibugyo.

Misinformation is dangerous

The 45-minute program runs daily at 10 a.m., reminding people of the dangers of Ebola and regularly featuring health specialists who provide updates and answer questions. The show’s jingles about the

virus play intermittently throughout the day and residents are able to call in with questions.

“So far, there’s still a layer of resistance within the population, and that’s where the media plays an important role,” Johnson said.

“Misinformation is almost as dangerous as the virus itself and spreads just as fast. Earning and keeping the trust of communities is at the heart of everything we do,” World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Friday as WHO and the Africa CDC launched an Ebola response plan with partners.

Tedros said the new plan aims to raise $518 million to “stop the outbreak where it is, support countries that are responding today and ensure that neighboring countries are ready to detect and act quickly if cases appear.”

Resistance to protocols during public health emergencies is common in Congo, which is battling its 17th Ebola outbreak since the virus was first identified there in 1976. There currently is no approved vaccine or treatment for the Bundibugyo type of Ebola, which has added another layer of fear

Widespread rumors, often arising from fear and misinformation, discourage residents from adhering to health warnings or seeking medical help during an outbreak, health officials say

Mistrust leads to delays in care

Many residents remain distrustful of health authorities, with some alleging that officials are profiting from the outbreak.

“I can never take the vaccine, I prefer to die because if the vaccine arrives, it can scare us even more,” said Samson Gerson, a 52-year-old Bunia resident and father of seven children.

Analysts say some people in Congo have been receptive to disinformation due to mistrust of the healthcare system and because some local officials have not become actively involved in containing the disease.

“What is key is to involve the local actors at all levels. If we try to impose what we think is right to the community, we are running towards failure,” said Basile Rambaud, emergency programs director for Mercy Corps in Congo. “If people do not trust the response, they end up delaying to seek care, rejecting protective measures, or avoiding working with health teams, giving the virus more time to spread.”

Ituri province residents have launched at least three attacks against health centers, demanding the bodies of deceased patients. Some people who are believed to have Ebola left the centers during the attacks and health workers could not account for their whereabouts.

Defense Department slashes religious designations list

Recognized traditions cut from more than 200 choices to 31

BY TIFFANY STANLEY Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Department of Defense announced on Friday a significant reduction in the number of religious affiliations it officially recognizes.

The new list of 31 is down from more than 200 previously recognized traditions that troops could choose from The list no longer includes atheists, Unitarian Universalists, pagans and Wiccans

“This decrease in religious affiliation codes is not designed to make any claims on the legitimacy of any faith or religious belief, nor is it intended to provide a list of ‘officially approved’ religions,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement. “Rather, it is designed to allow chaplains to quickly look at the religious composition of their units and determine how they structure resources to best provide for warfighters of all faith groups.”

Parnell added the department values the free exercise of religion and chaplains facilitate service members’ “ability to freely exercise their religion of choice, or no religion at all.”

The list creates broad categories of some Christian traditions — Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist without specifying denominations within those traditions, which can span the theological and ideological spectrum. Service members can choose to identify as “no religion,” “other religions” or agnostic. Also included are Buddhism,

Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Sikhism, the Baha’i faith and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Unitarian Universalist Association, which was cut from the list, said in a statement, “This may make it more difficult for our uniformed UUs to access the spiritual care that they need.”

The denomination said it is working on a strategic response to support UU service members.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has infused his evangelical Christianity with his leadership of the Pentagon, hosting worship services for employees and often speaking of the United States as a Christian nation.

He first announced the impending changes to the faith categories in December, saying the large number of faith codes had become unmanageable.

“Secretary Hegseth is not ‘streamlining’ anything. He is elevating one narrow religious worldview from the top of the chain of command,” said the Rev Paul Raushenbush, a Baptist minister and head of the progressive Interfaith Alliance. “The First Amendment does not allow the government to create a hierarchy of faiths, and it certainly does not allow the Pentagon to decide which beliefs are worthy of recognition.”

The military is religiously diverse, and nearly 70% of troops identify as Christian, according to a 2019 congressional report. Almost a quarter of troops were listed as other, unclassified or unknown.

“As a member of a minority religion, I think it’s really important that we be counted,” said Irene Glasse, a pagan religious professional and Marine Corps veteran. “It erases us, and so many of us have served so proudly, so well, and so honorably.”

Trump wants Pulte to cut office

President says national intelligence should be scaled back

BY MICHELLE L. PRICE and SEUNG MIN KIM Associated Press

President Donald Trump said on Friday that he wants his new acting director of national intelligence, Bill Pulte, to cut the office, which has already been significantly scaled back during his second term.

Trump noted that the size of the office has been “way too high for way too long” and that “if he cut, I wouldn’t mind that.”

“He’ll do a very good job,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One as he traveled to Wisconsin for an event on agriculture. “He’ll watch it closely, but Bill Pulte is very good, he’s very talented.”

The Republican president said in an earlier interview with The Wall Street Journal that he has asked Pulte to start the process of firing employees. In the interview, Trump said he has already conveyed his view to Pulte, who has served as head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency but has no apparent national security expertise.

“I’d like to see it smaller. I think there are a lot of people in there that shouldn’t be there,” Trump said, which the Journal said was in reference to intelligence community officials who had served in the Democratic administrations of Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama. Trump told the Journal that he wants Pulte to “start the process” of firing personnel and that the eventual permanent director of national intelligence should continue it. The president has indicated that he would not formally nominate Pulte for the position. “Frankly, it might be good for him to shake it up before people come,” Trump said “Because, if he (Pulte) reduced the size, in conjunction with me and in conjunction with possibly the person coming in he can do a lot of the hard work and we wouldn’t have to saddle somebody that goes in.”

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ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MOSES SAWASAWA

Verité Johnson works at a community radio station on Thursday, providing daily awareness and updates on Ebola in Bunia, Congo.

Senate OKs $70B immigration bill

Efforts to ban Trump’s settlement fund were rejected

BY MARY CLARE JALONICK and JOEY CAPPELLETTI Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Senate passed legislation to fund

President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement agencies early Friday, after weeks of delays and fierce backlash to an unrelated $1.776 billion settlement fund that threatened to derail the bill.

Senators voted 52-47 to pass the $70 billion legislation to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol for the next three years, through the end of Trump’s term after Democrats blocked the money for months. The bill will now head to the House, which is expected to take it up next week.

The final vote came just before 5 a.m., after Republicans narrowly defeated multiple attempts by members of both parties to add language to the bill that would permanently ban Trump’s settlement fund for allies who believe they’ve been politically persecuted.

Republicans cleared the last major hurdle overnight when they defeated an amendment proposed by one of their own members, Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge, that would have redirected payments from the settlement to members of law enforcement who were injured when a mob of Trump supporters seeking to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The amendments were a test of party unity that complicated what should have been an easy vote for Republicans who wanted to keep the focus on immigration enforcement in an election year Instead, they spent almost a full day haggling among themselves over whether to block the settlement fund, even after acting Attorney General Todd Blanche had said earlier this week that it would not go forward.

“This would have been done several hours ago if we weren’t having to deal with some of the issues

around the fund,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said shortly before midnight.

Thune himself has criticized the fund, which was part of a settlement that resolves Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns and has angered many of his GOP colleagues. But he has been pushing GOP senators for weeks to keep the bill focused on the funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol and to avoid adding new provisions that could complicate its passage in the House. Still, a group of Republican senators pushed all day and into the night to block the fund’s payouts through legislation. That effort came after Trump, who has been at odds with the Senate in recent weeks, raised new doubts about the fund’s future on Wednesday when he told reporters that it is “very important” and said “I don’t know” whether it is dead or on hold.

The final 52-47 vote on the bill was nearly party line, with Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska the only Republican to oppose it. Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado missed the vote.

Senators push back on ban

The first vote on Thursday morning, a Democratic effort to ban the settlement fund, was held open for several hours while Cassidy and two other Republican senators decided whether to support it. The Democratic motion was narrowly defeated when Cassidy eventually voted against it and the two other senators — Jon Husted of Ohio and

Dan Sullivan of Alaska, both of whom are up for reelection this year voted for it.

The Senate then rejected a second amendment from Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina that would also have banned the settlement fund but would have moved the money to a separate anti-fraud fund at the Department of Justice. Most Democrats voted against the amendment, guaranteeing its defeat, but more than 10 Republicans supported it

Tillis said the fund is a political liability for the party

“If Blanche says this is largely inoperative, why not use this moment to codify that?” Tillis said. “Otherwise, you’re exposing every one of our members who are in cycle to having to deal with this between today and Election Day, and that makes no sense for something that the DOJ says they’re not moving forward with.”

Cassidy’s amendment to compensate the injured police officers was a pointed rebuke, as payouts from Trump’s fund could have potentially gone to Trump supporters who beat police and attacked the Capitol on Jan 6. Cassidy lost reelection last month after Trump endorsed a primary opponent

He said that, despite Blanche’s comments, the fund is still part of an active settlement and “absolutely can be used.”

The Senate rejected several other Democratic efforts to try to block or limit the fund, including amendments to ban payments to Jan. 6 defendants who injured law enforcement officers.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.,

ICE will no longer report deaths of recently released detainees

Homeland Security frames move as ‘common sense’

BY RYAN J FOLEY Associated Press

IOWA CITY, Iowa Immigration and Customs Enforcement will no longer report deaths of detainees who have recently been released from its custody in a change that could obscure the full human cost of the Trump administration’s mass detention policies.

The move rescinds a 2021 policy implemented by the Biden administration that required ICE to report to Congress and investigate deaths of detainees that occur within 30 days of their release.

The goal of the 2021 policy was to ensure that ICE could not avoid accountability for deaths by releasing severely ill people from custody Detainees who were brain-dead or suffering from infection, for instance, have died shortly after ICE released them in the past.

Two health experts who have investigated ICE custody deaths criticized the change Friday

“Tracking deaths immediately after custody is a standard approach that allows health systems in jails, prisons and immigration detention to learn about gaps in care that may occur before a person leaves a facility,” said Dr Homer Venters, former chief medical officer of the New York City jail system. “Eliminating reporting of these deaths represents

a willful act of ignoring the most serious health outcome that can reflect inadequacies in care or help track outbreaks.”

ICE detainees also routinely die at hospitals where they are taken for treatment after their conditions deteriorate inside detention facilities, records show Those detainees, however, have generally been considered to remain in ICE custody.

The Washington Post first reported the policy change Thursday The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, later confirmed the move in a statement that framed it as “common sense.”

“Under this updated policy, when an individual is no longer in ICE custody then ICE will no longer be responsible for monitoring or reviewing deaths that may occur,” the statement said.

The statement said ICE remained committed to transparency and that the revised policy includes procedures for “timely notification, review and reporting of deaths occurring in ICE custody.”

ICE did not immediately release its full updated policy

The decision to limit death reporting comes as a greater number of ICE detainees have been dying. At least 18 detainees have died since Jan 1, which is on pace to surpass last year’s death toll, which was the highest in two decades. Detainees are dying by suicide at an unprecedented pace, and experts say many other deaths from natural causes likely would have been preventable with

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., pauses for questions from reporters before votes on the immigration enforcement funding package at the Capitol in Washington on Thursday.

said Republicans are now “leaving taxpayers to rely on nothing more than a promise from Donald Trump’s personal fixer That is not accountability That is a permission slip.”

Money delayed for months Enactment of the bill to fund ICE and the Border Patrol would end the blockade by Democrats who demanded policy changes after the fatal shootings of two protesters by federal agents in January

Senate Republicans used a complicated procedural maneuver to get around the filibuster and pass the budget legislation with no Democratic votes. But it took weeks to get the bill to the Senate floor as Republicans navigated various obstacles to passage created by Trump and the White House including a $1 billion proposal for White House security and Trump’s ballroom that they eventually scrapped and the fierce bipartisan backlash to the settlement fund.

Democrats say any funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security should place restraints on federal immigration authorities, including better identification for federal officers and more use of judicial warrants, among other asks.

Judge strikes down immigration policy

Administration’s strategy affected 39 countries

BY MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press

BOSTON A federal judge on Friday struck down a Trump administration policy enacted after the shooting of two National Guard members that made it harder for immigrants from dozens of countries to stay and enter the U.S.

In a ruling harshly criticizing the administration, U.S. District Chief Judge John McConnell Jr said the policy “threw the lives of countless immigrants living in the United States into indeterminate legal limbo,” and he accused the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services of ignoring the law

“In enacting its latest immigration policies, USCIS: claims statutory and regulatory authority that it does not possess; makes decisions without the reasoned explanations that it must provide; acts without regard for the reliance interests of applicants that it must consider; and justifies its actions with pretextual concerns of ‘national security’ that mask anti-immigrant sentiments that it is forbidden from letting influence its decision-making,” he wrote. “In legal terms that means USCIS’s actions are contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The policies enacted after the National Guard shooting last year meant that immigrants from 39 African, Asian, Latin American, and Middle Eastern countries have been “categorically barred” from receiving final decisions on, among other things, their asylum, work

permit, green card, and citizenship applications.

“This ruling reaffirms a basic principle: the federal government cannot shut down lawful immigration pathways or discriminate against people based on where they come from,” said Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, which represented the plaintiffs in the case.

“These unlawful policies caused enormous harm to families, workers, asylumseekers, and communities across the country who were left in limbo, unable to work, access protections, or move forward with their lives.” The policies apply to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services or USCIS, which approves applications for immigrants to work and become citizens. The agency, which is within the Homeland Security Department, often grants asylum, but only for those already in the United States when they apply Immigration judges grant asylum to those stopped at the border; the ruling does not affect them, nor do the policies that sparked the lawsuit.

The broad ruling would impact all pending cases at USCIS involving people from the travel ban countries, not just those included in the lawsuit, Shev DalalDheini, senior director of government relations at the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

“It is an important legal victory to ensure that legal immigration pathways remain open and that USCIS is held accountable to doing their congressionally mandated job of adjudicating applications,” she said. It is part of an ongoing effort by the administration to tighten U.S. entry standards for travel and immigration, which critics say unfairly prevent travel for people from a broad range of countries.

timely medical care.

Dr Sanjay Basu a University of California-San Francisco epidemiologist who recently published an analysis of more than 270 ICE custody deaths, said the policy change will “make the mortality statistics appear lower without any actual improvement in care.”

“The period immediately following release is when deaths attributable to inadequate care during confinement become apparent,” he said. “Missed diagnoses, interrupted medications, untreated infections, and decompensating chronic conditions don’t always kill someone while they’re still in the building.”

As of early April, ICE was holding more than 60,000 detainees across its national network of detention facilities, up from around 40,000 at the start of President Donald Trump’s second term. ICE denies allegations that detainees suffer from medical neglect, saying they receive comprehensive health care services

Before announcing Thursday’s policy change, DHS acting assistant secretary Lauren Bis told the AP on Tuesday that no detainees died in its custody in May That was the first month without a detainee death since November At the time, Bis did not address AP questions about whether any death reporting policies had changed.

“As we have repeatedly stated, deaths in ICE custody are exceedingly rare,” she said then.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE

in the war Former Saints football player Steve Gleason and American composer John Williams will also be recognized at the awards ceremony this weekend

A difficult time

Over 16 million Americans served in the Armed Forces in WWII, and approximately 6 million women filled jobs on the homefront historically reserved for men. Due to the Depression from 1929 to 1939, many women who worked in the war effort came from poor families. When they got jobs, they sent most of the money to families back home.

Francesca Masters, 104, another honoree in New Orleans this week, said she made $1 an hour and like Klaput sent nearly all her money back to her family Masters worked on the airplane wing of the B-24 Liberator operating heavy machinery in the bomber plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan She felt proud to be working a “man’s job,” she said, and that it “felt like a different world” in the factory Peter Crean, vice president of education and access at The National World War II Museum, said that so often the men in uniform

JUDGE

Continued from page 1A

alleging an appearance of bias toward law enforcement.

The Judiciary Commission also accuses Reeves of violating several ethical rules in 2021 when he ordered a deputy to pick up a child caught in a heated custody dispute and deliver the boy to his terminally ill grandfather — who attended high school and played football with Reeves. Reeves only told the lawyers afterward. The boy’s mother complained, and Reeves soon recused himself from that

Continued from page 1A

The Delfin floating terminal project has been in the works for more than a decade and will involve pumping natural gas from onshore to a massive vessel with a ship-like hull and an LNG processing plant on top. Initially the project will consist of one vessel. The company hopes to eventually have five. Delfin began working on the project in 2014, after purchasing an undersea natural gas pipeline, and received export authorization in 2017 But the project stalled in 2024, as the Biden administration paused new LNG approvals and required it reapply for a port license. President Donald Trump reversed those decisions after returning to office. His administration immediately issued an executive order to accelerate fossil fuel permitting, issuing Delfin a port license in March 2025 and rolling back environmental protections for the endangered Rice’s Whale in the Gulf.

As envisioned, the floating terminal will use a 42inch pipeline that was built to carry natural gas from offshore wells to the shore and has not been used since 2012 and run it in reverse to push gas drilled inland from

POSTERS

Continued from page 1A

The law requires that the Ten Commandments be displayed in public school classrooms and state-funded post-secondary institutions.

UL also is installing “In God We Trust” posters, according to an email the university sent to students.

Act 264, approved by the Louisiana Legislature during the 2023 regular session and signed into law by the governor, requires postsecondary institutions to display the national motto in each classroom.

“As a state entity UL Lafayette follows state law,” the email states.

The posters are to be paid for with donations in accordance with state legislation and guidance from the Louisi-

are recognized, but in reality the war touched every family, every woman.

“It was the women that were stepping into the breech on the homefront,” Crean said.

American industrial needs went into hyperdrive, and if women were refused entry for production roles, it would’ve taken over 5 million men out of uniform. He said it would have been much harder to build 2,700 liberty ships and 100 aircraft carriers and ultimately — to win the war

Women welded, carried rivet guns and stepped into administrative roles Before, it was unheard of to apply for those jobs. Crean

case, according to records.

“As I understand it, you ordered 4 hours of visitation on your own motion?” the mother’s attorney, Clinton Andrew Magoun, messaged the judge later “Yes,” Reeves responded, according to the commission.

Another charge alleges Reeves issued an illegal verbal order over the phone in 2024 for a law enforcement search of a home. In a fourth, he’s accused of signing arrest and search warrants for a “longtime personal friend” and his property before stepping off the case.

Through an assistant, Reeves declined to comment on the allegations, saying judicial canons

the coast out to a massive vessel. The natural gas will then be supercooled into a liquid form and loaded onto tankers bound for markets in Europe and Asia. Unlike onshore liquefaction terminals, which require hundreds of acres of coastal land, regular dredging of channels and specialized pilots to navigate, Delfin’s vessel would be built at a Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in South Korea.

The company has argued in investor materials that it’s faster and cheaper to produce, while also mobile enough to get away from an incoming hurricane.

Tyler Gray, the director of energy innovation at the LSU Energy Institute and a former oil industry lobbyist, said the facility will need to do more than just reduce costs to be viable. It will also need to be dependable for buyers.

“I would not assume this model works everywhere It works only where the system already exists,” Gray said.

“You need pipeline access, offshore experience, available gas supply, federal permitting, customers willing to sign long-term contracts and enough redundancy to deliver cargoes reliably.”

Louisiana’s 50,000 miles of pipeline infrastructure and connections to interstate markets give it unique advantages. But the project

anaAttorneyGeneral’sOffice.

The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeal in February lifted an injunction that blocked implementation of the Ten Commandments law The appeals court did not, however, declare the law definitively constitutional.

In April, a majority of judges on the 5th U.S Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Texas’ law, which is nearly identical to Louisiana’s, is constitutional and does not violate students’ religious freedom.

In their majority opinion, the judges rejected the argument that posting the Ten Commandments in classrooms would pressure students to honor the biblical mandates or adopt particular beliefs.

“Toplaintiffs,merelyexposing children to religious language is enough to make the displays engines of coercive

said not only did the women help win the war, but the country was fundamentally different because of their example.

“The opportunities for my mother, my wife and my daughters would be very different,” he said.

“That door never really closed.”

Masters remembers the scale of effort, and the small details.

Overwhelmingly large machines surrounded her in the Willow Rum Bomber Plant, the largest war factory in the world during World War II, built by the Ford Motor Company It was spotless, she said, except when men would spit their chewing tobacco on the floor

Her parents were Italian immi-

prohibit it.

The Judiciary Commission can recommend discipline of a judge or justice of the peace to the Louisiana Supreme Court. It has set an August hearing over the latest allegations against Reeves.

Formal misconduct charges against judges don’t become public until after they are filed and a period of time has elapsed to allow the judge to respond. Reeves did not file a response to the latest charges, the court said.

When the Supreme Court considered the previous misconduct case against Reeves and then issued its 20-day suspension without a hearing on May 1, the justices were not

will still need to solve the challenges of getting gas out to sea, keeping the pipeline intact, effectively liquefying it offshore, reliably loading it onto tankers and weathering hurricanes, Gray said.

While there are currently only eight operational floating LNG projects, there were another nine already under construction before the Delfin project finalized its financing.

Delfin’s first vessel has already secured long-term agreements to sell LNG to companies including Vitol, Expand Energy Centrica and Gunvor Company representatives said it has secured all the permits it needs and is scheduled to begin production in 2030, with hopes to secure financing for the second and third vessels over the next year

But the project still faces legal and safety hurdles before Delfin can begin offshore gas liquefaction.

The Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Habitat Recovery Project have filed a lawsuit challenging the project’s license, arguing the government reversed its own denial without conducting any environmental review and without evaluating how the project had changed since it was initially approved.

“My hope is that the court will see that the Maritime

indoctrination. We disagree,” the majority wrote about the Texas law, known as S.B. 10. A minority of the court’s active judges dissented.

Rejecting arguments made by attorneys for the Texas families who challenged the law, the 5th Circuit majority said that requiring public schools to post the Ten Commandments does not amount to the government endorsing a particular religion, which the U.S. Constitution forbids. The law also does not impose religious beliefs on students, the judges wrote.

“As noted, S.B. 10 authorizes no religious instruction and gives teachers no license to contradict children’s religious beliefs (or their parents’),” the majority opinion states. “No child is made to recite the Commandments, believe them, or affirm their divine origin.”

grants, and her father was a horticulturist for a fruit market Two of her sisters worked at the plant while her two brothers fought in the war

Frequently, her family would get letters in the mail from her brothers A few weeks before the war ended, she came home and saw plants had been thrown out on her family’s back porch.

She said she just knew something had happened to one of her brothers, Salvatore, and the telegram confirmed it. He had been killed in the Battle of the Bulge.

As they waited for news from overseas, the women had to find ways to stay motivated back home. Virginia Rusch, 99, from Detroit, said she had always wanted to work She wanted to buy new clothes. When she was 15, she dropped out of high school and told Republic Aircraft Products that she was 17 to get hired.

She built airplane nose cones and propellers at the assembly line from 1942 to 1944. Each day she’d solder a cone, place it in a bin and repeat.

She said if she could talk to her younger self, she’d say, “I had good intentions in life I wanted to succeed, which I didn’t do badly,” she said, “I did pretty good for a person that didn’t graduate from high school.”

Who are the Rosies?

As they talked about their expe-

likely aware of the other allegations lodged against him, said attorney Steve Scheckman, former special counsel to the commission.

In any case, the court couldn’t have taken them into account.

“It would be unfair of them to know These are unproven allegations,” Scheckman said. “If you turned all that over prematurely that would be highly prejudicial to the respondent judge.”

The discipline the Supreme Court handed Reeves was less than the 30-day unpaid suspension the commission had recommended in that case. He was also ordered to pay $3,100 in commission costs. Reeves admitted accepting a

Administration’s licensing of Delfin after previously denying it was egregious and without merit, given

riences together at the museum Thursday, the three women said that until recently they didn’t think of themselves as “Rosie the Riveters” who fought on the homefront.

From 2013 to 2017, Rusch’s daughter, Lisa Brown, would dress up as Rosie at Willow Run to raise funds to repair the plant, but she had no idea her mother was considered a Rosie until she learned about her part of the war effort.

“I would say the last five years there’s been a push for the recognition for Rosies,” said Brown. “But in the first few years, it was very hard for them because they truly didn’t think they had done anything special.”

Rusch would tell her daughter that she quit school and got a job because it was what she needed to do to help the effort.

“It was our duty,” Masters chimed in.

The passing decades have meant fewer and fewer Rosies are still alive. But the ones that are say they try to stay involved in associations around the nation and celebrate one another

“No matter where you go, if there’s a Rosie, you’re gonna see this,” Klaput said, extending her hands toward the other women.

“They have to hold hands,” Klaput said.

She reached for Ruschs’ hand, and Rusch reached for Masters’ hand.

“We can do it,” Klaput said.

folded C-note from a resident he had agreed to meet at the Concordia Parish courthouse in June 2023 to sign a petition to probate a will. He at first turned down the money, but the man insisted “lunch is on me” and the judge took it, he admitted Another judge’s assistant reported the foul. Reeves told the commission he knew it was wrong and told the giver he would donate it to church but never increased his usual tithe. Reeves “agreed that he created the perception ‘that a little bit of grease on the wheels will make them turn smoother,’ which corrodes the image of the judiciary,” the commission wrote.

the project’s potential significant impacts and the substantial changes to it that have gone unevaluated in the

STAFF PHOTO By ENAN CHEDIAK

Earline Gaither, one of the Rosies receiving an American Spirit Award, speaks with Andrea Morris at The National WWII Museum on Friday.

10 years since it was initially proposed,” said Devorah Ancel, senior attorney for the Sierra Club.

Lebanonlashesout at Iran

Leaderssay their countryshouldnot be used as ‘bargainingchip’

BY FADI TAWIL and HUSSEIN MALLA Associated Press

DIBBINE,Lebanon Lebanon’s president and prime minister criticized Iran on Friday for opposing the latest ceasefire deal between the Lebanese government and Israel, saying their country should not be used by Tehran as a“bargaining chip” in its talks with Washington.

The comments came as the Israeli military struck multiple parts of southern Lebanon and issued evacuation warnings for nine villages, including one that has sheltered thousands of people displaced by the three-month war betweenIsrael and the Iranianbacked militant group Hezbollah. The strikes killed nine people in six locations in southernLebanon, the state news agency reported.

Iran’sparamilitary Revolutionary Guard issued astatement Thursday vowing that “there will be no calm in the region” if Israel doesn’twithdraw its troops from Lebanon. In an interview with CNN, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun responded: “It’s not your job to interfere into our country.Ireject the statement totally because our people (are) being killed, our houses being destroyed.”

In separate remarks,Prime Minister Nawaf Salam called on the Lebanese people to put their country’sinterest first, saying that Lebanon “should not remain abattlefieldfor others.”

Both he and Aoun complained that Iran was treating their nation as “a bargaining chip” in talks with Washington about ending the U.S.-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic. Iran has demanded that any lasting truce should extend to Lebanon.

Some return to ruined villages

Even as new evacuationwarnings forced hundreds of Lebanese families to flee from some areas, people elsewherebegan returning to their homes to survey the aftermathoffightingbetween Israeli forces and Hezbollah. Themilitant grouphas rejectedthe ceasefire deal and demands acomplete Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.

An Associated Press team trav-

Hezbollah fighters.

eling in southernLebanon Friday saw multiple villages in ruins, including Dibbine, near Marjayoun town, from which Israeli troops withdrew aday earlier. It was the first time Israeli troops exited an area in southern Lebanon since the latest Israel-Hezbollahwar began in early March.

U.N. peacekeepers and Lebanese troopswere at an entrance to Dibbine, clearing rubble and opening roads. The Lebanese army set up barbed wire at oneofthe entrances,preventing some residents from returning At least onefamily arrived to searchthe rubble of its home along the road leading to thevillage, while the ownerofa petrol station in Dibbine looked at his destroyedproperty andcalled village residentsto report on thedestruction he saw from behind the barbedwire.

Shrapnel andpiecesofmissiles were seen in thewreckage of homes lining the road into Dibbine.Israeli troops entered the village weeks ago forthe first time and were engaged inheavy clashes with Hezbollah fighters in the area. The troopsreturned this week, before withdrawingThursday Theroad toDibbine was dotted withvillagesentirely emptied of residents anddestroyed by Israeli strikes, including Khiam. But no Israeli troops were visible from the road.

Nearby Christianvillageswere largely untouched, and manyof theirresidents decided to stay.The strategic Beaufort castle, recently captured byIsrael, appeared in thedistance, with aflag of the Is-

raeliGolani Brigade.Smoke from strikes around thenearbyNabatiyeh citybillowed above.

Newevacuationwarnings

The Israeli militaryissuedanew setofevacuation warnings on Friday,promptingpeople to leave the village of Anqoun and the area of Aarnaya,onthe edge of the predominantly Christiancommunity of Maghdoucheh, near thesouthern port city of Sidon.

Nearly threehours after the warning, Israeliwarplanes struck Lebanesevillages, including Anqoun. About 2,500 people displaced by the fighting were sheltering in Anqoun, the Lebanese news agency NNA reported.

Israelhad warnedLebanese residentsagainst returning to villages in thesouth, saying thearea is still acombat zone.

The U.S.brokered the ceasefire agreement Wednesday in Washington. Thedeal sought to pullLebanon away from Iran with astatement that anyagreementtocease hostilitiesmust be reacheddirectly through Lebanon and Israel “and not through any separate track.”

LebaneseParliament Speaker Nabih Berri, aHezbollahally who hasbeen actingasa mediator on behalf of the group, echoed the militants’ demands for abroadIsraeli withdrawal. In his first comments since theagreement was announced, Berri said theceasefire should be “complete and comprehensive,” without any exceptions for land, sea or air,and “without bulldozing and demolishing everything thatexists.”

Senate blocks extendingkey surveillance programusedbyintelligenceagencies

BY JOEY CAPPELLETTI Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Senate blockedanextensionearly Friday of akey surveillance program used by U.S. intelligence agenciesasconcerns mounted overPresident Donald Trump’sselection of federal housing finance regulator Bill Pulte to serve as director of national intelligence. Some Republicans joined Democrats in the 47-52 vote against aprocedural motion that would have set up afinal vote on the extension next week,complicatingefforts to extend the critical program before it expireson June 12. The vote came after an overnight sessionon separate legislation funding immigration enforcement agencies.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said following thevote that the Senate “will takeanother run at it” next week butthat Democrats’ opposition is a“terribly irresponsible position.”

“The naming of Pulteto that position,although the timing arguablywasn’tthe best,Istill don’tthink it oughttoderail something that’sthis important,” Thune said.

The vote marked the latest setback for Trump and intelligence officials, who have spent months pushing to extenda key provision of theForeignIntelligence Surveillance Act that allows agencies such as theCIA, National Security Agency and FBI to collect communicationsfrom foreigntargets withoutawarrant. Concernsthatthe program

can incidentally sweep up Americans’ communications left Republican leaders only able to passshort-term extensions while negotiations continued. Critics wanted a warrantrequirement when thosecommunications are accessed.

SevenRepublicansenatorsjoined nearly all Democrats in voting against the bill, with Sen. John Fetterman voting for it Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democratonthe Senate Intelligence Committeewho had worked to negotiate the bill, voted against it. He said earlier Thursdaythat he and committee Chair Sen. Tom Cotton hadreached what he describedasa “compromise” on a“strong bill,” but that the “completeirresponsibility of puttingforward” Pultehad changed the equation.

Military says it shot down Iraniandrones

Weaponswere launched toward Strait of Hormuz

BY MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press

CHIPPEWAFALLS,Wis.—

TheU.S military said it shotdown four Iranian drones that were launched toward the Strait of Hormuz on Fridayand then struck some of theIslamic Republic’scoastal surveillance radar sites in response, raising the risk to ashaky ceasefire as the Trump administrationrampsup pressure on Iran.

“The attack drones posed an immediate threat to regional maritime traffic,” U.S. Central Command said on social media. The military is enforcing a blockadeonIranianports in response to Tehran’schokehold on the crucial corridor for globaloil andnaturalgas shipments, which hassent energy prices spiking and posed political problems for President Donald Trump’sRepublican Party ahead of themidtermcongressional elections.

U.S. Central Commandsaid it hit the radar sites, including an island in the strait, “to defend against further attacks.”

It was the latest in back-andforth attacks that have strained the tenuous ceasefire in the war and efforts to reach adeal to extend that truce. Earlier this week,Iranian drones heavily damaged apassenger terminal at Kuwait’smain airport, killing one person,wounding dozens and briefly closing the airfield.

Despitethe attacksraising newconcerns that the ceasefire could collapse,Trump told reporters Friday that “the situation with Iran seems to be going quite well.”

“We’re going to come out of Iran very quickly and it’sgoing to be very strong one way

or theother,whether it’s a piece of paper or the very tough way,”Trump said at an event with farmers in Wisconsin. “The very tough wayismaybe the easier way,but we’re going to come out, and your fertilizer prices aregoing to go way down, just like they were four months ago.”

Trumpincreasingly appears to be boxed in on aconflict that has settled into aholdingpattern U.S. and Iranian negotiators reached atentative agreement aweek ago to extend the ceasefire by 60 days andstartanew round of talks on Iran’snuclear program.But Trumphas called for unspecified changes and Iranian officials have shown no public signs of signing off on the deal.

Asked on Friday whyitwas taking so long, Trump told NBC’s“Meet the Press” it was because “it’savery hard thing forthem,” citing their “great independence” and the fact that “they’re strong, they’re proud.”

“There arethings they never thought they’d be doing that they’re going to have to do. They’ve got no choice, and it takes alittle while,” he said in the interview

Trumpsaid theIranians still have 21%to22% of their missiles.

His administration also has touted the latest ceasefire agreed to this week by the Lebanesegovernment andIsrael after U.S.-brokered talks in Washington. However,the Iranian-backed Hezbollahmilitant group has rejected the agreementand new attacks have put it at further risk.

Besides the drone interception in the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. military said earlier Fridaythatits forces boarded asanctioned oil tanker linked to Iran in the Indian Ocean as the United States seeks to prevent Iran from profiting off its oil and other goods.

The U.S. also targeted Iran’s energy sector with new sanctions on agroup of people, firms and tankers.

ASSOCIATED PRESS HUSSEIN MALLA

Lebanese soldiersdeployata road in front of destroyed houses in Dibbine village, southeast Lebanon on Friday,a dayafter Israeli forces withdrewfollowing clashes with

Well, with that Gulf lowmovinginland today, the

moisture is

Expect apartlytomostly cloudy, warmand windyday with scattered showers and thunderstorms.There’s only a40% chance of rain in the forecast, but we’reall under amarginal risk of excessive rainfall that couldlead to somemeasure of flash flooding today. Temperatures this afternoon will riseinto the mid- to upper 80s. Partly cloudyskies with isolated showers and afew thunderstorms will be back tomorrow.

President’stroop reversals in Europe couldcostmillions

Soldiers havebeen left in limbo

BY EMMA BURROWS, BEN FINLEY and KONSTANTIN TOROPIN Associated Press

WASHINGTON— The U.S. military is waiting for clarity from the Pentagon following President Donald Trump’sback-and-forth on troop levels in Europe, upendingthe lives of military personnel and potentially costing taxpayers millions of dollars, two U.S. defense officials told The Associated Press. NATO allies were bewilderedin May when Trump said he would send 5,000 U.S. troops to Poland just weeks after ordering the same number pulled from Europe, following aspat with Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the Iran war.The Trump administration says troop reductions in Europe have long been planned and coordinated with allies.

The Republican president announced on social mediatwo weeks ago that he was sending troops to Poland —the same day thePentagon had officially ordered the cancellation of arotation of soldiers heading there, one of the defense officials said.

The unit’sequipment was already on the way.Sending it costthe military $32 million, said U.S. Transportation Command, the militaryagency largely responsiblefor moving troops and gear across the globe

The abrupt changesare forcing the military to “retroactively engineer” apolicy in line with the president’slatest pronouncement, theofficialsaid. Bothofficials were briefed on the decisions and, along with others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters. The uncertaintyisnot onlyrattling European allies worried about the message being sent to Russia, but it also risks hurting morale among American troops— some of whom had their rotations canceled shortly before departure —and comes as the Armybudget is already strained.

Changesadd up

The rotational deployment to Poland of 4,000troops from the Army’s2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1stCavalryDivision, based in Fort Hood, Texas, was canceled in amemo sent tothe military at the beginning of May.European allies found outmid-month.

Some of thosetroopswere told shortly before traveling not to get on aflight to Poland, while those who had been sent ahead —initially around 1,000 troops —are still waitingfor confirmation they are being sent back, aU.S.military official said The militaryalsoisstill waiting for details from the Pentagon on how to satisfy Trump’sorderto send 5,000 troops to Poland, that official said.The working assumption is that they will come from unitsalready in Europe, rather than an additional deployment from theU.S., theofficial said.

U.S. Transportation Command had chartered ashiptotakethe team’sequipment from Texas to Poland and transport adeparting unit’s gear back toAmerica. The incomingteam’sportion of the cost was $32 million, including chartering the ship and loading and unloadingthe gear Because theship was chartered

to take one unit to Europe and bring another back, it is hard to sayifthat amount would have been savedhad the decision to halt the deployment beenmade before thenew team had already begun moving overseas. However,the militaryofficial said theunscheduled moveofpersonnel andequipment back from Europe is mostlikely not acostthe Pentagonbudgeted forand would be an additional expense. Total costs of canceling the rotation arehard to quantify because of manyfactors, saidJoe Costa, aformer senior Pentagon official whonow focuses on challenges faced by the U.S. militaryasdirector of theAtlantic Council’s ForwardDefense program. Theymost likely stemfrom returning equipment and troops sent aheadofthe deployment and would probably be on the low end of the rotation’soverall cost,Costa said. The greater impact is on thereadinessoftroops who were trained for one mission andmay be deployed on another,hesaid. U.S.military contracts with private companies to transport troops and equipmentcontain cancellation clauses that often add extra fees if adeployment is called off, said John Deni, asenior nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council who has studied such costs.

Trumpcalls formilitary to accelerate useofAI

BY BEN FINLEY Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump issued amemo Friday that calls for the U.S. military and national security agencies to accelerate their use of artificial intelligence, while acknowledging the need to protect civil liberties and maintain oversight over autonomousweapon systems. The memo comes at atime of growinganxiety over AI in American society, fromreplacing people’s jobstohelping to identify targetsonthe battlefield. The Trumpadministration hasbeenpushingtounleash the power of AI forthe U.S. military, while some military leaders and companies that contract with the Pentagon have been noting caution and calling forguardrails.

Trump’smemo addressed much of his Cabinet, including the secretaries of defense and homeland security as wellasthe attorney general and director of national intelligence.

Trump is requiring an updated directive on autonomous weapon systems to account forAI’srapidly evolvingcapabilities. It directs the DepartmentofDefense “to ensure the deliberate adoption of AI systems that respect the chainofcommand and operational authorities.”

The current directive, issued in 2023 under the Biden administration, states that such weapons systems will be designed“to allowcommanders andoperators to exercise appropriate levels of humanjudgment over the use of force,” according to the Congressional Research Service.

Trump’smemoalso restricts the use of AI to “censor free speech, embed ideological bias, or conduct unlawfulsurveillance against the American people.”

“The useofAIbythe national security enterprise must always be consistent with United States civil liberties andprotections affordedbythe Constitutionand laws and regulations safeguarding the privacy of American citizens,”the memo states.

The Defense Department has already been accelerating its use

of AI in recentyears. Thetechnologycan help reduce the time it takes to identifyand strike atarget, while aiding in the mundane tasks of organizing equipment maintenance, supply linesand other logistics.

But concerns about protecting civil liberties and human oversight of autonomous weapon systems have drawnincreasing attention. They’re at the center of adispute that erupted this year as the Pentagon seeks to leverage the power of American tech companies to boost the military’s AI capabilities. The companyAnthropic said it wanted assurances in itscontract that the military would notuse its technology in fully autonomous weapons and the surveillance of Americans. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth saidthe company must allowfor anyusesthe Pentagon deemed lawful.

Anthropic sued after Trump tried to stop allfederal agencies from using the company’schatbot Claude and Hegseth sought to label the company asupply chain risk, adesignation meanttoprotect against sabotage of national security systemsbyforeign adversaries. Concerns about military use of AI arose during Israel’swar against militants in Gaza and Lebanon, with U.S. tech giants quietly empowering Israel to track targets. But the numberofcivilians killedalso soared,fueling fears that these tools contributed to the deaths of innocent people.

U.S. military leaders who attended an annualspecial forces conferenceinTampa, Florida,spoke about the benefits of AI as well as theneed forhuman safeguards.

Adm. FrankBradley,head of U.S. Special OperationsCommand, told attendees that troops “havetobeverycarefulabout howwecometo(AI’s)employmentand its inspiration into the delivery of lethality.”

Bradleysaidhecan see afuture where AI determines what targets to hitbut that “we, as humans,havetohave theconfidence that it’sgoing to deliver violence only where we intend it to be delivered.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By AHN yOUNG-JOON U.S. Army armoredvehicles participate in amilitaryexercise. President Donald Trump’sback-and-forth on troop levels in Europehas left military personnel waiting forconfirmation on deployment.

SoLAcc chancellor receives award

June recognized for impact on Acadiana workforce growth

BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer

South Louisiana Community Col-

lege Chancellor Vincent June has been named the 2026 recipient of the Difference Maker Award, presented by Studer Education at its Destination High Performance

Higher Education Leadership Conference in Pensacola Beach, Florida.

The award recognizes higher education leaders who demonstrate strong professional and personal values while achieving measurable success within their organizations and communities, according

to a news release from SoLAcc. June was recognized for expanding the college’s academic and workforce training programs, strengthening partnerships with industry and advancing efforts to align education with regional workforce needs. According to the college, an inde-

pendent economic impact study found that one out of every 97 jobs in Acadiana is supported by SoLAcc and its graduates.

The study also found the college generates more than $13 in societal return for every $1 invested.

Studer Education CEO Janet Pilcher said June’s leadership has helped position the college as a key contributor to workforce development and economic growth in the Acadiana region.

“A college is only as good as its leader, and Dr June’s vision for South Louisiana Community College has been both intentional

A NET OF GRATITUDE

ABOVE: Patient Kaiden Jacobs, 7, shoots at a basket held by player De’Vion Lavergne with the other members of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette men’s basketball team during their visit with young patients at Our Lady of Lourdes Women’s & Children’s Hospital in Lafayette on Thursday. RIGHT: Westley Duhon, 5, plays with a light strip with the members of the UL men’s basketball team on Thursday STAFF PHOTOS By BRAD KEMP

BY COURTNEY PEDERSEN Staff writer

Crowley man accused of shooting at police

BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer

A Crowley man was arrested after authorities said he shot at Eunice police officers and led them on a chase from St. Landry Parish into Acadia Parish following a series of violent crimes.

Dusty Johnson, 35, is charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, armed robbery, carjacking, simple arson, two counts of hit-and-run driving, simple criminal damage

to property, attempted aggravated kidnapping, aggravated flight from an officer and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

According to Louisiana State Police, Johnson drove a Chevrolet Trax to a home in Eunice, where he allegedly threatened a homeowner with a gun, attempted to kidnap the victim and stole a 2019 GMC Sierra pickup truck.

Investigators said Johnson later went to a gas station and fired shots at a person in the parking lot, striking the victim’s vehicle. He then returned to the Eunice

residence, crashed into a vehicle parked in the driveway and intentionally set the Chevrolet Trax on fire, according to state police.

When Eunice police officers responded, Johnson allegedly opened fire on them. Officers returned fire, striking Johnson before he fled in the stolen pickup truck, authorities said.

The pursuit continued into Acadia Parish, where Johnson allegedly struck another vehicle before crashing near the intersection of North Parkerson Avenue and Odd Fellows Road in

Crowley Johnson was taken into custody and transported to a hospital with injuries that were not considered life-threatening. He was later booked into the St. Landry Parish Jail after being released. Louisiana State Police detectives continue to investigate the officer-involved shooting involving officers from the Eunice Police Department, the Acadia Parish Sheriff’s Office and Louisiana State Police. The investigation remains ongoing.

BY BRIAN McCALLUM Staff writer

The Louisiana Bureau of Investigation has arrested two Shreveport women suspected of Medicaid and SNAP fraud amounting to more than $150,000. Tanesha Bowman, 39, of Shreveport, was arrested Wednesday and faces eight counts of govern-

ment benefits fraud along with seven counts of unauthorized use of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, according to the office of Attorney General Liz Murrill. Juleah Seazer, 33, also of Shreveport, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of government benefits fraud, trespass against state computers, filing or main-

taining false public records and malfeasance in office. An employee

Gumball3000celebrity carrally coming to NewOrleans

Convoy travels from Miamito Mexico City

BY DOUG MacCASH Staff writer

Aconvoy of 100 special automobiles driven by well-knownactors, athletes and pop music artists has left Miami for a3,000-mile road trip to Mexico City with astop in New Orleans this weekend.

In the midst of the journey the fleet of street-legal sports cars, antique racers and other specialty vehicles, will pause in the French Quarter,for apublic exhibition.

Theannual charity event, known as the Gumball 3000, is in its 27th year,founded by Maximillion Cooper known as Mr.Gumball

The long-distance drive was inspired in part by American-style unregulated Cannonball runs, in which old-fashioned gumball machines were awardedas prizes, according to online sources. Gumball 3000 organizers are quick to point out that the current event is a rally,not arace.

Gumball 3000 rallies have takenplace in Europe, Africa, Asia and the MiddleEast, as well as North America

Continued from page 1B

Public Information Officer

Katie Harrington said. “By bringing these services together under asingle provider,the city can improve efficiency,streamlineadministration, enhance the user experience for residents and reduce the need to manage multiple separate contracts and systems.”

The redesigned website has many new tools that were created with afocus on user experience, according to anews release. The site features quick links with graphics as well as a “How CanI?” section that works to connect residents to any direct information they might need.

“Residents can also create personalized profiles and set preferences for the typesof information they want to see first when logging in,” the news release states. “Users may additionally subscribe to receive news flashes and updates directly to their inbox or mobile device.”

The site also has avirtual assistant named Charlie that is meant to answer questions as well as lead the city’sresidents to the right information and services.

TheONELC Action Line app is the city’sfirst app.

“In recent years, the Lake CharlesPoliceDepartment launched the Lake Charles PD app; however,its scope is limitedtopublicsafety information and services,” Harrington said.

The Action Line app gives access to city servicesand

This year’scelebrity drivers include formerNew Orleans Saints tightend Jimmy Graham, Cooper’swifeand rapper Eve, actor Michelle Rodriguezofthe “Fast & Furious”movie franchise, electronic dance musicicon deadmau5, soccer star Patrice Evra,Nigerian graffiti

allows users to receive information as well as away to report issues or concernsto the Mayor’sAction Line directly through the integrated SeeClickFixplatform, accordingtoHarrington

The Mayor’sAction Line is also available through the website.

“Using the platform, residentscan pinanexactlocation on amap and upload photoswith their submission,” the release states.

“Requestsare then routed directly to the appropriate department for response and resolution.” These digitaloptions complement the existing Mayor’sActionLine phone number, (337) 491-1346, and email address, mayorsactionline@cityoflc.us.

Harrington said that overall theproject cost atotal of $97,243.95, which was funded through resources that were allocated for “technology infrastructure upgrades and modernization efforts.”

The components included in theprice were the design and implementation of the new website; SeeClickFix, which includes 311/Mayor’s ActionLine platform and mobile app;CivicClerk, which manages the meetings,agendas and minutes

LOTTERY

THURSDAY, JUNE 4, 2026

PICK 3: 0-7-3

PICK 4: 6-2-8-0

PICK 5: 6-2-6-3-8 Unofficial notification, keep your tickets.

artist Olaolu Slawn andothers.

Before reaching New OrleansonSaturday afternoon, the2027Gumball 3000 run plans alunchtime stopin Gulfport, Mississippi.

The carswill assemble on Bourbon Street and Canal Street —noexact location

provided —at6 p.m.with live music and guestappearances from 9p.m. through 11 p.m.

The event has apermit from thecityand is welcome in the Quarter,New Orleans Police Department Chief Anne Kirkpatricksaidthis week.

forboardsand councils; the emergency notification system; support forstafftraining andimplementation, anda48-month redesign and refresh to keep the site current.

“Byredesigning our website withthe resident in mind, we have made it easier andmore efficient to find information on City services and resources,” Mayor Marshall Simien saidinthe release. “The ONELC Action Line app and ONE Lake Charles Alerts will also helpuscommunicate directly with residents, keep-

ingtheminformed notonly during emergencies,but also withtimely updatesto City services andprojects.I encourage everyonetovisit thewebsite and subscribe to these services through the links on ourhomepage.”

According to Harrington, theproject,which took around six months, wastaken on forseveral reasons. While the citywas alreadyinthe processofexploring websiteoptions, its longtimewebsiteprovider CORE was discontinuing its websitemanagement platform on Dec. 31, meaning

The celebrity caravan is expected to reach Mexico CityonJune 10 in time for the start of the FIFAWorld Cup 26 soccer championship.

Email Doug MacCashat dmaccash@theadvocate. com.

anew provider wasneeded to continue the city’s online services.

Another reason the project was necessary is because the U.S. Department of Justice updated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act,which now requires state andlocal government websitesand apps to be accessible to those with disabilities and to comply with WebContent Accessibility Guidelines(WCAG) 2.1, Level AA standards. Harrington said newwebsiteand appwere designed with the new ac-

Continued from page1B

andimpactful,” said Lana Fontenot, the college’svice chancellor for institutional advancementand external relations. “He has strengthened ourconnectiontothe communitiesweserve and positionedthe college as a leader in workforce development.”

In April, June was awarded theE.JosephSavoie ChiefExecutive Leadership Award fromDistrict IV of the Council for Advancement andSupportof Education, which represents institutionsacross Arkansas, Louisiana,Texas, New Mexicoand Oklahoma. That awardrecognizes outstanding college and university leaders who demonstrate exceptional vision,inspire others and elevate the role of education through innovation and advancement, according to anewsrelease from SoLAcc. It is one of the highest honors presented by the organization.

June wasselected for his forward-thinking leadership andhis commitment to strengthening SoLAcc’s impact acrossAcadiana, aligning the college’smission with the evolving needs of students, employersand communities, according to the release.

cessibility requirementsin mind and that the city will keep working toward full compliance before the federal deadline

“Finally,Mayor Simien has emphasized transparency,accessibility,and customer serviceaskey prioritiesofhis administration,” Harrington said.“Thenew website and mobile application provideresidents with easier access to city information, services, public meetings, notifications and issue reporting tools through amodern, userfriendly platform.”

PHOTO PROVIDED By GUMBALL3000

The international Gumball 3000 road rally gets underway in Toronto.

BRIEFS

FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

Tech sell-off drags U.S stock market

The U.S. stock market had its worst day since October Friday as a sell-off in big technology companies weighed down the broader market and a strong jobs report boosted expectations that the Federal Reserve will be forced to hike interest rates at some point this year Tech stocks dragged the broader market lower as companies that had powered the S&P 500 to a series of records the past two months saw losses. Nvidia fell 6.2%, Broadcom dropped 7.9% and Micron Technology slid 13.3% for the biggest loss among stocks in the S&P 500. Shares in Meta fell 5.5% following a published report that the social media giant may seek to do a new stock offering to raise funds for spending on AI infrastructure.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 200.57 points to 7,383.74 on Friday The Dow dropped 695.15 points to 50,866.78, and the Nasdaq lost 1,121.53 points to close at 25,709.43. Markets were mixed in Europe after markets in Asia fell.

Anthropic

urges ‘pause’ in AI development

Anthropic is proposing that the world’s top artificial intelligence companies come up with a coordinated way to pause development of advanced AI systems, warning the technology is improving so quickly there’s a risk humans would lose control.

The company behind the Claude chatbot said in a blog post Thursday that as cutting-edge AI gets increasingly faster at carrying out tasks, “it would be good for the world to have the option to slow or temporarily pause” its development.

Anthropic’s post comes as the company and ChatGPT-maker OpenAI race to sell shares on the stock market, in an IPO that could value Anthropic at nearly a trillion dollars.

Papernot notified Canadian cybersecurity authorities prior to releasing his report, which shows how researchers developed the worm in a laboratory by using an “open-source” AI tool that is easy for software developers to cheaply access and modify

Anthropic’s post comes after a different warning this week from a team of researchers at the University of Toronto who showed how AI tools could be used to create a new kind of AI “worm” that adapts its hacking strategy as it spreads from device to device and takes over a vast computing network.

“I think it’s really important that people understand that it’s not just the biggest, most powerful language models that pose the security concerns,” lead researcher Nicolas Papernot said in an interview Papernot agreed that there should be more collaboration between companies, government agencies and academic researchers to develop countermeasures as AIpowered hacking tools supercharge the search for computer vulnerabilities.

Micronuclear reactor

reaches critical milestone

WASHINGTON — The Energy Department says a small nuclear reactor under development at a national lab has reached a crucial milestone that could allow it to produce electricity within a few years.

The microreactor being developed by Antares Nuclear Inc. at the Idaho National Lab reached “criticality” on Thursday Energy Secretary Chris Wright said The milestone occurs when a nuclear reactor achieves a self-sustaining chain reaction capable of producing a steady release of energy.

Antares is the first private company to bring an advanced reactor to criticality under a pilot program begun last year by the Trump administration meant to supercharge nuclear energy production in the U.S. The demonstration was conducted in partnership with the Energy Department and other contractors with support from the U.S Army While the Antares system is years away from commercial use, achieving criticality is a notable step

The Trump administration has set a goal of achieving the criticality milestone in at least three test reactors by July 4 the nation’s 250th anniversary

BUSINESS

THEADVOCATE.COM/news/business

U.S. job market strong, but suffering

Americans face rising costs from the Iran war

BY PAUL WISEMAN and ANNE D’INNOCENZIO AP business writers

WASHINGTON The American job market continues to show surprising strength — good news for President Donald Trump who has taken a beating in the polls over the surging gasoline prices that followed U.S and Israeli attacks on Iran

Employers added 172,000 jobs in May roughly double what forecasters had expected — and the unemployment rate remained at a low 4.3%, the Labor Department reported Friday

Job growth was down slightly last month from a revised 179,000 in April.

Hiring has bounced back this year from a miserable 2025, showing resilience in the face of economic uncertainty and painfully high energy prices since the Iran war started in late February

The job gains are broad-based.

Local governments added 55,000 workers, restaurants and bars 48,000, healthcare companies 35,000.

In another sign of job market strength, Labor Department revisions added a combined

93,000 jobs in March and April.

Job growth averaged 188,000 a month from March through May, marking the best three months of hiring since early 2024.

“The hiring recession is over American firms are hiring again,” said Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. “The job rebound is happening in almost every industry This is encouraging news for job seekers and for the U.S. economy The labor market has stabilized and is showing early signs of a genuine rebound.”

Polls show that Trump’s approval rating on the economy is falling sharply after being reelected largely on the promise of taming inflation.

And despite the pickup in hiring, wage gains were modest. Average hourly wages rose 0.3% from April and 3.4% from May 2025.

With just five months to go before consequential midterm elections in the U.S., Americans have grown increasingly frustrated by rising costs, and it’s unclear if the strong job numbers this year will change their gloomy view of the economy Inflation data last week showed that in addition to gasoline, prices for groceries, clothing and electricity are also on the rise, indicating that inflation may be growing more entrenched.

Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge draws limited interest

Two corporations bid on a handful of oil and gas lease sales

BY BECKY BOHRER Associated Press

JUNEAU, Alaska Two corporations bid on a handful of leases during the latest oil and gas lease sale in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on Friday a showing critics described as tepid but one that further opens the door to possible development in the pristine region.

The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, a state corporation that already has leases in the refuge’s coastal plain, had the winning bid on three tracts and Hex Energy LLC on two, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced. The tracts cover about 72,000 acres. Nearly 690,000 acres had been offered. Winning bids totaled $3.7 million The federal agency’s state director, Kevin Pendergast, said a “new era of active leasing and exploration is just beginning to unfold.”

While there is no active drilling underway, the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority’s board last month authorized additional spending for a efforts including a seismic survey program aimed at locating oil formations, as well as lease purchases in this latest sale. A message seeking comment from Hex Energy was not immediately returned.

Opponents of drilling in the refuge’s coastal plain have pointed to a lack of industry interest in the prior two sales held there and ongoing changes in Alaska’s arctic region due to climate change as proof the region should be off-limits to drilling. There is pending litigation over the leasing program, dating to President Donald Trump’s first term.

The Gwich’in consider the coastal plain sacred because the caribou herd they rely upon calve there. The Gwich’in people’s reliance on the coastal plain “will be irreversibly damaged if it is disturbed,” Karlas Norman, first chief of the Venetie Village Council, said in a statement. “Even though we saw minimal bids, we will not rest until this sacred place is permanently protected for our children and for generations yet to come.”

But supporters of development see the coastal plain, which is roughly the size of Del-

BY ALEX HALVERSON

The Seattle Times (TNS)

For the first time in its three decades-plus history, Amazon is now No. 1 on the Fortune 500 list. The Seattle-based tech giant knocked Walmart down to No. 2, ending the Arkansas-based retailer’s 13-year reign on top. The list ranks 500 of the largest American corporations by revenue each year and only four companies have ever held the top spot since Fortune began publishing it in 1955: Amazon, Exxon Mobil, General Motors and Walmart. Though Amazon and Walmart are retail competitors, vying for hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue each year, Amazon also has its cloud-computing division, Amazon Web Services, that brings in billions in sales as well. Amazon reported $717 billion in

aware, as a potential untapped resource that could boost U.S. oil production and generate new revenue and jobs. Voice of the Arctic Iñupiat, an advocacy group whose members include leaders from Alaska Native communities on the North Slope, hailed the sale a success. A statement from the group said the sale represented “the culmination of decades of advocacy by North Slope Iñupiat leaders, in particular leaders from Kaktovik, for their right to self-determination on their homelands, including responsible exploration and development.” Kaktovik is the only community within the refuge.

“The Trump-Vance administration is doing the right thing by advancing policies, including those that permitted the sale, supported by our community,” Kaktovik Mayor Nathan Gordon Jr said in the statement.

The Trump administration has taken a keen interest in Alaska, and his tax and spending bill passed by Congress last year included provisions mandating lease sales in three regions of the state. In addition to the refuge’s coastal plain, leases have also been offered in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and in Cook Inlet, an aging basin that has provided

revenue for 2025, with AWS sales accounting for $129 billion of that. Walmart’s 2025 revenue came in near $713 billion. Despite seesaw tariff policies over the past year that have weakened consumer sentiment, retail sales for Amazon and Walmart showed steady growth each quarter But Amazon’s cloud revenue is growing faster than the company’s retail revenue. In 2025, AWS showed 20% sales growth year over year, double what the North American retail division reported. That trend is continuing this year, as AWS sales grew 28% in the first quarter year over year while retail sales in North America grew 12%. Amazon dethroned Walmart based on last year’s revenue, the same year it kicked off a wave of layoffs. From October through January, Amazon ended the em-

natural gas for Alaska’s most populous region for decades.

There were no takers in the Cook Inlet auction in March. But there were hundreds of bids, including from major oil companies, for what was the first sale since 2019 in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska despite pending litigation challenging the leasing program. The Trump administration has moved to open more lands to drilling in the reserve and rolled back protections there. The petroleum reserve is where ConocoPhillips Alaska is developing the large Willow oil project.

On Alaska’s vast, petroleum-rich North Slope, the major oil fields of Prudhoe Bay and Kuparuk lie between the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The arctic refuge’s coastal plain could contain 4.25 billion to 11.8 billion barrels of recoverable oil, according to U.S. Geological Survey estimates, but there is limited information about the amount and quality of oil.

The coastal plain, bordering the Beaufort Sea in northeast Alaska, features rolling hills and tundra and provides habitat for wildlife including musk oxen and migratory birds.

ployment of 30,000 workers in a bid to reduce the number of managers throughout the company. While Amazon is pouring billions of dollars into artificial intelligence, the company maintains job-cutting isn’t to offset the capital expenses, but rather part of CEO Andy Jassy’s fight against bureaucracy Further down Fortune 500’s list were more examples of the incongruity between tech’s financial health and the waves of layoffs in the industry Microsoft, which laid off 15,000 employees last year, reached its highest ranking at No. 11, climbing three spots from last year The company reported $281.7 billion in revenue in 2025, a 15% increase from 2024. Meta, which has undergone multiple waves of layoffs last year and this year climbed five spots from last year to No. 17, its highest rank-

ing ever The company’s reported $2.16 billion in revenue in 2025 was a 22% year-over-year increase. Other Seattle-area companies high on the list were Costco at No. 13, one spot down from last year and Boeing at No. 47, which climbed 16 spots. Costco’s modest revenue growth may be the reason companies, including Microsoft, leapfrogged it on the list. Costco reported $2.75 billion in sales last year, up 8.2% from 2024.

Boeing’s rise up the ranks was due to increased airplane production, after a rough year in 2024. The company’s revenue in 2024 suffered due to a midair fuselage blowout early in the year and a Machinists strike later in the year The aerospace giant also sold one of

business units, Jeppesen, at the end of 2025, which contributed to

tal revenue for the year

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By LINDSEy WASSON

The Kaktovik Lagoon and the Brooks Range mountains of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge are seen in Kaktovik, Alaska

OPINION

America’s150th birthday marked acalmbetween twostorms

On Sunday,July 4, 1926,America marked its 150th birthday.Itcame during aperiodofcalmbetween two storms of history, not long afterWorld WarIand shortly beforethe GreatDepression. That year,the U.S. economy boomed, and cities swelled. Auto travel, consumerism, technology and business expansion defined theera.Though the “Roaring Twenties” wouldcrash three yearslater, IndependenceDay in 1926 was still amomenttolook back, reflectand celebrate

The main event on Independence Day was the SesquicentennialExposition in Philadelphia, where PresidentCalvin Coolidge, the only U.S. president bornon the Fourth of July,reaffirmed America’s founding principlesina speech

“It was notbecause[the Declarationof Independence] was proposedtoestablishanew nation, but because it was proposedtoestablish anationonnew principles, that July 4th, 1776, hascometoberegarded as one of the greatest days in history,”saidthe normally reticent president. “Welive in an age of scienceand of aboundingaccumulationofmaterial things. Thesedid not create our Declaration. Our Declaration created them. The things of the spirit come first.” Coolidge firmlycast the American Revolutionasa breakthrough based on fundamentally conservative precepts to secure God-givenliberties.Hecontrasteditwith fomentingviolent unrest abroad.

Beyond speeches, the Philadelphia expositioncelebratedthe Fourth in sundry ways: an 80-foot replicaof the Liberty Bell with 26,000 lights, an amusement park, religious ceremonies, a“Freedom” pageant, baseball games and golf tournaments. Anew bridge spanning the Delaware River between Philadelphia and Camden, New Jersey,helped moved the crowds

The sail-powered USS Constellation,built in 1854, was anchored in the SchuylkillRiverfor public viewing. A300acre military encampment showcasedthe nation’s latest weaponry,while veterans from the CivilWar,the SpanishAmerican Warand World WarI held convivialreunions. Humorist and writer CoreyFordcapturedNew York’s Independence Day paradein Vanity Fair: “Hours before theparadeisdue, the crowds along the curb have swollen totruly gigantic proportions, lining the street onboth sides for blocks, milling and shoving and indulging freely infistfights in the gutter.Peopleare besidethemselves with excitement, waving small Americanflags andblowinghorns …asight that they will neverforget.”

Not everyparade float was built to thrill, however,as some bore numbingtitles like “Post-War Conditions in the Linoleum Business” and“The Sister Spirits of Osmosis andCapillary Attraction.” Mardi Gras, it wasn’t.

In NewOrleans, an early evening showbyHarry Mendelson’sConcert Band was held in City Park, alongwith an address by federal clerkof court A. DallamO’Brien Jr.and areading of the Declaration byMrs. Rene Salomon. In addition to usual picnic fare,there weresteaming pots of gumbo and jambalaya, with dancing, film screenings and fireworkstofinish.

Louisiana’sgovernor in 1926 was HenryL.Fuqua, one of the state’sfour chief executiveswho woulddie in office. Before seeking the governorship, Fuqua owneda large hardware store in Baton Rouge and later managed theLouisiana State Penitentiary atAngola Arthur J. O’Keefe was mayor of New Orleans. Abusinessman, he previously servedasthe city’scommissioner for public finance.Heassumed the office upon the death of Mayor MartinBehrman. Afew yearsafter taking office, O’Keefe resigned for health reasons. O’Keefe was the grandfather offormer stateSenate President MichaelH.O’Keefe and great-grandfatherof former LSU Chancellor andNASA administration Sean O’Keefe.

In Baton Rouge, Wade Bynum was mayor. He would become the longest serving mayorofLouisiana’scapital city,holding office in two stretchestotaling 24 years. In 1926, WBNO andWJBWradiobegan broadcasting in New Orleans, the State PalaceTheatre was built and Tulane Stadium opened. In Baton Rouge, LSU’snew campuswas dedicated. Like other milestone birthdays, the nation’s sesquicentennialreflectedthe times, the progress thathad been made and the challenges ahead.

As Satchel Paige, who coincidentally beganhis professional pitching career that year, asked, “How oldwould you be if you didn’tknow how old you are?”

That’swhy we celebratethe milestones.

This column is third in aseries about America’s milestone birthdays,asweheadtoward the250thJuly 4. Ron Faucheux is anonpartisanpoliticalanalyst, pollster andwriter based in Louisiana.

Newspaper’seditorial

opinions should stay

thecourseonCoastal Master Plan,science

For nearly adecade, the newspaper’s editorial board has been remarkably consistent: pro-Coastal Master Plan, pro-science, pro-CPRAindependence, pro-sediment diversion and increasingly alarmed at the political shortcircuiting of the planning process.

The headline “La. should redouble coastal protection efforts” suggested continuity with that record.The substance did not. Iread with profound disappointment an editorial offering volunteersbagging oyster shells as the antidote to studies calling for wholesale community relocation.

Volunteerism is an important way to build public understanding and support; oyster-shell recycling is a common-sense practice, but it will not save us. To fallback on volunteerism when Louisiana built the nation-leading, unanimously supportedprogram designedtoharness theMississippi River’sown land-building power? That is acop-out.

Three months ago, theeditorial, “Don’t let coastal progressslip away” warned against accepting smaller projects as consolation for the canceled

Notsoeasyfor

Mid-Barataria andMid-Breton sediment diversions, calling it evidence of “how far off track we’ve gone.” In April, theboard insisted policymakers use“harddata, not political pressure to guide spending. This latesteditorial says nothing about either canceled diversion. Nothing about theCoastal Master Plan unanimously approved in 2023. Nothing about the half-billiondollars already spent on Mid-Barataria.

This newspaper once fieldeda deep bench of journalists who coveredthis challenge with the rigor it demands. That reporting wasitself the rebuttal to alarmist studies andhand-wringing about whether saving these communities was worth it. Iknow; Iwas the program officer overseeing national foundation investmentinthat work.

“Let’sget to work” is the right call. The workisthe science-based, scalematched Master Planthis board has championed for years —not aretreat intovolunteerism. Hold the state,and yourselves,tothatstandard.

KRISTINTRACZ NewOrleans

campstoswitchtosolar

Iamwriting in responsetothe May 7 letter related to camp electrical power The writer,Mike Norton, madeitsound so simple for thecamps to switch to solar power.The main issue here is the stateallowing the electric utilitytoabandon thecamps after providing power for decades.

The letter failed to mention the approximate$30,000 cost to each camp, let alone the potential that someone would steal their system. The utility should be madetopay,installand maintain these solar systemsascamp compensation.

ROBERT WEILER Destrehan

Electricityis notaluxury; it is abasic necessity

Electricity and gas bills are becoming too expensive for manyfamilies in our community.Every month, hardworking people are struggling to keep up with rising utility costs while also trying to pay rent, buy groceries and care fortheir families. For many households, the pressure is becoming overwhelming. Recently,myutility bill increased so much that it becamedifficult to manage other important expenses. Many people are now living in constant fear of disconnection notices or late payment fees. This situation affects senior citizens, low-incomefamilies and working individuals the most.

Electricity is not aluxury; it is abasic necessity.Families need power to cook, preserve food, stay safeduring extreme weather and support children with school activities. No one should have to choose between keeping the lights on and meeting other basic needs.

In case you haven’tnoticed, our democracy is being dismantled.

President Donald Trumpand his MAGA followers know they can’twin afair election because we Americans don’twant his Iran war,like we didn’t want him to tear down theEast Wing, like we don’twant his name on theKennedy Center and don’twant his ballroom, gold statues, arches and gilding of the WhiteHouse. He can’twin afair election because our prices are sky high, and he just said he doesn’tcare about the financial suffering of Americans: Hisagenda is all that matters, and the next gold statue of him, and his name on more of our nation’s monuments

It’ssickening that our politicians lack thecourage to stand up to his grandiosity. Andnow his faithful follower Gov Jeff Landry is doing allhecan to take away voting rightseventothe point of maneuvering, so the legitimately elected Calvin Duncan is deprived of theclerk’soffice. The axiom is clear: Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely Remember,Trump said we won’tneed to vote, just leave our future in his greedy reckless hands. If we want to save what’sleft of our democracy now is the timetoprotest these attacks and protect our right to vote.

JIM O’NEILL Metairie

Ibelieve utility companies and policymakers must work together to provide fairer rates, stronger consumer protections and expanded assistance programsfor struggling residents. There should also be moretransparency in billing and better communication with customers. Our communities deserve affordable and reliable energy services. Iencourage local leaders to listen to the concerns of residents and take meaningful action before morefamilies fall deeper into hardship.

KLAUS SAM NewOrleans

Ron Faucheux

A ‘Star’ is born?

Saints defender Sanker takes on more responsibilities in possible new role

BY MATTHEW PARAS Staff writer

As complex as his new position is, and as important as it is to the New Orleans Saints’ defensive scheme safety Jonas Sanker said playing the “Star” basically comes down to two simple ideas.

“Cover well,” Sanker said “But also tackle well.”

The Saints need a player who can do both. After losing cornerback Alontae Taylor in free agency, they believe Sanker — a second-year safety — is the man for the job.

Sanker will have to nail down the spot in training camp, but it is telling that throughout this offseason, the coaching staff has given the 23-year-old the first opportunity to see whether he could handle it Last year, Sanker unexpectedly emerged as a solid starting safety after veteran Julian Blackmon suffered a season-ending injury in Week 1 Blackmon himself was a late addition after Tyrann Mathieu’s surprising retirement.

The Saints trust that Sanker can handle the most important position in coordinator Brandon Staley’s defense.

It’s a spot that historically has been filled by some of the biggest names in football. Before Taylor whose performance earned him a three-year, $58 million contract from the Tennessee Titans — Staley relied on All-Pro safety Derwin James with the Los Angeles Chargers and All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey with the Los Angeles Rams. They were stars capable of handling the Star, which is Staley’s version of an inside cornerback Sanker has yet to reach that level of stardom, but excelling in the role could

help him get there.

“The toughest thing about Star is you’re a safety, you’re a corner or you’re a linebacker — maybe a (defensive) end — based on a call,” Saints safeties coach Terry Joseph said “It’s a lot of different jobs that you’ve got to be versed in to be a really good Star “And I think that’s where we’re at right now: We’re getting him up to speed of the different personalities based on the call.”

The complexities underscore why the position is so important to the Saints. Joseph said the Star has to not only handle motion adjustments — when a receiver runs from one spot to another before the snap but also be flexible enough to either play the deep middle of the field, the boundary or near the line of scrimmage. Other positions are “pretty much anchored,” Joseph said. The Star relies heavily on a player’s intelligence.

So how did the Saints land on trusting Sanker to replace Taylor? Coach Kellen Moore said Sanker’s college film gave the team confidence.

At the University of Virginia, Sanker spent his freshman and sophomore seasons as a nickel cornerback, which taught him the basics of playing inside That versatility was enough that Moore said he’d have felt comfortable putting Sanker there last year, if needed. (Taylor played all 17 games and 96% of the defense’s snaps.)

The Saints also saw a “mental toughness” in Sanker last year that assured them he’d be up for the task, Joseph

New UL pitcher happy about a reunion

BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

Sandefur left the Thundering Herd for UL last summer But Albright did miss his former mentor so once the 2026 season ended, the native of Lima, Ohio, decided to do something about it. He entered the transfer portal with the hope the Ragin’ Cajuns were interested. As it turned out, the Cajuns were and Albright committed to UL with two years of eligibility remaining. “Yes, it was a pretty easy decision,” Albright said. “When coach Sandy was my pitching coach at Marshall, I loved him to death. He’s probably the best coach I’ve ever had. So when I entered the portal and decided to leave I was thinking that would be one of my top spots if they were interested.”

Herd, he was 1-0 with a 4.24 ERA in 17 appearances, giving up 14 hits, five walks and striking out 20 in 17 innings. Opponents hit .212 against him. In his first season without Sandefur, things didn’t go as well. Albright was 1-3 with a 7.92 ERA over 14 outings, including four starts. In 25 innings, he allowed 30 hits, 25 walks and struck out 23. Albright said his struggles were more complicated than just having a new pitching coach.

ACC foes in challenge set for LSU hoops teams

BY REED DARCEY and TOYLOY BROWN III Staff writers

The LSU basketball programs each added a compelling nonconference matchup to their 2026-27 schedules on Friday, when ESPN unveiled the pairings for its annual ACC/SEC Challenges. The LSU men will face Wake Forest at home on Dec. 1, and the women will take on North Carolina on the road Dec. 2. The women’s matchup is one of four known nonconference battles already set for the 2026-27 season. For the men, it’s one of five. Coach Will Wade’s group also will play Gonzaga on Nov 14 in Spokane, Washington; two of SMU, Arizona State and Southern Cal in the Palm Springs Classic from Nov 21-26; and Houston at the Toyota Center The details of that game, including the date, have not been revealed. Coach Kim Mulkey and her staff already have announced they will compete in the Fort Myers Tip-Off event against North Carolina State and Villanova in late November, and they’re still finalizing the details of a showdown with

The 6-foot-3, 225-pound red-

“In my first outing of the season against Kennesaw State, I pulled my hamstring, so I was trying to get healed for about a month and a half,” he said. “During that time, it kind of messed me up mechanically and that’s why I sort of struggled with my command. Eventually, it came back and I started to feel like I did the year before.”

for staying away

BY R.J RICO Associated Press

Soccer fans soon will crisscross continents to see their beloved national teams compete on the sport’s grandest stage, the World Cup. They’ll pack bars and fan zones, singing chants and debating who is going to win it all. This time, however, it’s different for some superfans, who say organizers have made this summer’s World Cup the least welcoming one they have experienced. Ticket prices, expensive crosscountry travel and concerns about entering the U.S. have prompted some of them to stay home.

London-based IT worker Mike Wilson has been to four World Cups over the past 20 years. This summer, he’ll be staying in Europe and watching part of the tournament from a Portuguese beach.

Argentine doctor Emiliano Becerra likes to follow his team through every step of the elimination round. This time he’ll attend two early matches and then fly home.

Dutch-born finance manager Peter Bergakker flew to South Africa to watch the Netherlands play in the 2010 World Cup final. But no matter how far the “Oranje” advance this summer, he said

STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD

Saints safety Jonas Sanker, right, celebrates his interception of a pass by New york Jets quarterback Brady Cook, left, during a game Dec. 21 at the Caesars Superdome. New Orleans is looking to Sanker to fill the important ‘Star’ position after losing cornerback Alontae Taylor in free agency

STAFF FILE PHOTO By HILARy SCHEINUK LSU women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey and the Tigers will face North Carolina in the ACC/SEC Challenge on Dec. 2.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Former Marshall left-hander Blaine Albright will be reuniting with former pitching coach Taylor Sandefur at UL.

BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS

1:30 p.m. U.S vs. Germany TNT TRUTV SOCCER (WOMEN’S)

4:30 p.m. Brazil vs. U.S TNT,TRUTV TENNIS

5 a.m. French Open TENNIS

Zverev earns another major shot

Second-ranked player seeks first Grand Slam title

BY ANDREW DAMPF AP sportswriter

PARIS Jannik Sinner lost early

Carlos Alcaraz withdrew because of an injury

The pressure has been on Alexander Zverev to finally win an elusive Grand Slam title and now the second-seeded German is only one victory away from raising the French Open trophy Zverev reached the fourth major final of his career after beating 20-year-old Jakub Mensik 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in the Roland Garros semifinals on Friday

In Sunday’s final, Zverev will face 14th-ranked Flavio Cobolli Cobolli advanced when 104thranked Matteo Arnaldi withdrew before their all-Italian semifinal because of a virus.

Arnaldi spent 19 hours, 42 minutes on court to reach the semifinal more than anyone at a Grand Slam since 1991. He said he was vomiting overnight.

“I tried to get ready but every time I get up I feel dizzy,” Arnaldi said. “I can’t move and I can’t eat and I can’t drink. So there was really no way that I will be able to play.”

Zverev has been an overwhelming favorite for the title ever since the top-ranked Sinner struggled in the first week’s heat wave and wasted a two set and 5-1 lead against Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round.

Alcaraz, the two-time reigning champion, withdrew before the tournament with an injured right wrist. The 27th-ranked Mensik, who was playing in his first Grand Slam semifinal, struggled with five double faults on Friday Mensik overcame post-match cramps that landed him in a wheelchair last week, got past Andrey Rublev in five sets and beat rising Brazilian João Fonseca in straight sets in the quarterfinals. “He beat so many unbelievable

BY SAMUEL PETREQUIN AP sportswriter

PARIS Mirra Andreeva could not hold her nerve at Roland Garros last year

Facing the unheralded Lois Boisson for a spot in the French Open semifinals, the Russian teenager lost her temper, losing in straight sets after receiving a warning for angrily hitting a ball into the stands.

There has been no such meltdown over the past two weeks. Still only 19, Andreeva is in her first Grand Slam final. The pressure remains but she knows how to handle it.

“Now I’m also nervous when I play matches like this or when I’m up in the score and I’m serving and the opponent breaks me,” she said after stopping the best clay court player of the season, Marta Kostuyk, in the semifinals. “Before I was thinking, ‘Oh, my God, if I lost my serve, it’s like the end of the world.’ But now I feel like if she broke me, well, so what? I will try to break her back.”

The approach has been working out fine.

The eighth-seeded Andreeva has dropped just one set en route to the final, where she will meet the 114th-ranked Maja Chwalinska, a qualifier It’s Chwalinska’s first appearance in a major final, meaning a new Grand Slam champion will be crowned at the Court Philippe-Chatrier on Saturday

Andreeva has been competing at the highest level since she was 15, and it has taken some time for her to manage her temper emotions and the pressure that ac-

players. I knew it was going to be the toughest challenge that I had so far And I managed. I won I’m happy,” Zverev said. It will be Zverev’s second French Open final, having wasted a lead of twosetstooneagainstAlcarazinthe 2024 championship match. Zverev had an even bigger advantage — two sets to none in the 2020 U.S. Open final and lost that one, too, to Dominic Thiem. He was also beaten in straight sets by Sinner in the 2025 Australian Open final.

“That’s in the past,” Zverev said of hislosstoThiem.“Idon’ttrytothink too much about it before Sunday.”

Despite overcast and windy conditions at the start, the roof was open on Court Philippe-Chatrier and both players struggled with mishits early on.

Mensik relied often on serveand-volley tactics while Zverev

was more solid from the baseline of the red clay court. Mensik double-faulted twice late in the first set, leading to the first break. Zverev broke again early in the second after running down a drop shot from Mensik and then went ahead 5-2 when Mensik double-faulted again.

Early in the third, Mensik had his neck treated by a trainer and then left the court for a medical timeout. When play resumed, Zverev moved Mensik off the court with well-angled shots and the Czech player threw his racket in desperation at a ball he knew he couldn’t reach.

There were more shouts for “Sascha” — Zverev’s nickname — but the crowd attempted to help Mensik back into the match with chants of “Let’s go, Mensik, let’s go.”

When Mensik produced two

well-executed drop shots to finally break Zverev’s serve and take a 4-2 lead in the third, he pumped his fist as the crowd came to life It was just the second set Zverev dropped in the tournament.

“He started playing amazing the third set,” Zverev said. “This is best-of-five-set matches: You know things (are) going to happen. Opponents are going to play better You have to deal with it. You have to manage it. I did. And I hope to play another great match on Sunday.”

When Mensik rushed the net after a slice serve to the deuce court midway through the fourth set and Zverev used his long wingspan to produce a looping crosscourt return that dipped over the net beyond his reach, Mensik just smiled — perhaps realizing in that moment that Zverev simply had too much game for him.

ä French Open Women’s final 8 A.M. SATURDAy,TNT TRUTV HBOMAX

companies her massive ambition. Finally, it appears she is ready to step forward and stake her claim for the biggest titles.

“I have been trying to work on me being more calm, more positive,” she said “I’m very focused, and I felt like recently I have been trying to do a lot of different stuff. Maybe now I have found what’s been working very well for me.”

In 2024, Andreeva became the youngestGrandSlamsemifinalistin more than a quarter-century when, in her sixth major tournament, she defeated Aryna Sabalenka. Andreeva appeared pretty much insouciant at the time. She said

she would devise plans with her coach, 1994 Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez, only to forget everything during matches.

“Now I feel like I completely trust what my team tells me, and now it’s easier for me to do,” Andreeva said. “Whatever they tell me, I will just do it. I just feel like I’m able to trust them fully and not doubt anything.”

Winning the title would make her the youngest French Open women’s singles champion since 18-year-old Monica Seles landed her third straight Roland Garros crown in 1992.

Andreeva and Chwalinska will meet for the first time.

Chwalinska’s best result at a major before the French Open was the second round at Wimbledon in

Cards activate outfielder Nootbaar for season debut

St. Louis outfielder Lars Nootbaar was activated from the 60day injured list on Friday in time to make his season debut in left field as the Cardinals began a weekend series against the Cincinnati Reds. Nootbaar, 28, had surgery on both of his heels in the offseason and has not played in the majors this season. He is a career .242 hitter Last season in 135 games, he hit .234 with 13 home runs and 48 RBIs. In 12 games during his 20-day rehab assignment for Triple-A Memphis, Nootbaar hit three home runs and had a .409 on-base percentage, a .543 slugging percentage and a .257 batting average in 44 at-bats. In other moves, the Cardinals optioned infielder Thomas Saggese to Triple A-Memphis and recalled right-handed pitcher Matt Svanson from Memphis.

Broncos LB Cooper arrested following fight

Denver Broncos outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper was jailed Friday on domestic violence charges stemming from a fight with his girlfriend.

Cooper, 28, was held on suspicion of two counts of domestic violence and one count of criminal mischief, according to Douglas County jail records.

The Broncos said in a statement that they “are aware of the matter and are gathering information.” Cooper’s arrest stemmed from an argument between him and his girlfriend, who was also arrested, according to a police affidavit. Cooper’s girlfriend accused him of cheating and threw his phone against a wall in Cooper’s apartment and a physical struggle ensued, according to the report.

Poston aces conditions to take Memorial lead

J.T Poston had eight birdies in a round of 7-under 65 on Friday at the Memorial a score best measured by the fact he was nine shots better than the field average — enough for a one-shot lead over Ryan Gerard going into the weekend at Muirfield Village. Poston was at 9-under 135, a score not many saw coming.

The quality of his round could be measured by the comments of some of his peers. The interview with Tommy Fleetwood began with a statement that it seemed tougher out there.

“Is that a question?” Fleetwood replied. “Yeah, we’ll expand on that. It was pretty brutal, actually.” That wasn’t the case for Poston, who played brilliantly to grab the lead.

Serena adds second date on comeback schedule

Serena Williams’ comeback to tennis will include a stop in Berlin this month.

Maja Chwalinska reacts during a semifinal match against Diana Shnaider on Thursday in Paris. Chwalinska advanced to the final, where she will face Andreeva

2022. She is the second qualifier to make a Grand Slam singles final in the professional era (1968), joining Emma Raducanu, who won the 2021 US Open. In Paris, the Polish player has caught the eye of observers not only for her unexpected deep run but also for the variety of her shots and the kind of old-fashioned tennis she plays, peppered with stunning lobs and drop shots. Her tennis is a stark contrast to Andreeva’s sheer power “I know that I’m playing different tennis than most of the girls on tour,” the slightly-framed Chwalinska said. “I don’t have the (physical) conditions to play strong, so I need to develop different kinds of weapons for myself. I’ve definitely played differently, and I think it helps me a lot against these players.”

Berlin Open organizers said Williams will compete in doubles at the grass-court event starting on June 13 Her partner and the date of her first match will be announced later

The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion stepped away from tennis in 2022. She has yet to say whether she plans to play at Wimbledon or the U.S. Open.

She will make her return to professional tennis playing doubles alongside Victoria Mboko at Queen’s Club next week. Berlin is the week after Wimbledon is two weeks after that.

“Every tournament I add to my schedule right now feels special, and Berlin is no exception,” she said.

FIFA cancels mistakenly free tickets to World Cup

FIFA has canceled World Cup tickets issued to about 60 fans who mistakenly got them for free because of a website error

The tickets were “allocated at no charge due to a prior payment issue during the checkout process,” FIFA said in a statement Thursday.

“FIFA regrets the error and any inconvenience caused,” soccer’s ruling body said. “The tickets requested by these fans remain reserved, and the affected fans have been invited to complete payment of the correct amount.”

It is the latest glitch in an often controversial World Cup ticketing program that the attorneys general of New York and New Jersey are investigating for possible violations of consumer protection laws. The mispriced tickets were sold through the official World Cup site.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By AURELIEN MORISSARD

Alexander Zverev returns to Jakub Mensik during a semifinal match at the French Open on Friday in Paris. Zverev advanced to Sunday’s final where he will face 14th-ranked Flavio Cobolli.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS By EMMA DA SILVA Mirra Andreeva returns to Marta Kostyuk during a French Open semifinal match on Thursday in Paris.

SAINTS

Continued from page 1C

said. The Saints observed it from the moment Sanker was called on to be a starter in Week 2. And then Sanker’s play further developed, with Joseph praising the safety’s speed, athleticism and ability to hold up in coverage.

“All of those are the characteristics of a good Star,” Joseph said Throughout OTAs, the Saints have tested Sanker to see whether their intuition was right. During 7-on-7 drills, New Orleans routinely will send receivers in motion, which often forces Sanker to travel with them. Then, when the ball is snapped, quarterback Tyler Shough hasn’t been shy in targeting the option nearest Sanker

But Sanker is holding his own Safety Justin Reid said Sanker’s speed was instrumental to his rookie year, calling it a “superpower” that helps him make plays. He said at the end of the year, he stressed to Sanker that he shouldn’t do anything that takes away from it

“As long as he can run, he can play,” Reid said.

Though he has spent most of his time learning his new position, Sanker hasn’t abandoned playing free safety, either The Saints use

CHALLENGE

Continued from page 1C

Tennessee.

The LSU men, who are 2-1 in ACC/SEC Challenge matchups so far, lead Wake Forest 4-2 in the all-time series and have won the last three matchups, one of which came during Wade’s first stint in Baton Rouge. The last meeting was an 86-80 overtime win in 2023 during the fifth-place game of the Charleston Classic in Charleston, South Carolina

WORLD CUP

Continued from page 1C

he won’t travel to the U.S. Exactly how many fans are staying away is unclear, but the warning signs are there.

Hotel bookings have been lighter than expected in many U.S. host cities Meanwhile, the president of the travel agency association in soccer-mad Uruguay said his company has arranged tour packages for about 3,000 fans, significantly fewer than recent World Cups.

Priced out

The number of fans able to travel and take weeks off of work to cheer on their team during the World Cup understandably skews to the wealthy But previous tournaments have remained accessible for fans who, in some cases, would save for years for their flights and match tickets.

Four years ago, lower-tier Category 3 tickets to group stage matches were $69. This year, FIFA has been selling them for as much as $265. The last two tournaments in Russia and Qatar offered match-going fans free transportation among host cities, though many matches were much closer than the vast area covered by the 16 stadiums hosting matches across the U.S Canada and Mexico.

And while fans there were not permitted by FIFA to sell their tickets on the official resale site for above face value, the sports governing body has taken a different

Iran World Cup team approved to play in U.S.

Players have been granted U.S. visas, clearing them to enter country

BY COLLIN BINKLEY, SEUNG MIN KIM AND MATTHEW LEE Associated Press

WASHINGTON Members of the Iran World Cup soccer team have been granted visas to the United States, two U.S. officials said Friday, clearing them to enter the United States from their training base in Tijuana, Mexico, ahead of their first two matches near Los Angeles this month.

camp in Antalya, Turkey, before departing for Tijuana The team said it has already received visas from Mexico’s embassy in Ankara.

U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack credited the U.S. Embassy in Ankara for processing visas for the Iranian team.

Sanker at his old spot when the third-string defense is on the field, perhaps as a way to make sure he stays sharp if needed to go back there. Blackmon, who is now the starting free safety, has a lengthy injury history Last year, the Saints relied on Taylor’s versatility by having him line up as an outside corner in their base defense. Similarly, there’s a chance Sanker could be asked to

The LSU women are 3-0 in the ACC/SEC Challenge, and they last met North Carolina in 2016. The two programs also faced off in the Elite Eight in 2008, when the Tigers won 56-50 to secure their fifth trip to the Final Four Wade, ahead of the first season of his second stint with the Tigers, is overhauling the program’s entire roster Mulkey, ahead of her sixth season in charge at LSU, is replacing star Flau’jae Johnson and two guards who decided to transfer: Jada Richard (Ole Miss) and Bella Hines (TCU). So far, Wade and his staff have

approach this time encouraging fans to resell tickets for as high as they want, with FIFA pocketing 30% in fees along the way FIFA did not respond to a request for comment Thursday but previously has defended ticket prices as a reflection of “record-breaking” demand

Tomonori Akutsu, who lives outside Tokyo, said if he had realized how expensive this tournament would be when he started making plans, he might have reconsidered attending his sixth straight World Cup Without question, he believes, the U.S. has been the worst host, and tournament organizers have demonstrated a “complete lack of hospitality in every aspect,” citing things such as ticket prices, an inflated resale market, expensive hotel prices and fan festivals that cost money to attend.

“Simply, my impression is this is America, the ultimate capitalism,” Akutsu said.

Becerra spent $1,100 to see Argentina defeat France in the 2022 final in Qatar For the past three World Cups, he followed Argentina through the knockout stages.

Not this time.

This year, he paid even more —

$1,200 — for a resale ticket to see Argentina’s match against lowranked Jordan in Dallas.

“It’s absolutely crazy It’s just a group stage match,” said Becerra, a 64-year-old ophthalmologist who lives in Neuquén Becerra will head home before the knockout stage begins The prices, he said, are “just not possible for me.”

play safety in base, if Blackmon goes down again.

But Sanker is on board with switching roles. He said he gladly embraced the change when his coaches asked whether he’d be open to the shift. “A lot of the way we use the nickel is to set the force,” Sanker said.

Email Matthew Paras at matt paras@theadvocate.com

landed four international players and four Division I transfers. They also reportedly have a commitment from RJ Luis, a former Big East player of the year who’s appeared in NBA preseason games.

Mulkey is adding one freshman McDonald’s All-American wing Lola Lampley — and three transfers, including former Iowa State point guard Jada Williams. She was one of the 2026 transfer cycle’s top players.

The tipoff time and TV network details for each ACC/SEC Challenge matchup will be announced at a later date.

Wilson said he and his friends opted to skip this summer’s tournament because they couldn’t justify spending the prices they were seeing.

Wilson never had spent more than $200 for any World Cup match — a price that, on the resale market, barely buys a nosebleed seat at a group stage match between two obscure teams this year Instead, he and his friends have booked a Portugal getaway For Wilson, the World Cup is more about the atmosphere than the matches.

“That’s the great thing about these tournaments: You’re sitting at a hostel chatting with U.S. fans, and then you go to a bar up the road and there are loads of Chileans who have just taken over the place,” Wilson said, recalling a memorable night in Johannesburg in 2010. “It’s stuff like that which makes the World Cup. But now they’ve just priced everyone out.”

Mark Doidge, a sociologist at England’s Loughborough University, said World Cups have long been defined by their traveling supporters, pointing to Colombia’s famous “Birdman” and the sea of St. George’s crosses at every England match.

Rising costs, he said, risk losing exactly those fans.

“Most of those buying expensive tickets are not those passionate fans, but wealthy people paying for an experience,” he said.

Some not deterred

There is at least one group of supporters that appears determined to come regardless of the

The team’s participation in the World Cup has been complicated by Iran’s war with Israel and the United States. Problems with processing visas had earlier led Iran to move its training base from Tucson, Arizona, to Tijuana, which is on Mexico’s border with California.

One U.S. official said all players on the Iranian team were approved for visas and were in the process of receiving them.

A second official said visas had been issued for players, coaches, trainers and some support staff. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the visas publicly

The second official could not say whether any Iranian applicants had been denied. It was not immediately clear when the Iranian team’s passports would be returned to them to allow them to travel, but the official said it could be as early as Friday or Saturday

The squad has been preparing for the World Cup at a training

“Sports transcends borders, and we look forward to welcoming competitors and fans from around the world,” Barrack wrote in a social media post Friday Iran plays its first two games in Inglewood, California, against New Zealand on June 15 and Belgium six days later, then heads to Seattle to face Egypt on June 26. Iran and the U.S. could meet in the round of 32 on July 3 in Arlington, Texas, if both teams place second in their groups. President Donald Trump in March had discouraged Iran from participating in the tournament, saying he didn’t think it was “appropriate” and raising concerns over players’ “life and safety.” A day later, Iran’s national team pushed back, saying “no one can exclude” it from playing.

Iran finalized its team Monday including 17 home-based players whose clubs have not played since February because of the war Star forward Sardar Azmoun was dropped in March, reportedly because of a social media post that angered Iranian authorities during the war Iran’s sports minister said in March that it would “not be possible” for the team to participate in the World Cup, but the republic’s soccer federation said in May it was moving ahead with a team. The federation had insisted that all players and staff be granted visas, including those who had military service in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

cost: the Scots, who are eager to see their team compete in their first World Cup in 28 years. Campbell Lewis and his friends began booking refundable accommodations across the U.S. as soon as Scotland qualified last year before prices rose.

With tens of thousands of Scottish fans expected to attend, tickets for their team’s matches have proven harder to obtain.

But after prices began to drop in recent weeks, Lewis bought two tickets for Scotland’s second match for him and his 10-year-old son. He and his friends are still waiting until the final days to get tickets to the team’s opener against Haiti, though. As of Thursday, the cheapest resale ticket for that match outside Boston exceeded $600.

“For a lot of Scottish people of my generation, this is a once-in-alifetime thing,” he said. “We were all kids the last time we qualified. And even though the prices have gotten out of hand, there’s just this determination that we want to go.”

U.S. travel concerns

U.S. entry requirements also may be limiting international visitors. Unlike Russia in 2018, which waived visa requirements for ticket-holders, and Qatar in 2022, which streamlined entry for fans, many traveling to the U.S. still face strict visa requirements. Until the U.S. reversed course last month, ticket-holding fans from Algeria, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Tunisia were even going to have to pay as much as $15,000 in bonds to enter the country

Carlos Pera, president of Uruguay’s travel agency association, recently told Uruguay’s Subrayado that U.S. visa requirements were among the reasons fewer Uruguayans are making the trip this year

U.S. officials have pushed back on concerns about visitors encountering an unwelcome environment, and the White House’s World Cup task force has highlighted efforts to prioritize visa interviews for fans with tickets. Andrew Giuliani who leads the task force, dismissed concerns Thursday that traditional traveling supporters may be staying away

“We want superfans and firsttime visitors alike to know: America welcomes you to what will be the greatest World Cup yet,” he said in a statement.

For some fans, the concern goes beyond visas and cost. Bergakker, 48, said President Donald Trump’s “hostile” approach toward European allies has changed his view of traveling to the U.S.

A deep Netherlands’ run usually would be all it takes to get him on a plane, no matter the price of tickets. But Bergakker said he worries his criticism of Trump on social media could lead to problems at the border, a concern the White House rejected. A spokesperson said Thursday that a Customs and Border Protection proposal to scrutinize World Cup visitors’ social media accounts was never enacted.

Still, Bergakker said that as long as Trump is president, “this Oranje fan won’t be visiting.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GEORGE WALKER

Tennessee Titans wide receiver Chimere Dike, left, pulls in a first-down reception as New Orleans Saints safety Jonas Sanker defends in the first half of a game on Dec 28 in Nashville, Tenn.

STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD

Atlanta Falcons running back Tyler Allgeier, left, is tackled by New Orleans Saints safety Jonas Sanker after running for a first down during a game on Nov. 23 at the Caesars Superdome.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By KHALIL HAMRA Iran’s players work out during a training session on Tuesday in Antalya, southern Turkey ahead of the World Cup soccer tournament.

LSUlands firsttwo playersfromportal

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

LSU baseballlanded its first two transfers out of the portal on Thursday and Friday Gonzagafreshman right-hander

Landon Hood signed with LSU, multiple sources confirmed to The Advocate on Thursday Then on Friday,Texas State shortstop Dawson Park announced on social media he is coming to Baton Rouge. Hood posted a2.48 ERA in 541/3 innings in his first collegiate season, acampaign strong enoughfor him to win the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year award and become asecond-team AllWCCselection.

He’sfrom Goodyear,Arizona, an area of the country LSU coach Jay Johnson is certainly familiar with.

At Gonzaga, Hood missed alot of bats, striking out 12.9 batters per nine innings while mostly limiting free passes.Hewalked9.3%ofthe batters he faced and hit six hitters.

Hood was mostly used as arelieveratGonzaga. Only four of his 16 appearances were starts, andhe hadfive saves. TheTigers are settolose at least sevenright-handed pitchers from this year’s team, andHood should helpfill the gap.

Park hada .962 on-baseplusslugging percentage and13home runs as asophomore at Texas State. He committed 10 errors and experienced aspike in hispower thanks to an elevated fly ballrate that rose from 31.1% as afreshman to 45.9% as asophomore.

Park played in only 48 games this season after leaving the program in early May,after he reportedly gotintoanon-field altercation with ateammate duringTexas State’slosstoSouth Alabama onMay 3.

With Steven Milam possibly off to MLB, Park could take his spot at shortstop. He could also help the Tigers atsecondbase, aposition wherethey have only one player projectedtoreturninJack Ruckert.

SCOREBOARD

No. 1NorthCarolinavs. No. 2Southern California, 1p.m. x-Game 3: No. 1NorthCarolinavs. No. 2 Southern California, TBD Lawrence, Kansas

Game 1: No. 1Kansas vs.No. 2Oklahoma, 5p.m. Sunday Game 2: No. 1Kansas vs.No. 2Oklahoma, 5p.m. x-Game 3: No. 1Kansas vs.No. 2Oklahoma, TBD Morgantown, W. Va

2

1: No. 1West Virginia 12,No. 3Cal

2: No. 1West Virginia vs.No. 3Cal

3: No. 1West Virginia vs.No. 3Cal

1: No. 3Troy12, No. 4Little Rock 2

n Saturday’s Games Cincinnati (Lodolo2-1) at St. Louis (Liberatore3-3), 1:15 p.m. San Francisco (Roupp 5-6) at ChicagoCubs (Brown2-2), 1:20 p.m. Chicago White Sox(Burke2-3) at Philadelphia (Painter 1-6), 3:05 p.m. Pittsburgh (Ashcraft 5-2) at Atlanta (Strider 3-1), 3:10 p.m. TampaBay (McClanahan 6-2)atMiami (TBD), 3:10 p.m. Washington (Littell5-4)atArizona (Rodriguez 5-1), 3:10 p.m. Milwaukee (Misiorowski 6-2) at Colorado (Gordon 0-1),8:10 p.m. L.A. Angels (Kochanowicz 2-4)atL.A. Dodgers (Yamamoto 5-4), 9:10 p.m. N.Y. Mets (McLean 3-4)atSan Diego (Canning 0-4), 9:10 p.m. Golf The Memorial Tournament Friday At MuirfieldVillage GolfClub Dublin, Ohio Purse: $20 million Yardage: 7,569; Par: 72 Second Round J.T. Poston

Griffin74-77—151 +7 Robert MacIntyre 77-74—151 +7

Nicolai Hojgaard74-78—152 +8 MarkHubbard75-77—152 +8

MinWoo Lee74-78—152 +8

Daniel Berger 72-81—153 +9

AkshayBhatia 73-80—153 +9

Pierceson Coody 78-76—154 +10

Sam Stevens 79-76—155 +11

Jhonattan Vegas80-76—156 +12

Alex Smalley83-76—159 +15

RickieFowler79-82—161 +17

KLM Open

Friday At The International Amsterdam Purse: $2.8million Yardage: 6,914; Par: 71 Second Round, Overnight Suspended

S. Soderberg, Sweden 67-51—118 -8

Callum Tarren,England69-46—115 -7 Joe Dean, England66-60—126 -7

Daniel Hillier, New Zealand70-65—135 -7

Yuto Katsuragawa, Japan69-66—135 -7

JulienGuerrier, France 65-63—128 -6

J. Gumberg,UnitedStates68-68—136 -6

M. Steinlechner, Austria 67-69—136 -6

Hunter Logan, UnitedStates71-34—105 -5

Oliver Lindell, Finland69-51—120 -5

Ryan Peake, Australia 70-52—122 -4

Marcus Armitage, England71-55—126 -4

Angel AyoraFanegas, Spain 73-65—138 -4

Ewen Ferguson, Scotland 70-68—138 -4

Ross Fisher, England71-67—138 -4

Dylan Frittelli, South Africa69-69—138 -4

Calum Hill, Scotland 68-70—138 -4

E. Lopez-Chacarra, Spain 69-69—138 -4

Guido Migliozzi, Italy 70-68—138 -4

Francesco Molinari,Italy 69-69—138 -4

N. NorgaardMoller, Denmark71-67—138 -4

B. Rbinsn-Thmpsn,England69-69—138 -4

Sami Valimaki, Finland 70-68—138 -4

DannyWillett,England71-67—138 -4

DavisBryant, United States70-52—122 -3

Renato Paratore,Italy 71-56—127 -3

Cameron Adam, Scotland 69-70—139 -3

K. Kobori, New Zealand71-68—139 -3

DavidRavetto, France 72-67—139 -3

Marcel Siem, Germany 67-72—139 -3

Nathan Kimsey,England70-42—112 -2

Marcus Helligkilde, Denmark 71-46—117 -2

Yanhan Zhou, China 71-49—120 -2

Pablo Ereno Perez, Spain 73-55—128 -2

Paul Waring, England68-64—132 -2

Adri Arnaus, Spain69-71—140 -2

Andreas Halvorsen, Norway 70-70—140 -2

Scott Jamieson,Scotland 72-68—140 -2

Frederic Lacroix, France 72-68—140 -2

Alexander Levy,France68-72—140 -2

J. Skov Olesen,Denmark 72-68—140 -2

Bernd Wiesberger, Austria69-71—140 -2

K. Aphibarnrat,Thailand75-38—113 -1 Angel Hidalgo, Spain 72-41—113 -1

Marcel Schneider, Germany 73-40—113 -1

Jason Scrivener, Australia 75-45—120 -1

Antoine Rozner,France72-52—124 -1

S. Garcia Rodriguez, Spain 71-70—141 -1

M. Hollick, South Africa69-72—141 -1

S. Kaewkanjana,Thailand 72-69—141 -1 Joost Luiten, Netherlands 69-72—141 -1

JamesMorrison,England71-70—141 -1 J. Trey Schaper, South Africa70-71—141 -1 RichardSterne, South Africa69-72—141 -1 Connor Syme, Scotland 73-68—141 -1

L. VanDer Vight, Nethrlnds 68-73—141 -1 Ashun Wu,China 73-68—141 -1 O. Guillamoundguy,France74-36—110 E Dylan Naidoo, South Africa73-41—114 E Matthew Baldwin,England72-47—119 E Nevill Ruiter, Netherlands 74-45—119 E RikuyaHoshino, Japan 73-61—134 E Dan Bradbury,England74-68—142 E Rafa Cabrera Bello,Spain 74-68—142 E Jens Dantorp, Sweden 72-70—142 E DavidLaw,Scotland 70-72—142 E Mikael Lindberg, Sweden 72-70—142 E Matteo Manassero,Italy 73-69—142 E JC Ritchie,South Africa74-68—142 E B. Stone,South Africa71-71—142 E N. VonDllngshsn,Germany76-66—142 E Matthew Jordan, England75-40—115 +1 Stefano Mazzoli, Italy 74-41—115 +1

Robin Williams, South Africa72-51—123 +1 Ricardo Gouveia, Portugal71-60—131 +1 C. Charmasson,

Albright said Sandefur’svalue as apitching coach beginswith the personal relationship.

“After coming from Indiana he made me fall in love with the sport of baseball again,”Albright said. “I just think it’shis ability to connect with players and understand that everyone is going tobe coached differently and everyone

has different personalities. He justfinds ways to connect with you. He finds ways to get inside our brains and helped us understand him.” Albrightsaid he’swilling to be a relieverorstarter at UL.

“Whatever Iearn when Iget down thereiswhat Iearn— possiblyamidweek starter,we’ll see, Albright said. “I’m just looking forward to see whatever that is.

Iknow I’m going to work my butt off and see what happens. “For me,the biggest priority is

just opportunity —whatever Ican do that helps theteam. Ijust want to get back to that prior relationshipwith Sandy,knowing what he got out of metwo years ago. “ Becauseofthatprior relationship with Sandefur,Albright committedtothe Cajuns without visiting Lafayette. He’ll get familiar with the South Louisiana heat when he visits later in June.

“He (Sandefur) said it takes a little bit of time to get used to, but once you’re used to it, you know it’sa normal thing down there,”

Albright saidofthe heat. Anotherformer Marshall pitcher Charlie Krebs also has committed to theCajuns fornext season. TheULroster is also getting atalentinfusionfromtwo high school and six junior-college signees. Thehigh school additions are Teurlings Catholic pitcher Evan Vincentand Barbe secondbaseman Myles Ledoux. The juco signees include Tallahassee JC infielder Eric Fernandez, Vernon CC pitcher Degan Kubat,Iowa Central CC pitcher

(seedings in parentheses): Men’sSingles Semifinals AlexanderZverev(2),Germany, def. Jakub Mensik (26),Czechia,7-5,6-2,3-6,6-3 Flavio Cobolli (10), Italy, def. MatteoArnaldi, Italy, walkover Men’sDoubles

(5),

and

Stefani(4) Brazil, 6-0, 6-1. AleksandraKrunic,Serbia, and Anna Danilina(2),Kazakhstan, def. ShukoAoyama, Japan, and En-Shuo Liang, Taiwan,7-5, 6-2. Transactions Major

(PCL).

AP PHOTO By LACHLAN CUNNINGHAM

Gonzagapitcher Landon Hood pitches during agame against Saint Mary’s on April17inMoraga, Calif

Help teens navigate life nowthat they’remore exposed

Afew months ago, Iwas speaking to agroup of parents when afather saidsomething I’ve been hearing more and more lately “I just don’tthink kids today are as resilient as we were.” Several heads nodded. Iunderstood what he meant Many adults look at the rising rates of anxietyamong young people and wonder what happened. We rememberriding our bikes until dark, settling disagreements face-to-face and figuring things out without needing atherapist. Compared to that, today’steenagerscan seem more emotionallyoverwhelmed.

But after spending more than two decadescounseling adolescentsand theirfamilies, I’m not convinced today’steensare more fragile. Ithink they’re more exposed. Most of us got to survive adolescence without carrying our peer group around in our pocket. When Iwas growing up, if you weren’tinvited somewhere, you might eventually hear about it on Monday morning. It stung, but there was some distancebetween the eventand thedisappointment Today’steens find out in real time. Aphoto gets posted. A story goes up. Agroup selfie appears online. Within seconds, ateen knows exactly whowas there, who wasn’t, and where they stand —oratleast where they think they stand. Many adults underestimate how exhausting that canbeand what atoll it can take on an adolescent’smental health. Imagine if every awkward moment from your teenage years had the potential to be photographed, recorded, shared, commented on andrevisited. Imagine if popularity came with numbersattached to it. Followers. Likes. Views. Streaks. Most adults would struggle under those conditions.

Teens today aren’tweak They’re navigating an environment we neverhad to face. Their developmental tasks haven’tchanged that much They’re still trying to answer the same questions they always have: Who am I? Do I belong? Am Ienough? What’schanged is the volume. The comparison is louder The pressure is louder.The audience is larger.And unlike “our day,” it rarelysleeps. When we judge teens as fragile or “snowflakes” it shows we don’tunderstand their reality.When we don’t understand what someone is going through, they’ll resist our influence. And influence is the ballgame when it comes to teens. There are already so many obstacles to influencing them positively,wecan’tafford another. Understanding isn’tthe same thing as excusing. Teenagers still need accountability.They still need boundaries. They still need adults who challenge them to take responsibility for their choices. But they also need adults whounderstand the world they’re navigating. One of the greatestgiftswe can offer young people is a place where they don’thave to perform, manage an image, compete for attention or worry about being judged. Aplace where they can simply be themselves.

Servedsparkle to

Chasingthe unusual, BatonRouge’s

BY NATALEIGH PARKER

Contributing writer

Four yearsin, the swanky Supper ClubinBaton Rouge continues to delight diners fromnearand far withintention, whether that’sinits

A5 wagyu with 24K gold Ossetra Caviar, creme brulee flamed tableside or the new $5,000 cocktail.

During LSU’sgraduation weekend in May, one Alabama guest in town to celebratea family member was so impressed with therestaurant that she Facetimed her husband back hometo show him themenu and the dining room’ssleek design.

While she was showing him the menu, he noticedthe $5,000 martini. Afterthey hung up, he called therestaurant, gave thenameof the reservation and his credit card and ordered thedrink —and the diamond tennis bracelet that comes withit— for his wife.

“It’sveryimportant that our guests haveacertainexperience

when they come here. From the momentthey pull intothe parking lot to the time they are leaving, we want to controlevery aspect,” executive chef Leighton Carbo said.

“So we think of every possible thingtomakethat happen. Carbo saidthose aspects aim to

enhance all five senses.

Intimidation coupledwithnerves SupperClub isn’tlike most restaurants in Louisiana, let alone in Baton Rouge, but that difference is

BY MADDIE SCOTT Staff writer

Carbo

STAFFPHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

The DiamondsAre Forevercocktail is a$5,000 martini servedatSupper Clubthat comes with adiamond tennis bracelet from Anton’sFine Jewelry.

STAFF PHOTO By MADDIE SCOTT

Classmatekeeps bringing up decades-oldhistory

Dear Miss Manners: In my senior year of high school, Igot pregnant, and back in those times, Iwas not allowed to graduate. Imarried my child’sfather and raised two children with him. We weredivorced many years later,mostly because we had not finished growing up when we married. Idid go on to attend classes at alocal community college, and later married another man.Wehad 30 wonderful years together,and were very successful in our marriage, our life and withthe multiple businesses we built together. Ihave been blessed with wonderful children and grandchildren, all of whom either have successful careers or are college-bound.

own choices and trying to make herself feel better in comparison —or wondering why your life turned out so well.

Usedentalmicrobrushapplicator

ples” rather than “weneed fewer apples.” My grandkids don’tsee or know the difference. —JohnS., in NewburyPark,California

Judith Martin MISS MANNERS

In any case, Miss Manners agrees that it is her problem, not yours. Andpolitely acting as such and showing concern will have the added benefit of only annoying her more.

Dear Miss Manners: There was asocial media post about awoman who wore ablack three-piece suit, with awhiteshirt, to her brother’swedding. Thebride, groom and bridesmaids treated the woman rudely, stating that it was because she was wearing awhiteshirt, which was inexcusable.

Ahigh school friend, who married and lives well, cannot see me without bringing up, in some fashion, that Idid not graduate when we werein high school. At areunion, her comment in the group where I was standing was, “Oh, you had achild by the time you were 18.” Ismiled and said, “Yes, I did.” Ihave no idea why she refuses to let go of this —and how does it affect her life, anyway? Truthfully,Ifeel it is her problem, not mine. Because we attend common interest functions, Isee her three or four times ayear.I’m certain that Miss Manners would not wish for me to be terribly forward with her,but after 50 years, I’ve had enough. Gentle reader: Next time she points out your history,try saying,“Yes, you mention that frequently.Isthere areason? Is everything OK in your family?”

Although she may not be willing to admit it, this woman is likely dissatisfied with her

Ultimately,itescalated to the groom’smother intentionally spilling red wine on her,and with the groom stating “You’re dead to me”because shewore the white shirt

Obviously,guestsshould not wear white dresses to weddings unless asked to do so. Does this stricture extend to wearing white shirtsunder suits? If so, does it only apply to women?

Gentlereader: Apparently Because otherwise, Miss Manners feels certainthat most of the men attending would now be wearing red-stained shirts as well.

So this reaction is absurd as well as vicious. Because it was so awful, Miss Manners will delicately refrain from noticing thatthe black suit part was also incorrect. Black attire at awedding looks funereal, and was traditionally considered a protest

Then again, perhaps this guest was anticipating her hosts’ atrocious behavior

Send questions to Miss Manners at herwebsite, www. missmanners.com.

TODAYINHISTORY

By The Associated Press

Today is Saturday,June 6, the 157th day of 2026. There are 208 days left in the year

Todayinhistory: On June 6, 1944, during World WarII, nearly 160,000 Allied troops landed in Normandy, France, on D-Day as they launched Operation Overlord to liberate German-occupied Western Europe. More than 4,400 Allied troops were killed on DDay,including 2,501 Americans. Also on this date:

In 1889, an industrial accident sparked adevastating fire in Seattle, Washington, destroying 120 acres of the city center,including the majority of the city’s commercial district and waterfront.

In 1912, Novarupta, avolcano on the Alaska peninsula, began a three-day eruption, sending ash nearly19miles high; it was the most powerful volcanic eruption of the 20th century and the largest ever recorded in North America.

In 1933, the first drive-in movie theateropened, in Camden,New Jersey In 1939, the first Little League

Baseball game was played as Lundy Lumber defeated LycomingDairy 23-8 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

In 1966, James Meredithwas shot andwounded byasniper early in thecivil rights activist’s march from Memphis, Tennessee, to Jackson,Mississippi, to raiseawareness about racial injustice in the U.S. South. (Meredith would recover from his injuries andrejoin themarch, which had swelled from asmall group to 15,000 marchers, the day before reaching Jackson.)

In 2015, American Pharoah becamethe first horse in 37 years to claim horse racing’s Triple Crown,winning the Belmont Stakesby51/2 lengths. Today’sbirthdays: Singer-songwriter Gary U.S. Bondsis87. Civil rights activist Marian Wright Edelman is 87. Country musician Joe Stampley is 83. Olympic track &field gold medalist TommieSmith is 82. Actor Robert Englundis79. Folk singer Holly Near is 77. TennisHall of Famer Bjorn Borg is 70. Comedian Colin Quinn is 67. Music producer Jimmy Jam is 67.

RELIGION BRIEFS FROM

STAFFREPORTS

St. Francis Episcopal Church plans 2events

St. Francis Episcopal Church, 726 Maple St., Denham Springs, will host apet memorial service of prayer and remembrance at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday In honor of International Pet Memorial Day,the service will provide an opportunity to remember and celebrate beloved pets and animal companions who have enriched lives. Attendees are invited to email aphoto of their pet to saintfrands@gmail.com for display during the service or bring a photo with them.

The church will also collect pet food donations for the Den-

TEENS

Continued from page5C

Dear Heloise: Iread L.C.’sletter about recycling mascara wands to clean hummingbird feeders. Iwanted to share what Iuse if Ineed tiny applicators. Iget 400 of them at avery small cost. They’re dental microbrush applicatorsthat are 2.5 millimeterswide, so they would work well for this use and are disposable. They come in different sizes if need be. —Priscilla W.,via email

Modern language

ham Springs Food Pantry,which assistslocal familiesand their pets.

Thecommunity is invited. The chuch also will hold its semi-annual garage sale from 7a.m. to 3p.m. Friday-Saturday, June19-20. Shoppers will finda wide variety of treasures, including clothing, toys, home décor,tools, housewares and more. Proceeds will supportthe mission and ministry of the church.

Thepublic is invited to the sale, as well as to Sunday worship servicesat10a.m. For more information on the events, call(225) 665-2707 or visit www.stfrands.org.

The encouraging news is that Isee resilience in teenagers every day.Isee it in my counseling sessions, in schools andin conversations after parentpresentations. Isee young people whocare deeply,persevere throughdifficultcircumstances and continueshowing up despite enormous pressures. They’re nota weaker generation.They’rejust more exposed. As we adults cometounderstand that reality we’ll be better equipped to help them

Hints from Heloise

John, my pet peeve with modern English is the way that so manypeople use theword “like” as afiller word. Is silence so terrible that we have to say “like” five times in one sentence? When did sounding educated become something to avoid? —Heloise Aclean cook

Dear Heloise: Regarding the letter about using correct English, what about changes that have become acceptable to everyone except us older folk? My pet peeve is the use of “less” in place of “fewer.” For example, “we need less ap-

Dear Heloise: Afterruining too many cookbook pages with spills and splashes, Ifinally found a simple solutionwhile making amessy chocolate pound cake from abeautiful, newautographed cookbook.I’ve always

usedclear top-loading sheet protectorstostore recipesfrom magazines, newspapers and friends in abinder. Now Iplace oneortwo sheet protectors over the open pagesofmycookbook while it sits on the cookbook stand. The bottom rim of the holder keeps them in place. If needed, a paper clip can secure the protector directly to the page. Ialso keep asheet protector tucked inside the cookbooks that Iuse most often, so one is always handy This works great foronline recipes; just prop aclip or aprotector over the front of your laptop or tablet screen to guard against splatters! —Jami R., viaemail Sendahinttoheloise@heloise com.

MARTINI

Continuedfrom page5C

theobjective. On Fridays, theservers come in 30 minutes early to learn new details,whether theeducation is on wineornew items.The goal is to enhancetheir knowledge andcapabilitiestoprovide an elevated level of service.

With acombination of top-tier service, high-qualityingredients and asophisticated, upscale environment,the restaurant setsitself apart from others.

“We’re not really trying to competewithanyone in town,” Carbo said. “We’re trying tobecompletely different.”

Theinitialsuspense of Supper Club starts from the outside —it’s anondescript cement building hiddenoff of Perkins Road.The building may seem intimidating to guestsasthey open the gigantic door

“It’sanintimidation and almost gives you butterflies if you’ve never been here,”Carbo said.

Co-owner Mackenzie Landry, alongwithhusband Brandon Landry, worked withaluxury design team to build an environment that’ssophisticated, yet playful, to create aworld apart from theordinary

Afew,well-thought-out details include the chainwalls —handmade in Barcelona, Spain —as well as the chandeliers purchased from Milan.

Carbo introduced “goodie fries,” asmall gift from the kitchen to welcome the guests in and provide comfort.

Pushingthe envelope

To maintain its edgy,mysterious and unapologetic reputation, SupperClub consistently adds new menu itemstokeep guestsontheir toes Thenewestcocktail, Diamonds Are Forever,upped theante—not necessarily for thedrink, but for thethree-carat tennis bracelet from Anton’sFine Jewelry that’s presented withit. Supper Club doesn’tdotraditional marketing,

SEOULSTOP

Continuedfrom page5C

Carbo said. The purpose of the $5,000 cocktail is to push the envelope, elevating the customer experience The inspiration camefrom Papi Steak,arestaurant in Miami, Florida,thatsells a$33,000 martini with aBirkin bag.

Supper Club decided to make the cocktail “fit”Baton Rouge by giving theirown take on it with Diamonds Are Forever

“It’snot on themenufor us to sell abunch of them.It’snot on themenutobelike ‘man,this is going to generate abunch of sales, andthisisgoing to make so much money,’ ”Carbo said. “Weactually don’teven makemoney on the necklace.”

Alot of psychology went into putting the cocktail on the menu, said Noah Trahan, aSupper Club bartenderand server. The restaurant already has steep prices, so the$5,000 martini makes the $200 steak look “normal.”

“What that does is, when you see somethingthat’ssoexpensive like that, it makes everything else feel less expensive,” Trahan said.

Despiteputting the cocktail on the menu with theinitialthought that it wouldn’tsell, six have sold in the six months it has been on the menu.

Supper Club’s ‘why

The presentation of thecocktail

“The second location will be more large in terms of square footage,” Kim said. “We’re going to be able to offer more variety of deli foods. We’regoing to have afull kitchen.” Amongthe offerings are Korean beautyproducts, aK-pop section, Korean stationery and two photo booths. New food items include Korean corn dogs, fried foods and Korean side dishes also known as banchan. Manyofthe offerings at theoriginallocation will

isn’tonly an experience for the guest who purchased it, but for every guest in the restaurant. The lights go dim, immediately generating suspense, while the song “Diamonds Are Forever” from the James Bond franchise plays over the speakers. While the martini is being crafted with Belvedere 10, aluxury Polish vodka brand, flashlights shine over thecocktail. Once created, the staff follows the server who presents the cocktail with sparklers and flashlights.

To complete thepresentation, the server puts on awhite glove andcarefully places thediamond bracelet on the guest’swrist.

“A lotoftimes, especially after the presentation, I’ll go back to my tables, and they always ask, ‘What was that?’ and I’m like,‘Well, that is the Diamonds Are Forever,’ ” Trahan said.

Supper Club has earned its reputation as ahigh-end dining experiencebycreating one-of-a-kind dishes using premium ingredients —leaving each guest witha new taste and story.Nomatter the person or theoccasion, the“why” behind Supper Club remains top priority

“You’vegot to have awhy,” Carbo said. “And our whyisthe guest experience.”

Jan Risher contributed to this report.

STAFFPHOTOSByJAVIER GALLEGOS

Chef Leighton Carbo chills amartini glass before serving the DiamondsAre Forevercocktail, a$5,000 martini that comes withadiamond tennis bracelet from Anton’sFineJewelry,atSupperClub on May29.

The DiamondsAre Forevermartini is crafted with Belvedere 10, aluxury Polish vodka brand, while flashlights shine over the cocktail

GEMInI (May 21-June20) Putpressure on yourself to do better. Howyou present your beliefs andthe changes you want to bringabout will make adifference to theoutcome. Do your research

cAncER (June 21-July 22) Don't waffle; the sooner you take care of your responsibilities, theeasier it will be to deal with criticism or someone trying to make you look bad. Carefully choose the information you share.

LEo (July 23-Aug. 22) Liveandlearn.Experienceisthebestteacher.Yourgenerous attitude and helping hand will put you in thespotlight, impressing someone you'll enjoy getting to know better

VIRGo (Aug. 23-sept.22) Timing is everything, and by picking the right moment, you can sway how others feel and what theychoose to do. Akind gesture, remark or offerwillset thestage for what's to come.

LIBRA (sept.23-oct. 23) Bypass anyone who stands in your way. Make unexpected changes that will separate you from the crowd. Social settings will give you achance to pick up on what others are up to.

scoRPIo (oct. 24-nov. 22) Explore your options, and put your energy into something you love doing. Whetherit's physical, mental or expanding your options through networking, educationalpursuits or travel, pursue whatmakes you happy.

sAGITTARIus (nov. 23-Dec. 21) Invite change into your life. You need to shake things up if you want to getwhatyou

desire in your life. Focusoneliminating whatbrings you downand holds you back.

cAPRIcoRn(Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Fix up your surroundings to make your lifeeasier. The difference afunctional space makes will encourage youtoentertain more and ensure those you livewith appreciate your thoughtfulness.

AQuARIus (Jan.20-Feb.19) Money managementwill pay off. What youbudget for will help bring about changes at home that make your life less cumbersome. Takeone step at atime; get your facts straight.

PIscEs (Feb.20-March20) You may feel likecelebrating, but beforeyou do, consider thecost involved andthe laborintensive recoveryyou arelikely to face. Choose your battles wisely and only change what's necessary ARIEs (March 21-April 19) Take amoment to digest what's unfolding around you. Question, assess and say no to anything that causes doubt. Be passionate about whatyou do andsay,and you'll be the one to captivate your audience.

TAuRus (April 20-May20) Deep breaths in and out will help you wardoff anxiety that comes withuncertainty. When somethingisn't clear, ask for more details. Align yourself with people who are on the same page as you.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. ©2026 by NEA, Inc dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Celebrity Ciphercryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, pastand present.Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

ToDAy'scLuE:A EQuALs E

CeLebrItY

For better or For WorSe

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe AndGrIMM

LAGoon

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. Theobject is to place the numbers 1to9inthe empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 boxcontains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of theSudoku increases from Monday to Sunday

Yesterday’s PuzzleAnswer

THe wiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS CurTiS

Bridge

By PHILLIP ALDER

Thomas J. Watson, aformer head of IBM,said,“Wouldyoulikemetogiveyou aformula for success? It’s quite simple, really.Doubleyourrate of failure. You are thinking of failure as the enemy of success. Butitisn’t at all. You can be discouraged by failure —oryou can learn from it. So go ahead andmakemistakes. Make allyou can. Because, remember, that’s where you will find success.”

You will have trouble finding bridge partners if youmake alot of mistakes But if you learn from them and turn your rate of failure nearlytozero, you will become very popular.

In today’s deal, though, “double” is the key word.East opens four hearts, showing agood eight-card suit and limited high-card power. Then, when his opponents cruise into six spades, he doubles. What message does that transmitto West? What should West lead?

Doublingaslambecauseyouthinkthat it’s goingdownismathematically inadvisable. Whenthe opponents are nonvulnerable, youturnplus 50 intoplus 100. But if the slam makes, youhavechanged minus 980 into minus 1210.

So,manyyearsago,TheodoreLightner had the idea of using the double as leaddirecting. It says that East has avoid somewhere and hopes hispartner can find it with his opening lead.

In this deal,West clearlyexpects his partner to have adiamond void. Therefore, he should lead his diamond ace. Then, though, when everyone follows suit, West should rethink. East’s void mustbeinclubs. West should shift to that suit at tricktwo,here defeating the contract

©2026 by NEA, Inc dist.ByAndrews 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 four or

Average

today’s thought “The law of theLord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of theLord is sure, makingwise thesimple.” Psalms 19:7

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

wuzzles

loCKhorNs

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles

hidato

mallard