The Acadiana Advocate 07-28-2026

SAINTS TRAINING CAMP What

HEATING UP

BY JA’KORI MADISON Staff writer

Acadiana has endured several days of triple-digit heat index values, and forecasters expect the dangerous conditions to continue through Tuesday before rain chances increase later this week.

The National Weather Service forecasts highs in the upper 90s Tuesday, but high humidity will make it feel between 105 and 115 degrees during the afternoon, increasing the risk of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Overnight temperatures are expected to remain in the upper 70s, providing little opportunity for people and buildings to cool down before another day of oppressive heat

The National Weather Service urges residents to postpone or reschedule strenuous outdoor activities, particularly during the hottest part of the afternoon.

Those who must be outside should drink plenty of fluids, wear lightweight clothing, take frequent breaks in the shade or an air-conditioned building and check on relatives, neighbors and others who may be vulnerable to the heat.

Anyone showing signs of heat illness should be moved to a cool location immediately Heat stroke is a medical emergency, and officials urge people to call 911 if someone becomes confused, loses consciousness or stops sweating.

BY JOEY CAPPELLETTI

and MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press

Charter school subject of probe

Police investigating alleged payroll fraud

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer

The Lafayette Police Department is investigating possible payroll fraud at Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy’s lower campus.

Sgt. Robin Green, public information officer with Lafayette police, confirmed that the department has an active investigation into payroll fraud at the pre-K through fourth grade school on Vienne Lane in Lafayette.

Tuesday’s forecast calls for a high near 95 degrees, with heat index values as high as 109 degrees. Wednesday is expected to be mostly sunny with a high near 97.

Relief is expected to arrive later this week as a more active weather pattern brings increasing chances for afternoon showers and thunderstorms. Rain chances increase to 50% Thursday, when highs are expected to reach about 95 degrees, before tapering to 30% Friday with highs near 94. Forecasters expect daily chances for afternoon showers and thunderstorms to continue into the weekend, helping ease the prolonged stretch of dangerous heat.

Older adults, young children, people with chronic medical conditions and those who work or exercise outdoors face the greatest risk from prolonged exposure to extreme heat.

The Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office also is reportedly investigating, but attorney Jenifer Schaye said the office is unable to comment or even confirm that an investigation is underway Don Landry, district attorney for the 15th Judicial District that includes Lafayette, said his office does not investigate unless it receives a police report.

The Acadiana Advocate has obtained letters dated March 30 to the legislative auditor and Landry by Charter Schools USA which provides charter management services for the Lafayette Charter Foundation.

The letters give notice of a preliminary internal investigation at Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy The notifications were made to comply with Louisiana

ä Trump defends his tariffs during stop in Michigan. PAGE 6A

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump on Monday demanded that Senate Majority Leader John Thune cancel the chamber’s upcoming August break until senators pass a strict proof-of-citizenship voting bill, even as Republicans lack the votes to advance it. Trump has repeatedly urged Thune to scrap the legislative filibuster, which effectively sets a 60-vote threshold for most legislation in the 100-member Senate, or find another workaround to pass the voting bill, known as the SAVE America Act. But Republicans hold only a 53-47 majority, and Thune has consistently said they don’t have the votes to pass the bill or change the rules to get around the filibuster

Trump demands Senate pass voting bill before taking break Cassidy Kennedy ä See SENATE, page 4A

BY MARK BALLARD Staff writer

explain the purpose, strategy and off-ramp. “What we do need to do, though, is have a national dialogue, where the president comes to the American people, comes to Congress, (and) Congress helps make a tough decision,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge, said Sunday on

STAFF PHOTO By BRAd KEMP

Ki’Lynn Arceneaux, center, joins other children trying to stay cool by running and playing through the fountain at Parc Sans Souci on Monday in Lafayette.

STAFF PHOTO By BRAd

McConnell remains in rehab, statement says

WASHINGTON The office of Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., released an update on his health Monday this time with a statement from the congressional Office of Attending Physician stating the senator has not yet been medically cleared to leave a rehabilitation facility where he is undergoing physical therapy

The update comes shortly before his home state’s annual Fancy Farm picnic, which features speeches from politicians throughout the state seeking elected office. McConnell said in a written statement that he won’t be able to attend the event

“There’s no place I’d rather be on the first Saturday in August than with the good people of western Kentucky feasting on pork and mutton,” McConnell said McConnell, 84, was admitted to the hospital on June 14 and revealed weeks later that it was due to a fall.

‘Today’ host makes plea in mom’s disappearance

“Today” show host Savannah Guthrie says in a new video that her family is living an unending nightmare nearly six months after her mother’s disappearance and pleads with her kidnappers: “Tell us where to look for her.”

The video released Monday is the latest public plea from the journalist about 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie since her disappearance on Feb. 1 from her home just outside Tucson, Arizona Savannah Guthrie said her family will never stop looking for her.

“The world can be a cruel and unforgiving place and I know that you have tried to do things the right way,” she said. “So I’m asking you, begging you, to do the right thing now Make the right choice. Help us find her Tell us where to look for her I truly believe it is never too late to do the right thing.” Authorities believe Nancy Guthrie was kidnapped, abducted or otherwise taken against her will on Feb. 1.

Comey: Seashell post was political speech

WASHINGTON — Former FBI Director James Comey urged a judge on Monday to throw out federal charges against him, arguing that a photo of seashells arranged on a beach he posted on social media was not a call to violence against President Donald Trump but protected political speech.

Comey’s lawyers argue the government cannot prove the Instagram photo of seashells in the numerical arrangement of “86 47” constituted a “true threat” against the Republican president, who fired Comey in 2017 and has publicly called for his prosecution. The slogan — which has long meant to “get rid of” or “eject” — has been featured on thousands of items sold online and regularly displayed at protests, defense lawyers wrote in court papers. “But the government now singles out Mr Comey to prosecute one of the President’s most prominent critics for publishing another person’s statement of political opposition,” his attorney’s wrote. “That attempt to suppress core political speech contravenes both the statutes at issue and the First Amendment.” The seashells case against Comey was the second in months targeting the ex-FBI director

Performer accidentally shot with arrow at circus

MIDDLETOWN, N.Y A circus performer was accidentally shot in the neck by an arrow during a performance at a county fair in upstate New York, police and organizers said.

It happened Friday night at the Orange County Fair in Middletown, northwest of New York City, according to state police.

Ana Daza Tavera, 42, and Edwin Cuervo Rangel, 38, a married couple from Waukesha, Wisconsin, had been performing their crossbow sharpshooting act when she accidentally struck him in the neck with an arrow as he held up a foam target, police said.

Rangel was airlifted to a hospital in stable condition and the circus was canceled for the night. He was released from the hospital Saturday after the arrow was safely removed and he received stitches

SEATTLE

Documents: At least 3 shooters at festival

Authorities say 1 among the dead after shooting

BY GENE JOHNSON Associated Press

SEATTLE Police now say there were at least three suspects involved in a shootout at a crowded food festival near Seattle’s Space Needle over the weekend. One of them was among those killed in the violence In a document filed in juvenile court in Seattle, where a 15-year-old arrested in the case did not appear for a scheduled initial appearance Monday, police said they believe there were at least three shooters, rather than two: the 15-year-old; an acquaintance who died at the scene; and “at least one other unknown suspect.”

“Based on the evidence at the scene, investigators believe” the 15-year-old “and one of the deceased engaged in a gunfight with at least one other unknown suspect,” the document said.

The teen was being held in juvenile detention for investigation of firearms violations and first-degree assault ahead of the scheduled court appearance, Mayor Katie Wilson said at a news conference. It was not immediately clear why the teen did not appear in court.

The gunfire erupted around 6 p.m. Sunday in the waning hours of the Bite of Seattle, leaving three people dead and at least four others injured. The annual three-day festival draws hundreds of food and retail vendors and performers to Seattle Center, a sprawling park and event space in the shadow of the Space Needle Many attendees rushed into campus buildings or ran from the park at the sound of the shots.

News that there were at least three suspects followed a series of confused statements from city officials concerning the shooting.

On Sunday, the police department wait-

ed five hours to share with the public that one shooter was in custody and that they believed another to be on the loose. Earlier, the mayor had wrongly announced two people were in custody

At a news conference Monday just two hours before the 15-year-old was due in court, Police Chief Shon Barnes said investigators weren’t sure if the second shooter was among the dead. Neither he nor the mayor made any reference to additional shooters. Barnes had been out of town Sunday, attending a conference of Black law enforcement executives in Dallas.

The officials have defended their handling of the case, saying they were trying to ensure they provided accurate information about chaotic events.

Two people died at the scene and a third died at a hospital They were described as two men, ages 19 and 44, and a woman, 56.

The four wounded included a 2-year-old boy, who was in satisfactory condition Monday The others two men ages 23 and 27, and a woman, 39 — were discharged, a hospital spokesperson said.

One of the victims was walking a bicycle when struck, the court document said. The toddler was with his mother Vendors were allowed to return to the sprawling campus Monday morning to collect their equipment and merchandise.

Skewered squid on grills, roasted ducks in ovens and plates full of food were among the items left behind as people fled the gunfire.

Near the spot of the shooting, a stain of what appeared to be blood was still visible in the morning. A candlelight vigil was planned Monday night at the center’s International Fountain.

Dozens of officers were providing security at the event and some saw one of the suspects firing, authorities said. A large number of police and emergency crews responded and began evacuating the area. Police then searched an IMAX theater on the grounds where they initially believed a second shooter had fled.

Wisconsin tornado causes extensive damage, cuts power

BY SCOTT BAUER and CYBELE MAYES-OSTERMAN Associated Press

MADISON,Wis.— A tornado struck Wisconsin on Monday, splintering homes, downing trees and knocking out power to more than 30,000 people.

The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado in Winnebago County about 90 miles northwest of Milwaukee Damage was reported in cities including Appleton and Menasha, where Police Chief Matt Albrecht said a number of businesses and homes were “severely impacted.”

The tornado ripped the roofs off homes and flipped over vehicles in one neighborhood in Menasha, just blocks from the shores of Lake Winnebago. Video showed a trail of destruction, with some homes reduced to their outer walls.

Greg Van Driest was working in downtown Appleton when the sky got as dark as night.

“The word we all were using was ‘ominous,’ ” he said. “It’s like, ‘Whoa, look at that.’ You looked outside and you thought it was three in the morning, it was that dark.”

Gordon Hintz, the top elected official in Winnebago County, said he wasn’t aware of any fatalities or injuries, but emergency officials were still searching.

“Obviously, the footage looks devastating,” Hintz said. “Clearly some significant damage done with power lines down and things like that.”

Hintz said he’s heard multiple reports of buildings that were completely destroyed and vehicles overturned on roadways. All storm warnings that could

be made ahead of time to get people to safety were activated, he said.

“Obviously when you look at the damage, Mother Nature doesn’t really care,” he said.

National Weather Service meteorologist Holley Kamba said the agency was receiving reports of a variety of damage in southern Outagamie County and eastern Winnebago County,

“We have been receiving calls of damage with a lot of trees down, power lines down,” Kamba said. “We’ve been searching for some pictures of the structural damage.”

So far, there have been no reports of injuries, she said.

The twister was moving over Lake Winnebago and moving southward toward Fond du Lac County around 12:25 p.m., the National Weather Service said.

National Weather Service meteorologists in Green Bay issued a tornado warning for the Fox Cities region, which includes Appleton, Menasha and Neenah, at 11:59 a.m.

Administration urges justices to clear voting order

Trump’s plan for mail-in ballots blocked by lower court

BY LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press

WASHINGTON The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Monday to clear the way for an executive order from President Donald Trump that could dramatically change mail-in voting ahead of November’s midterm elections.

The Justice Department asked the justices to halt for now lower court decisions blocking work to implement the sweeping changes in nearly half the country

The request comes shortly after Trump delivered a primetime address elevating his yearslong push to raise doubts about the legitimacy of elections, and could be one of several voting-related challenges before the court ahead of the high-stakes midterm contest.

Trump ordered the government in March to create a “state citizenship list” of eligible voters and deliver mail ballots only to people on that list.

Democratic officials in 23 states and the District of Columbia sued, saying the Constitution gives states and Congress the authority to set election rules, not the president. Their attorneys have said Trump’s proposed changes are ripe for abuse and could cause chaos.

A judge in Massachusetts blocked the order for the plaintiff states, and a divided 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel left her ruling in place over the weekend.

The executive order issued in March calls for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the commissioner of the Social Security Administration to create a federal list of eligible voters. It tells the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mail ballots only to people

on that list. The order also calls for ballots to have secure envelopes with unique bar codes for tracking. Federal funding could be withheld from states and localities that don’t comply The appeal argues that Trump’s order lays out “general policy guidance” and doesn’t directly dictate how states run their elections. Solicitor General D. John Sauer asked the high court to freeze the judge’s order as lawsuits play out, calling it indefensible.

“And the injunction is especially indefensible because the agencies are still deliberating over how (if at all) to implement the Order, yet the district court preemptively decided that whatever the agencies may choose to do will necessarily be unlawful,” Sauer wrote.

He urged the high court to move quickly, arguing that any new policies would have to be in place as soon as August to be effective for the November elections. A response to the appeal is due Aug. 3. Trump promoted the proposed changes as safeguards to keep non-U.S. citizens from voting. Noncitizen voting has been shown to be rare, and is a felony that can be punishable by deportation.

U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani in Boston, who was nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, agreed in June to halt implementation for the Nov 3 elections. Her ruling differed from that of another federal judge based in Washington. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, who was appointed by Trump, found in May it was too early to block the order because it had not yet been implemented.

The office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who is leading the lawsuit, did not immediately comment on the Trump administration’s appeal. New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office declined to comment.

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ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By LINdSEy WASSON

The U.S flag flies at half-staff Monday over the Space Needle as cleanup continues the day after a shooting at Seattle Center during the Bite of Seattle food festival.

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By CHRISTINA VOGEL Storm clouds gather Monday over Oshkosh, Wis.

Mediators see progress in efforts to halt Iran war

drone attacks rattle region

BY SAMY MAGDY and ELENA BECATOROS Associated Press

CAIRO Mediators have achieved progress in getting the United States and Iran back to negotiations, regional officials said Monday after both sides paused attacks following a period of rapidly escalating tensions. But scattered attacks by armed groups across the region underscored the lingering tensions.

Saudi Arabia said it had shot down drones fired by Iran-backed militias in Iraq that had targeted its petroleum facilities. Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen meanwhile claimed to have attacked Saudi oil facilities as part of a separate but related conflict. It was unclear if they referred to the same attack. Neither the U.S. nor Iran reported carrying out any

attacks for three days a respite after about two weeks of sustained bombardments that had led to increasing fears of a return to all-out war

President Donald Trump said Iran had asked for more discussions, reaching out directly “because we’ve been hitting them very hard.” Iran has said there are no direct talks underway

“We’re having good talks, so we’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters Monday on Air Force One. “I think there’s a good chance that something could happen. And if it does, good. If it doesn’t, we go back to doing what we were doing two days ago.”

The two regional officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door talks, said mediators led by Qatar and Pakistan were working to bridge the gap between Washington and Tehran to return to an interim ceasefire deal that had collapsed after exchanges of fire

Zelenskyy, U.K.’s new prime minister meet

BY JILL LAWLESS Associated Press

LONDON Ukrainian Presi-

dent Volodymyr Zelenskyy and new U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham met Monday at a British naval base and discussed joint drone projects and Ukraine’s urgent need for ballistic missile interceptors to counter Russian attacks.

Zelenskyy’s visit was the first by a foreign leader since Burnham took office a week ago, and the prime minister said it signaled the U.K.’s “unwavering” support for Kyiv to defend itself against Russia’s 4-yearold, full-scale invasion. His predecessor, Keir

Starmer, was in the Ukrainian capital less than two weeks ago in his last overseas trip before leaving office, and Burnham said he planned to visit soon.

Burnham is the fifth British prime minister Zelenskyy has dealt with since Russia launched the war in 2022

“You are the first leader I have welcomed in person since taking office, and that is no accident,” Burnham told Zelenskyy It is intended to send a very clear message: we are with Ukraine 100%, I am personally with you 100% and I will honor every commitment this country has made to Ukraine in full.”

In addition to the attack on Saudi Arabia, two drone attacks were reported against a Kurdish Iranian dissident group in Iraq on Monday, and Jordan said it had shot down two drones, without saying where they originated. There were no reports of casualties or damage.

Iran and Ukraine, meanwhile, have been publicly feuding since Ukraine fired on at least one Iranian vessel in the Caspian Sea over the

weekend. Iran, which said a sailor had been killed in the attack, is an important ally of Russia in its war against Ukraine and helped Moscow build up its drone expertise.

The U.S. paused attacks after targeting Iranian coastal areas and infrastructure in a nearly two-week escalation sparked by Iran’s firing at ships trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for global oil shipments. Iran had responded to

the strikes with missile and drone attacks on countries hosting U.S. troops, killing at least three service members at a base in Jordan and one in Iraq.

Iran halted its attacks following the American pause, Tehran’s army spokesperson told Iranian state TV on Sunday

The Iran war has drawn down the U.S. stockpile of key weapons systems like missiles and interceptors, analysts say

Asked if the U.S munitions stockpile was running low, Trump said both that it was “in very good shape,” and “I’d like to have more, to be honest.” Experts have questioned how long both the U.S. and Iran can afford to keep up attacks.

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has told Trump that the state of the country’s stockpile could have an impact on military operations in Iran, a U.S. official said.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to

discuss sensitive conversations, said this message was delivered as part of Caine’s regular duties of providing military advice and options to Trump.

Caine told lawmakers at a hearing last week that “airpower has its limits” in achieving military objectives. The U.S military has employed airstrikes almost exclusively against Iran. One of the regional officials who spoke to AP on Monday described the progress made in mediation efforts as “significant.” He said mediators were working with Iran and Oman on a mechanism for managing vessels’ transit through the Strait of Hormuz, the flashpoint for the latest strikes and counterstrikes.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, said during a news conference in Tehran on Monday that “mediators may convey messages to us from the American side” but that there were no direct negotiations.

Judge: D4vd to stand trial in killing of teen

BY ANDREW DALTON AP entertainment writer

LOSANGELES A judge ruled

Monday that there is enough evidence to put singer D4vd on trial in the killing and dismemberment of 14-year-old

Celeste Rivas Hernandez after, authorities said, she had threatened to expose their relationship and crater his career

Los Angeles Judge Charlaine Olmedo decided the evidence prosecutors presented at a preliminary hearing that spanned five days provided probable cause for a trial on charges of murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14 and unlawful mutilation of human remains.

“The people have met

their burden on all counts,” Olmedo said. She ordered that D4vd continue to be held without bail.

D4vd, the 21-year-old singer born David Burke whose career was steeply rising before the allegations emerged, has pleaded not guilty He showed no

emotion when the judge issued her ruling. Defense lawyers declined to comment outside court after the ruling. Olmedo emphasized that the probable cause standard for a preliminary hearing like this is much lower than the threshold at trial. However, prosecutors asserted the evidence was overwhelming.

“Based on the mountains of evidence presented,” Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman said, “all of the allegations have been proved way beyond the standard required.”

By StevieCavalier Licciardi stevie.licciardi@theadvocate.com

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Formoreinformation on the

ISNA PHOTO By RAZIEH POUdAT

Small boats line the shore as cargo ships and other commercial vessels are anchored Monday in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran.

“John Thune should not allow the United States Senate to ‘leave town’ until it passes The Save America Act or, far better still, TERMINATES THE FILIBUSTER,” Trump wrote on social media. He later insisted to reporters Monday that he has a good relationship with the Senate majority leader but said Thune has “got to get his job done.”

It’s the latest escalation in a monthslong pressure campaign by Trump and others in the GOP base to pass the SAVE Act ahead of the midterms. A small but vocal group of Republican senators has also increasingly pressed Thune to find a way forward. Thune responded Monday afternoon, telling reporters he would be supportive of canceling the break if there was a path forward on the legislation.

“We voted on it one, two, three, four, five times already,” said Thune, who counted each number on his hand for reporters. “Show me how this ends. What’s the picture of victory at the end?” House Republicans have also attempted to create another path for the legislation through the budget reconciliation process, which would allow grant money associated with voting rules to pass the Senate with a simple majority.

The House last week approved a budget framework that included $10 billion for voting-related changes aligned with the SAVE America Act. But Thune has said Republicans don’t currently have the votes for that approach, either

An important period

The fight threatens to complicate the Senate’s final legislative sprint before the August break, when

“I

Thune had hoped to focus on a long list of priorities that includes government funding, cryptocurrency legislation and sanctions on Russia. The August break, scheduled to start on Aug 7, is a pivotal stretch for senators to return home and campaign ahead of the midterm elections.

Several Republican senators are facing competitive races, including Maine Sen. Susan Collins, Ohio Sen. Jon Husted and Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan. Republicans currently hold a 53-47 Senate major-

ity Republicans are confronting broader political headwinds as well, including an unpopular war in Iran, surging gas prices and costs that remain high for voters.

Thune has enjoyed broad support from his GOP conference all year as he’s pushed back on Trump’s demands. He previously kept the SAVE Act on the Senate floor for weeks in an effort to build additional support, but was unable to secure the votes needed to advance it.

“You can stay here until the cows

come home and it’s not going to change anything,” said Texas Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican who lost a primary earlier this year to a Trump-backed candidate. “We keep overpromising and underdelivering, which is not a recipe for voter morale or high voter participation in the midterm elections.”

Utah Sen. Mike Lee, who has led the push for the bill in the Senate, escalated his pressure late last week, warning that how Republicans handle the SAVE America Act “could impact not only the Novem-

IRAN

Continued from page 1A

“We all need to do a better job messaging,” Sen. John Kennedy R-Madisonville, said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” adding that President Donald Trump or one of his top advisers should “either in a speech or in a long press conference, explain what’s going on in Iran. Why we went in. Why we’re still there.”

Over the next two weeks, the Senate will be considering legislation to spend more money replacing military hardware that has been used up during the hostilities that began Feb. 28 and have continued off and on since, pausing temporar-

going to work with the Iranian leadership.”

SEN. JOHN KENNEdy, R-Madisonville

ily from time to time under fragile ceasefires to negotiate a settlement. “I don’t have enough information to know about continuing the attacks,” Kennedy said. “The president likes the daily attacks.

He believes that sometimes you have to kill a few chickens to scare the monkeys. I don’t think that’s going to work with the Iranian leadership.”

The Senate passed a resolution in June urging an end to the conflict or for Trump to come to Congress for permission to continue the military action The House passed one on Thursday But the resolutions carried no enforcement weight and acted merely as a symbolic criticism of the war

Cassidy in June had a shouting match with Trump during a closed-door meeting with senators over why he supported a procedural vote leading to a congressional demand for war powers authority He eventually voted against the actual

Lafayette Renaissance Charter Academy serves

CHARTER

Continued from page 1A

Revised Statute 24:523, which requires reporting “upon identifying reasonable cause to believe that public payroll funds may have been improperly paid,” the letters state “We were made aware of irregularities regarding payroll and immediately launched an investigation,” Colleen Reynolds, spokesperson for Charter Schools USA, said Monday “We are working collaboratively with law enforcement and have taken all appropriate legal and personnel action.”

Charter Schools USA was notified on March 28 of concerns around irregular payroll activity involving sub-

ber midterm elections, but also the Senate GOP leadership elections.”

“Leaders must lead. And if they don’t, they’re not leaders,” Lee wrote on social media Friday

Frustrated by the pressure when he doesn’t have a route to pass the bill, Thune has urged Trump, Lee and others to help him find the votes. Trump on Friday said he’d “certainly be willing” to help call senators.

Asked last week if Trump is frustrated with Thune, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that “his patience is running out.” But Trump told reporters on Air Force One Monday while traveling to an event in Michigan, that he hasn’t “even thought” about potential replacements for Thune.

The late-summer dispute echoes a similar fight before last year’s August recess, when Trump pressed Thune to keep senators in Washington to clear a backlog of his nominees. The Senate ultimately left town without a deal after negotiations with Democrats collapsed.

What is the SAVE America Act

The SAVE America Act, which stands for Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, would require Americans to prove they are citizens when they register to vote, mostly through a valid U.S. passport or birth certificate. It would also require a valid photo identification before voters can cast ballots, which some states already demand.

Voting experts have said the bill could disenfranchise some 20 million American voters who don’t have birth certificates or other documents readily available. Trump has made it his legislative priority in 2026, saying it would “guarantee the midterms” and falsely claimed that election cheating is “rampant.” He previously declined to sign any other legislation until it was passed.

through fourth grades.

stitute employees, Alonzo Luce, state superintendent, wrote. It is one of the largest education management companies in the country, managing charter schools in seven Louisiana parishes, including Lafayette and Vermilion parishes.

The reported concerns, he wrote, include possible falsification of time records, improper payroll entry and unauthorized compensation.

The company immediately notified its state team leadership and human resources, placed four employees — regional school operations administrator administrative assistant and two elementary daily substitutes — on administrative leave and conducted initial interviews. Luce said written statements were

requested from the four individuals and received on March 29.

A preliminary review of payroll and timecard records, Luce wrote, identified repetitive and uniform time entries for substitutes, frequent manager-initiated additions and edits to timecards, as well as recorded work schedules that may conflict with employees’ enrollment in college courses in other geographic areas.

The preliminary review also identified significant bonus and stipend payments issued to administrative workers for which documentation of scope, authorization and approval remains under review, Luce wrote. Charter schools in Louisiana receive funding through the state’s Minimum Foundation Program formula.

measure when it came to the floor, saying the administration had briefed him in the meantime.

Cassidy went on to tell CNN on Sunday that the U.S. would not abandon troops or agree to allow Iran to have control of the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world’s oil is supplied.

The closures and chaos at the strait are responsible for the dramatic increase in the price of oil and thus the price of gasoline and diesel fuel.

High-cost energy is responsible for higher prices across the board. A series of polls show that up to two-

thirds of the U.S. public oppose the hostilities with Iran The Pentagon reported Monday that 18 service members have been killed and another 624 have been injured.

Email Mark Ballard at mballard@theadvocate. com.

ASSOCIATEd PRESS FILE PHOTO By ALLISON ROBBERT

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.d., said Monday he would be supportive of canceling the Senate’s break

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areal threat today. If that’snot enough, the UV index is at the extreme leveland the rain chances todayare very

BY WILL WEISSERT

and DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press

MILFORD,Mich. President Donald Trumpcameto Michigan on Mondayand argued that his economic policies have revived the auto industry and American manufacturing,even as some businesses contend that the sweeping tariffs he’s imposed have actually hurt the state.

Trump visited asprawling General Motors facility in the Detroit suburb of Milford that is atesting ground for its vehicles. He pumped afist after watching atrio of drag racesthat involved muscle cars and luxury vehicles like the CorvetteZ06, Cadillac Escalade V, and EVHummer —events the announcer promised were “all America First power.” It wasthe kind of thundering speed the president is expecting at an IndyCar race in Washingtonnext month, which is part of America’s 250th birthday celebrations. In asubsequent speech inside adesign facility,the president cheered GM’s plans to expand production domestically in coming years

and declared himselfapresident who was standing up for auto workers“at longlast.

“I’vedonemorefor you than your parents, OK?” he joked.

Michigan was one of the 2024 battlegrounds Trump flippedafter it backed Democrat Joe Bidenin2020. But the statehas seen partsof its economy affectedbythe president’stariffs,including on imported cars and auto parts.Automakers have long said tariffs increase the cost of doing business, which leads to higher pricesfor consumers.

Company officialsled Trump ona tour where he saw various GM models, includingthe latest versions of the Chevrolet Suburban, GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado —the production of whichhe argued hadbeen boostedbytariffs At one point,POTUS grabbeda penand signed the hood ofa white Corvette that was madespecifically forAmerica’s 250th birthday “They’vecomea long way, he said to reportersabout the Detroit-based automaker during the tour.“It’samazing whattariffs aredoing for GM.”Trumpsaid he’sbeen

Trumpdefends hissweepingtariffs in Michigan stop

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By ALEX

Presidentdonald Trumppauses Mondayduring aspeech at aGeneral Motors facility in Milford, Mich.

good to thecompany but he declined to saymore.

“The rest of the world doesn’tloveme, but that’s OK,” he said, alluding to tariffs. “It’s called ‘America first.’” The president’sspeech lastedmore than an hour and was wide ranging —hitting on the economy, thewar in Iranand the U.S. military operation thattoppled the leader of Venezuela.

He also touched on communism, crime rates, his administration’sefforts to transform the nation’scapital and even how carefully he treads to keep from tripping whileonstage or deplaning

from Air Force One

With early primary voting already underway,Trump calledonstage Republican Reps. Lisa McClain, Tom Barrett andTim Walberg, as well as gubernatorial candidate John James and Senate candidateMike Rogers. Rogers is unopposedin the Senate primary,but the GOP gubernatorial contest pits James, who is backed by Trump,against Perry Johnson, abusinessman turned politician who has launched unsuccessful campaigns before, including for president in 2024. Anew roundofsteep import leviesistaking effect

on dozens of U.S. trading partners. YetTrump has singled out Canada with tariffs as high as 50% on awide array of its products, including cars. The GM facility he toured is in Oakland County,which encompassesmuch of Detroit’s northern suburbs. Once a Republican stronghold,ithas increasingly leaned Democratic, backingBidenagainst Trump in 2020 andVicePresident Kamala Harris against Trump four years later GM says itsfacility is the oldest dedicated vehicle testing operation in the United States, where 4,200 employees work to refine nearly every vehicle the company makes before theyreach consumers. It has more than 150 miles of test roads and the early innovations perfected on site include the first mass-produced automatic transmission, known as the “Hydra-Matic.” Michigan’seconomyrelies heavilyonCanada, meaning the new tariffs —coupled with inflation still running high and gas prices rising again as the already unpopular war in Iran escalates have created additionaleconomic concerns statewide.

Some advocacygroupsciting import andtariff data,says tariffs have cost Michigan businesses billions of dollars just since last spring. The latest tariffs comeat atime when voters across thecountry were already increasingly dissatisfied with Trump’shandling of the economy. Jason Roe, aformer executive director of the Michigan Republican Party who tried unsuccessfully to distance it from Trump’s“Make America Great Again” movement in 2021, said that more than coinciding with his new round of tariffs, Trump’svisit is afunction of Michigan’s relatively late primaryand is meant to ensure that James secures the nomination. ButRoe also said it wasa risk forthe presidenttotie himself tooclosely to top Republicansbefore thegeneral election,calling it “kryptonite to Novembervoters.” Trump, who wonthe White House on apromise to lower the cost of living, also has seen hisapprovalratings sag, meaning kitchen table issues could be aliability for Republicans trying to hold control of Congress in the Nov.3elections.

French presidentpledges supportonvisit to wildfire zone

BY MARK CARLSON, EMMA DA SILVA and JOHN LEICESTER Associated Press

LEGE-CAP FERRET,France

French President Emmanuel Macron urged fire crews to “stay strong”asthey battled Monday to bring amonster wildfire under control, warning that the fight will take time but vowing, “We willwin this battletogether.”

On avisit to acoordination center for the massive firefighting effort in southwest France, Macron heard how the blaze ragingsincelast

week has been wildly unpredictable,transformingat times into aself-feedingfire storm as it burned through an area fourtimes the size of Parisand forced 220,000 peopletoflee their homes. “We’re facing acompletely unprecedented fire,” Macron said, describingthe situationasFrance’sworst fire-related crisis since World WarII. He praised firefighting teamswho stopped the inferno’s progression Mondayafter days of spreading flames that edgedtoward thewine region cityofBordeaux.But

with woodlands still smoldering, he and other governmentofficials cautioned that thebattle isn’tyet won, with forests turned tinder-dry by successive heat wavesthis year and another forecast for this week.

“The weeks ahead will be hard. We must hold firm,” Macron said. With thousands of firefightersonthe ground and rotations of water-and retardant-dropping aircraft, it became arace against time Monday to contain the blazebeforetemperatures soar,with national weather

service forecasts of 95 and above in southwest France from Tuesday Authorities also areworkingtofeed, shelterand care for evacuees who fled in staggering numbers: 250,000 in the southwest, driven away by two fires. Macron spoke of displaced people “traumatized” by the upheaval and “who sometimes have lost everything.” No newevacuationswere announced Monday.But with France abouttoenterits peak August tourist season,authorities for the Gironde region around Bor-

deauxworkedtokeepvacationers away,banning holidaycampsfor childrenand forpeoplewithdisabilities. Government ministers also urgedpeoplenot to travel to the region that is popular for its Atlantic beaches, famous wines and some of France’slargest expanses of forests.

“The last 24 hours went well, thanks to your work” Macron told firefighters. “Doubtless, tomorrow will be more complicated than today.”

Crewsusing earth movers tore up strips of forest and scrubland to create barren spaces,intendedtoblock the flames that officials said had come within 10 miles of Bordeaux’soutskirts. Farmers kept fire crews supplied with water,transporting it to them in tanks. Briefing Macron, the Gironde region’sfire chief explained how crews had wrestled withthe blaze unlike any they’d previously tackled, extraordinarily virulent and capricious, “a fire that’sgoing everywhere” andwhichgenerated electrical storms that sparked moreflare-ups.

JanRisher

LOUISIANA AT LARGE

Last Thursday,Ifollowed Charlie Tatum through astaff-only door at the New Orleans Museum of Art. Behind it were 72 movable walls, 12,000 pounds of paint and amachine no one can name. Tatum is NOMA’s director of marketing andcommunications. He met me in the museum’s lightfilled marble lobby.Minutes later we stepped into the 6,240-squarefoot Ella West Freeman Gallery between exhibitions.Its corners weredark, and its grandeurhad been dismantled and stacked against awall Louise Neal and Travis Keene, both senior preparators, beganto tell me about the work they doto change the giant space from one installation to another. Ihad never heard of amuseum preparator Ilearned that “preparethe space” barely begins to describetheir work. The ceiling of the Freeman Gallery is asteel grid installed in 1971, when the museum was still city property.The grid is laid out in 5-foot squares. The terrazzo floor beneath it is laidout inthe same5-foot squares, divided by metal inlays rather than grout, so the ceiling and the floor agree exactly

used in the Ella West Freeman Gallery.

The gallery walls are actually modular panels,each 5feet wide and 12 feet tall. Curators use the grid pattern to design exhibitions on graph paper.The preparators then build entirely new rooms. To move each panel, Keene and Neal use amachine they simply call the wallmover.Noone has everknown another name for it, and it bears no manufacturer’s plate —only an old tin tag reading:Property of City of New Orleans. Museum lore says the system was modeledafter one at the Whitney,but no one knows for sure. Neal hasn’tfound another museumthatmoves walls this way.Most build new and tear down old drywall for every exhibition. This summer,for the first time in 55 years, NOMA’s panels were stripped clean. Each panel is half-inch plywood over 2-by-4 framing with Styrofoam inside for soundproofing. Stripped down, one weighs 280 pounds. Under the paint, most of them werecarryinganother 150 pounds. Do that arithmetic across five decadesofregular installations, and the paint stops being paint. It becomes sediment. Keeneand Neal peeled the layers off in giant sheets —gray,brown, black, orange, green, burgundy.Each revealed anotherera Neal weighed the layers of removed paint becauseshe was worried about exceeding the

Educatorawarded tophonor

Lafayette’sBoffy named Principal of theyear

BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer

Holly Boffy,principal of W.D. & Mary Baker SmithCareer Center in Lafayette, hasbeennamed Louisiana’s2027 High School Principal of the Year by theLouisiana Department ofEducation Boffy received the honor Saturdayduringthe 20thannualCecil J.

Picard Educator Excellence Awards Gala, whichrecognizesoutstanding educators and school leaders across thestate.

Boffy has ledthe Career Center’s expansion of career and technical education programs,including an increase in students earning industrybasedcredentialsand thecreation of aHiSET programthatprovides an alternative pathtoahigh school equivalency credential, according to theLafayette Parish school system. She will continue serving as principal of the Career Center during the 2026-27 school year while also leading E.J. Sam Accelerated School.

The Louisiana department of Education named Holly Boffy,left, of W.d. &MaryBaker Smith Career Center in Lafayette, the 2027 High School Principal of the year Alysa LeBlanc,of Milton Elementary/ MiddleSchool,was named a finalistfor Louisiana’s2027 Teacher of the year PROVIdEd PHOTO

Rides and Classicsatthe

RIDES AROUND TOWN

Enthusiasts of the classics were tempted by acouple of car shows around AcadianaonSaturday

Visitors to the second annual BoudinCapital Open Car and Truck Show in Scott Park in Scott were alsotreated to the Pork in aPot Cook-Off. And the Acadiana Rides and Classics held its inaugural event at the Acadiana Mall in Lafayette.

Educatorsurged

BY PATRICK WALL Staff writer

Louisiana educators must “stand firm” against student misbehavior th is school year,enforcing the rules so that classrooms remain “peaceful and orderly,” state Superintendent of Education

CadeBrumley said Monday In aletter to school system leaders, Brumley urged principals and teachers to “setclear behavioralexpectations and enforceconsequences,”addingthat“unruly classrooms andungovernable students”

makeitharder for all students to learn Brumleyhas repeatedly called on schoolstotake a stricter approach to discipline, echoing some educators and conservative critics who argue that past efforts to reduce suspensions and expulsions led to lax discipline policies and outof-control classrooms.

“Schools have spent toomuch time tolerating inappropriate student behavior,”Brumley said in an interview Monday. “I understandthat kids aregoing to be kids, but when you have students who habitually demonstrate poor behavior or behavior thatissoseverethat it impactsthe learning environment,there has to be consequences.”

Louisiana lawmakershave also sought to crack down on student misconduct. Under a new state law that takes effect

KatelynLeBlanc taught at Leonville Elementary, school confirms

BYKRISTINASKELSON Staff writer

ALeonville Elementary School teacher diedSunday after acrash on Interstate 49 in St. Landry Parish, according to family members and school officials.

Katelyn LeBlanc was critically injured in the crash near the SunsetGrand Coteau exit and wasairlifted to ahospital, where she laterdied, accordingtofamily members.

Leonville Elementary confirmed LeBlanc’sdeath in a Facebook post Monday

“Mrs. LeBlanc was acherished member of the Leonville Elementary family whose kindness, compassion,and unwavering dedication to her students madealasting impact on everyone who had the privilege of knowing her,” the school said.

School officials said LeBlanc loved her students and was committed to helping them learn and grow LeBlanc’sfour daughters attend Leonville Elementary,according to the school.

“Though Mrs. LeBlanc is no longer with us, her legacy of love, kindness, and dedication to children will forever remain apart of our school,” the post said.

Email Kristin Askelsonat kaskelson@theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By JANRISHER Louise Neal, senior preparator at the NewOrleans MuseumofArt, movesone of the 72 wall panels

STAFF PHOTOSByBRAd KEMP

Owner Kenneth Breaux, center,talks to Maryand Rodney Williams about his 1969 dodgeSuper Bee on Saturdayduring the Acadiana

Acadiana Mall in Lafayette.

ABOVE: A1954 Chevy ‘Tin Woody’ and an airride camper is displayed Saturday during the Boudin Capital Open Car and TruckShow at Scott Park in Scott.

LEFT: Visitors look over a1968 Volkswagen weed car in Scott.

LeBlanc

OPINION

OUR VIEWS

Cyclospora outbreak requires vigilance

The parasite cyclospora continuestosicken people around the country,and casesinLouisiana are growing. Though ourstate isnot at the center of the outbreak, which began in theMidwest and has affected that area most severely, the situation here bears monitoring

That’swhy we’re glad theLouisianaDepartment of Health is doing just that.The department last week reported ajumpinthe number of cases to 79 total,includingsix that required hospitalization.

The illness appearstobelinked to shredded iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico served at Taco Bell locationsinIndiana, Kentucky,Michigan, Ohio andWest Virginia,according to the Centers for Disease Controland Prevention. The parasite causescyclosporiasis, which causes symptoms such as watery diarrhea, loss of appetite, weight loss, cramping and bloating.

Nationwide, more than 1,000 cases havebeen reportedwithalmost 100hospitalizations. Fortunately, no deaths have been reported.

Taylor Farms issued avoluntary recall of lettuce from its Mexico farms. Severalrestaurants and grocery stores have pulled theproduct from menus and shelves.

LDH says it gets notice once apatientisdiagnosedwith the illness through agastrointestinal panel that detectsthe pathogen instool.The Food and Drug Administration says it is still investigating to ensure it hasidentifiedall sources of the parasite We urge coordination amongall agenciesinvolved in tracking this outbreak.

When such outbreaks occur, we rely on our public health officials for accurate andclear communication. Some havepointedtocuts to the FDA and the CDC as affectingour ability to deal with food-borne illnesses. We certainly seethe valueofhaving arobust responsetoany threatsinour food supply,and we believe that one of the most importantfunctions of government is to promote the healthand safety of its citizens.

We would like to see increased scrutinyof food suppliers and growers. Thefederalgovernment delayed implementation of theFDA’s Food TraceabilityRule, which wassupposed to go into effect in January. It would haverequired companiestokeepdetailed recordsofwhere food was grown and packaged, so that thegovernment canmore easilycontain outbreakslike this one. It now is set to gointoeffect in 2028. The rule wasadvanced during President Donald Trump’sfirstterm,but facedabacklash from some industry groupswho said it addedan unnecessary layer of regulation. Yetnow we are seeing acyclospora outbreak that goes beyond anything we’veseenbefore.

We understand the necessityofbalancing the needs of commerce with the burdens of regulation. But there can be no higher goalthanmaking sure the public has confidence that what we are eating and feeding our children is safe.We must learn from this outbreak andvow to do everythingnecessary to prevent similaronesin the future.

words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@ theadvocate.com. TO SENd USA LETTER, SCANHERE

YOUR VIEWS

Drawingfromschoolfunding forstipend won’tfix teacherpay

Another milestone has been reached in Louisiana, but there is still more work to do.

Recently,the LouisianaDepartment of Education released its LEAP score datafor schools in 2026. There was a vast improvement across theboard throughout thestate.

Asignificant number of students met or exceeded the state expectations in reading and math. These scores show that the investments made in literacy, numeracy andhigh-dosage tutoring have yielded theresults we want.

While there are many people to acknowledge and congratulate for these gains, thebulk of the gratitude must go to theteachers who work directly with students every day.They are the unsung heroes who have done so much with so little to ensure our students reach their full potential. Iamsure the teachers appreciate being lauded; however,Iamsure that they would much

rather receive better compensation. Recently,the governor swept $168 million from theMinimum Foundation Program (thepublic school funding mechanism) to subsidize aone-time teacher stipend. Iapplaudthe governor for keeping his promise to teachers. However,Iadmonish the governor for failing to pursue apermanent solution to teacher pay,and instead relying on an unprecedented budget gimmick that robs Peter to pay Paul. Education ReformNow understands that this is aunique situation, but our teachers require us to find asustainable solution that will keep teacher pay competitive as student achievement markers continue toincrease. We stand ready towork with all parties to find that solution.

TERRENCE LOCKETT

executivedirector,Education ReformNow Louisiana NewOrleans

Murrillshouldfocus on crime, notpolitics

The feud between thepolitical leaders of New Orleansand Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill is an embarrassment toour state.

Sending lettersthreatening toremove political leaders from office because theyhave adifferent opinion on alegal matterissodisrespectful. What other state attorneygeneral around the United States sends out letterslike that?

What other stateattorney general works to eliminate an elected clerk of court (Calvin Duncan) because their preferred candidateloses?

The residents of New Orleanselect

our public officials, not the state attorney general. Thus, it was good to see theOrleans Parish grandjury follow thelaw and stand up forour respected political leaders. We need to see our state attorney general spend 100% of her time, like theother attorneys general across the United States, working to put whiteand blue-collar criminals in jail. Leavethe political, vindictive foolishness alone —for the betterment of our community KEVIN WILLIAMS NewOrleans

Military skilldoesnot depend on hormonelevels

Re:“Hegsethannounces new policy to test troops for low testosterone.”

So, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says our U.S. militaryservice members 30 and older will undergo annual testosterone level screening. Is our administrationplanning to groom thescreened servicemembersfor their formof sumowrestling or gladiator combat next Independence Day?

One-party leadership has obstructed accountability in NewOrleans

While reading about the legal wrangling going on in New Orleans regarding the consolidation of the court system,I’m reminded of author A.J. Liebling’sremark in “The Earl of Louisiana,” wherein he described politics in Louisiana as having “an intensity and complexity matched only in the Republic of Lebanon.”

That was in 1961. It could be that entrenched Democratic leadership plays arole. The last Republican mayor of New Orleans wasin1872. There’sevidence here that oneparty rule over 150 years can lead to malfeasance and corruption. But there is little hope for change. In NewOrleans, the populace lines up, zombie-like, to pull the Democratic lever every time. This long-term political inbreeding can’tbeagood thing, and this entire kerfuffle is as entertaining as it is sad.

The governor,Legislature and the judiciary have madeitclear that NewOrleans can’tgoits own way. Leadership and accountability ought to have meaning and substance.

Ihope the new mayor and other officials in New Orleans will cooperate with the governor and fix accountability forwhat appear to be nefarious machinations to indict the state attorney general. Iwonder what hotshot big-truck lawyer came up with this idea.

We have arelatively new governor,and New Orleans has arelatively new mayor.They could pull together.Maybe appoint someRepublicans (if there are any) to key positions in NewOrleans. Republicans have long held the reputation of fiscal control and responsibility Hey,itcan’tget any worse. Everyone agrees NewOrleans is critical to the state of Louisiana. The governor,aschief executive and aRepublican, is right in shining abright light on the city’s problemsand exerting influence to chart apath forward to asuccessfulrecovery and abright, perhaps politically diverse, future.

MARC SAMUELS

This could be theiropportunityto one-up the recent Ultimate Fighting Championship on the White House South Lawn. Certainly,many militaries have deadly young girls, young boys and ladies of all ages as service members on the battlefield, successfully wielding lethal weapons, drones, missiles, etc. Testosterone levels are inconsequential for these children and female warriors’ kills. Testosterone levels are much moreimportant for those in body-building competitions. Testosterone levels mayplay into hand-to-hand combat, but our modern militaryisnot dependent on much morethan aerial assaults. Our adversary’smilitary does not care about our militarysix-packs. Whydrain even a drop of blood carrying testosterone for this foolish endeavor?

Baton Rouge

DAVID STUART Covington

St.Georgedrama revealscracks within city-parishgovernment

To the surprise and delight of noone, the fight over St. George is back.But this time, the verbal bulletsare flying betweenmembersofcity-parish government,withthe Metro Counciland parish attorney on one side andMayorPresidentSid Edwardsonthe other And even though Friday broughta partialcooldown, problems remain. To recap what happened: On Thursday,parish attorney John McLindon sought to intervene in alawsuit filed by alandowner against the cityofSt. George. McLindon’sfiling didn’t take a position on the merits of thecase, but asked to be apart of litigation around one key issue already raised in the suit: the dateofincorporation for St. George.

disagreed with McLindon’saction.

“I did not approve of the Parish Attorney filing this action on behalf of the City-Parish, and Istrongly disagree with the decision to insert our government into this dispute,” Edwards said. He also noted that he has no authority over McLindon, who reports to the MetroCouncil.

mentthat is not public, nor approved by theCity of St. George Council or the EBR City-Parish Metropolitan Council,” Noel continued.

Noel suggested that some within Edwards’ administration may have gone rogue and issued therelease without themayor-president’sconsent.

Crucialquestions to askSenate candidates

Prying policy specifics from apolitical candidate often is like tugging abone from abulldog. So, democracy sometimes resembles kakistocracy,anactual wordthat meansgovernment by the least qualified.

That seemingly minor detail is worth millions of dollars. If St. George supporters are right that the dateis2019, when voters approved the new city, then St. George could be entitled to tax revenue collected by thecity-parish after that date.

City-parish officials, includingthenmayor Sharon Weston Broome and current Mayor-President Edwards, have argued that the correct date is 2024, when the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that the city shouldbeallowedto incorporate So it’seasy to see why theparishattorney might be keen to have aseat at the table when that question is being decided. Enter Edwards. Late Thursday,he issued ablistering statement saying he

Thetwo entities —cityparish government and the city of St. George —had an “agreement in principle” to “resolve the remainingissues surrounding St.George” earlier this year,Edwards said. That compact was derailed by aseparate lawsuit that ended up including both parties, he argued.

“Rather than learning from that failure, theParish Attorney’soffice has once again chosen to put theCity-Parish in the middle of another legal dispute,” Edwards said in his statement

Brandon Noel, themayor pro-tempore and headofthe Metro Council and like Edwards, aRepublican —fired back hours later

“The Council has not been briefed that theAdministration was in negotiations with the City of St. George, nor have we been made awarethat an agreementwas reached,”Noel said.

Noel added that he was “blindsided” by Edwards’ statement.

“I cannot see how theCity-Parish interveninginthis lawsuit for clarity on theCity of St.George incorporation date would impact atentative agree-

Noel, who represents aZachary-area district,said he had spoken with Mason Batts,one of Edwards’ top staffers, who told him he had no idea thefiling was coming. ButNoel also said he had seen text messages between the parish attorney and Edwards about it from 24 hours before themotion was filed.

“Bothcannot be true,” Noel said.

After aFriday afternoon meeting, Noel and Edwards said they had come back together.They issued ajoint statement detailing new policies that would improve communication. Butnot all Metro Council members were as satisfied. Republican Jen Racca said she still had questions about theagreement and any negotiations with the St. George leaders. AndDemocratic Metro Council member Anthony Kenney urged thecouncil to be looped in at an earlier stage.

At somepoint,state District Judge Beau Higginbotham is likely to decide —finally —onthe official incorporation datefor St. George.

That will end one long-running debate. Butitwill likely start awhole new series of battles at CityHall.

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

MAGA makesanOrwellian case on racism at theSmithsonian

If you haven’theard that the Smithsonian’sNational Museum of American Historyisahotbed of “anti-White activism,” “illegal alien activism” and “transgender activism,” the Trump administration and its MAGA allies in Congress have some news for you.

Youcan read all about it in what news accounts have called a“scathing” 162-page reportreleased July 4bythe White House. It accuses the museum and its leaders of presenting a“radical view” of American history

Such was the language usedbyRep TimBurchett, the Tennessee Republican who chairs the House Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency,inhis opening remarks to ahearing titled “Rewriting American History: Examining the Smithsonian’s Efforts to Reshape the Past,” although the “reshaping” amountedtoafew choice sound bites.

Burchett claimed the National Museum is pushing radical left-wingnarratives, aviewthatechoed President Donald Trump’searlier claims, but I cannot confirm that Trump hasever read abook, including his own.

Burchett also noted that these narratives are driven by NationalMuseum Director Anthea Hartig, who believes that history is a“prime tool of social justice” —asifthat’sabad thing.

MAGA’s rhetorical lexiconisfull of terms the movement has appropriated from the left, such as “social justice,” which they endow with axiomatically bad connotations. “Social justicewarriors” rank next to “wokeness” among the threats supposedly posed bythe left. Seeing lawmakers meet to decide whose version of history is permissible reminds me of what the scholarlySupreme Court Justice Potter Stewart said about censorship. It “reflects asociety’s lack of confidence in itself. It is the hallmark of an authoritarianregime.” Heaven help us

Although the SmithsonianInstitution oversees dozens of museums and libraries, plus galleries, historical landmarks and the national zoo, the White House report particularly takes aim at its National Museum of American History Thereport accuses the museum’s leadership of adopting “an ideological framework that no longer treats the American story as ashared national inheritance to be taught or celebrated, but as apolitical instrument to divide,

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO

House Committee on Oversight and GovernmentReformSubcommittee on delivering on GovernmentEfficiency Chair Rep.Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., attendsa subcommittee hearingaboutthe Smithsonian last week in Washington.

dispirit, and discourage our citizens.”

That’spretty grim, and I’m sure Trump approves. It’s quite anovel way to look at the institution, in my view,and Isay that having made countlessvisits with friends and family over the years. The reportiswritten in language designed to conceal as muchitreveals. It reminds me,asbureaucratic documents oftendo, of the rulesand manufactured “truth”decreedbyBig Brother in the authoritarian “Newspeak” of George Orwell’sdystopian novel “1984.”

Gemslike“anti-Whiteactivism” and “illegal alienactivism”don’trise to Orwell’sartfulness, but theyare Newspeaknonetheless. It’snonsense. But it excites cohorts of voters to your side,and depending on howyou playitand whichpodcasters youenlist in the effort, it can gel into a politicalorthodoxy And whenyour polls aresinking, as Trump’shave been, and midtermcalamity appearstobecoming for the ruling party,anotherinsult will do in apinch.

Museum Director Hartig cordially answered questions from twoseparate Housecommittees about what the report describes as the “ideological capture”ofthe Smithsonian. More Newspeak. To their credit, some Democrats pushed back on the GOPNewspeak with blazing rhetoric oftheir own.

“Welcome to the Republicans’ White pride rally disguised as aCongressional hearing,” Rep. Jasmine Crockettof Texasdeclared at the proceeding.

Alas, suchfrankness is why alot of Republicans werehappy to seeher gerrymandered out of her district. History is to be argued, ascholarly history teacher taught us in grade school.

Alot of Americans,for example, still believe the Southwon the Civil War, she said. Or should have And that’s why,even if thestudy and practice of historical scholarship is inherently political, it should not follow rulesset by hardball partisan politics.

Diversityisour strength, as Ihave long maintained, although MAGA militants deem that little chestnut to be heresy. (Are you listening, Stephen Miller?) Alot of my diversefellow Americans believe awide varietyofversions of history.The challenge of maintaining the peace between all thoseviews is enormous and never-ending, especially in these times when theinternet offers cheap and accessible platforms to all manner of supposedauthorities, whether in realitythey are charlatans or actual scholars.

“For morethan 180 years, theSmithsonianhas servedthe American public withnonpartisan and independent scholarship, and we remain committed to doing so,” amuseum spokesperson said. Good. Historyisabout thefuture, wiseteachershave told me,not just the next election.

Email ClarencePage at clarence47page@gmail.com

The winners among those seeking election or reelection to the Senate this year have a rendezvous with acrisis that will arrive in their six-year terms. They should be asked about two entangled problems: soaring budget deficits and Social Security’s insolvency

The deficit in the first nine months of fiscal 2026 was$1.4 trillion, worse than at the same point in fiscal 2025. The governmentisontrack to have borrowed at least $2 trillion by the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year Social Security’sretirement program costs have exceeded its incomesince 2021. Since then, the program has supplied the difference by drawing downits “trust fund.” It consists of surpluses (of revenues over spending on benefits) from before 2010. Those surpluses have been interest-accumulating deposits with the federal government. This funding stream is projected to be exhausted before the 2032 elections. Benefit cuts of at least 22% (depending on the size of shortfalls in payroll tax revenues) would automatically occur,absent other measures. This impending convulsion in the government’smost popular program is not arousing public anxiety.The fewpeople whothink about such things assume, and the political class knows, it will not happen. The mostlikely,because least politically risky,way to prevent it will be an infusion of general revenues to supply the difference between what payroll tax revenues bring in and benefits send out. In 1977, and again just six years later,Congress madetax and benefit changes to keep the trust fund solvent. But only,itturns out, until 2032. Today,after nearly 50 years of America’s population aging, the money problem is bigger than in 1977. And after ahalf-century of turning the elderly into America’smost privileged and prickly faction, the political class’sappetite forrisk is smaller “Saving” Social Security by huge additional borrowing would intensify upward pressure on interest rates, hence downward pressure on economic growth. This could further worsen Social Security’sfinancing problems. Recourse to general revenues also would transform the system that was sold to the country in 1935 as aself-financing contributory program.Few will notice, fewer will care. The change will mean another huge amount of borrowing, added to existing debt, which occasioned little and evanescent anxiety when, this year,its size passed that of U.S. gross domestic product. Ninety-one years ago, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed Social Security as —how quaint this now seems—protection against “poverty-ridden old age.” The American Enterprise Institute’sAndrew Biggs says the average person retiring in the 2030s will receive 33% moreinbenefits than he or she paid in payroll taxes: “Ifretirees simply got back what they paid in, Social Security would be solvent.” Maya MacGuineas of the Committee fora Responsible Federal Budget notes that acouple in which both spouses earned, for35years, morethan Social Security’staxable maximum ($184,500 in 2026) can receive $100,000 annually.Progressives’ solution is to increase taxes on the affluent by eliminating today’sincomecap where the payroll tax ends. This would make Social Security’srevenues again exceed outlays but forjust three years. Congress exacerbated Social Security’soverspending problem when purporting to fix it. In 1977, it indexed benefits payments to wage growth, which usually growsfaster than inflation. So, this year’sSenate candidates should say what they propose. Do they favor raising by three years (to 65 and 70) the ages when recipients can begin receiving early or full retirementbenefits, and indexing those ages so they rise as lifeexpectancy does? If not, then what? No fair engaging in wishful thinking, such as: Artificial intelligence will so dramatically and permanently accelerate economic growth, a gusher of revenues will banish the need fordifficult choices. Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, says, “The budget may balance without us doing anything because there’ssomuch growth.” Talk about counting imaginary chickens from unhatched eggs.

America’skakistocracy has produced gerontocracy.Government’sbiggest, mostbeloved program is wealth redistribution masquerading as aretirement program.Social Security transfers wealth regressively,upward from today’slabor force to the elderly,who have had alifetime of accumulation and have paid off mortgages on homes that have risen in value. Is Congress going to take back asignificant portion of this entitlement? Think about prying abone from an entitled bulldog.

Email George Will at georgewill@washpost.com

Faimon Roberts

Clarence Page

George Will

Judge rulesonevidenceinstagedwreckstrial

in NewOrleans cold case barred

BY JAMES FINN Staff writer

Aman accusedofslaying an FBI informant in New Orleans’ staged wrecks saga scoredawin ahead of his trial when ajudge on Thursday barredprosecutors from telling jurors about an unrelated cold-case killing for which he wasarrested more than adecade ago but never charged.

Alongwithher rulingfor accused hitman Leon “Chunky” Parker,Chief U.S. District Judge Wendy Vitter also limited evidence that prosecutors hoped to present against his co-defendant, Sean Alfortish, about an earlier fraudcase that landed him in federal prison and got him disbarred.

In a21-page ruling, Vitter setkey guardrails for atrialslated to start Aug. 10 in which Parker and Alfortish face murder, conspiracy,witness tampering and other counts

They are accused of plotting the 2020 killing of Cornelius Garrison III, a“slammer”who was shot dead in hismother’s doorway in Gentilly At the time,Garrison had beentalking to the FBI for months about his career packing cars with people, staging wrecks with big rigs and bringing passengerstoAlfortish.

Prosecutorssay Alfortish, aformer Kenner magistrate, enlisted lawyers to snag bogus insurance payouts. Onewas injurylawyer Vanessa Motta, histhen-fiancée, whowas convicted in March for her roleinthe fraud scheme.

In Parker’scase, theU.S.Attorney’sOffice in NewOrleans asked Vitter to allow evidence about his earlier arrest inthe cold-case murderofMarcel Trudeau, aplumber shot dead in his home four days before Hurricane Katrina. Parker was booked for thekilling in 2010 but never charged.

Prosecutors suggested that it served to show why an admitted conspirator, Ryan “Red” Harris, approached Parker to kill Garrison in thefirstplace.

Parker’sattorney,Stephen Haedicke, lashed the government in court filings for trying to taghis client as responsible for Trudeau’s

killing in the course of atrial centered on Garrison’s death

“The Orleans Parish District Attorney declined to pursue any charges against Mr.Parker,oreven to bring evidence toagrand jury related to the baseless allegation he was involved in that murder,” Haedickewrote in May.“And for good reason: The charge is false.”

For Vitter,the “dangerofunfair prejudice” proved toomuch to include it, she wrote.

“Allowing evidence of this crime would truly opened (sic) this case up to yet another‘trial within a trial,’ andone involving murder,” Vitter wrote.

Aspokesperson for theU.S. Attorney’sOffice declined to comment.

Federal prosecutors also wanted to argue thata 2011 fraud conviction anddisbarment on Alfortish’s recordshow why,when he emerged fromfederal prison, he allegedly enlistedother attorneys to litigate what becameaflow of bogus car insurance cases.

Vitter declinedtolet prosecutors tellajury about Alfortish’spreviouswhite-collarconviction, which arose from fraud within the Louisiana Horsemen’s Benevolent and ProtectiveAssociation

But she allowedthemtodetailhis disbarment over it, reasoning that it relates to why he needed otherlawyers to carry outthe allegedfraud.

Adisbarment, cold case murder

Vitter’s ruling generally heeded vigorous protests from defense attorneys who argued the material was only loosely tied to the case would unfairly sour the jury on their clients. She alsoleft open awindow for courtroom discussions of domestic violence leveled against Parker by Harris, aslammer andkey government witness. Harris had known Parker for yearsand said his mother suffered domestic abuse during adecadelongrelationshipshe had with Parker AGarrison protégé who pleaded guilty to helpingplothis mentor’s execution-style hit,Harris is expected to testify thatheintroduced Parkerand Alfortish, who had become skittish aboutGarrison’scooperation with the feds. Harris has tagged Parker as the triggermanin Garrison’smurder.

Pre-Katrinacoldcase

The debate over whether prosecutorscould invoke Trudeau’s

Louise Nealand Travis Keene, both senior preparators at the NewOrleans Museum of Art, examine agiant pile of thelayers of paint theyhavebeen removing from 72 wall panels used to separate exhibits. This is the firsttime thepanels have been cleared since theywere putinservice 55 years ago. In all, theyremoved12,000 pounds of paint.

AT LARGE

Continued from page1B

maximum weight of their dumpster.The old paint weighed 12,000 pounds —6 tons.

In cross-section, the paint looked like acanyon wall. The top layer came from the Hayward Oubre installation, which closed in May Beneath it: African Masquerades. Then Dawoud Bey.

“Then it gets awayfrom you,” Keene said.

In moving one of the 72 panels, Keene turned the crank on the wall mover the wayapersonturns asteering wheel, with one hand. Then Neal asked if I wanted to try.Under close supervision, turning the crank took all my strength Neal suggested using both my hands.

On agood day,she moves 18 to 20 panels. Respect, sister Standing beside apanel, Neal affectionately said, “She’sslimmed down for summer.”

The machine thathelps the duo move the panels is 55 years old, but it looks like something from the industrial revolution. This summer,Keene stripped it

BOFFY

Continued from page1B

“Dr.Boffy believes deeply in the potentialofevery student, and she has built aculture where thatbelief is turned intorealopportunities,” Lafayette Parish Superintendent Francis Touchet Jr.said in astatement.

“This honorisincredibly well deserved, and we could not be prouder to see her leadership recognized across Louisiana.” Also recognized at the

down forwhat they believe wasits first overhaul.

He found brand names on the gearboxes butnothing else. They believethat someone built it specifically for thetask at hand.

Noneofthis is visible from theother sideofthe door,and that’sthe point “There’sjust this mystical elementtowalkinginto aspacethat’sbeen completely rearranged,” Keene said.

Thepanels goback upthe week of Aug.24for “Second Nature: Japanese Rinpa Paintings from theGitterYelen Collection,” opening Oct. 2. The scrolls and other works represent an influential school of Japan’s Edo period.

LisaRotondo-McCord, NOMA’s deputydirector and curatorofAsian art, is overseeing the six-week installation. She has narrowed thewall color to a few candidates. Keeneand Neal are hoping for abeautifulshade of blue.

Looking at thegiant sheets of peeled-off layers of paint, Tatumand Italked about whether anyone could still identify each of the visible layers. Curators remember colors, he said.

Butafter enough years, institutional memory fades andalayer becomes a

galawas Alysa LeBlanc, of Milton Elementary/Middle School, who was named a finalistfor Louisiana’s2027 Teacher of theYear

Email Kristin Askelsonat kaskelson@theadvocate com.

LOTTERY

SUNDAY,JULY26, 2026

PICK3:

stripe of chartreuse that nobody can place. Ihave anew appreciation for how much went into that choice. AndIsuspect

somebody, somewhere, remembersthat chartreuse.

EmailJan Risher at jan. risher@theadvocate.com.

DISCIPLINE

killing, on St. Roch Avenue in Gentilly afew days before Hurricane Katrina, dredged up complicated feelings for his siblings, Avis Adams and Marvin Trudeau. Parker was arrested in 2010 alongside three others. But justice in trackingwho killed Marcel Trudeau, the son of aprominent civil rightslawyer whose plumbing business had been taking off, has been hard to come by since.

The siblings hopedits mention at such ahigh-profile trial might triggerfresh attempts to find more perpetrators. Only this spring did they learn in afederal court filing of Parker’sties to Harris, whotold the FBIhe’dbailed Parker outof jailafter his 2010 arrest for the killing.

“I would’ve liked forittoplay out because it could’ve pressured the state to pursue Marcel’scase,” Adamssaid Monday.“Nowit’slike you’ve opened awound for nothing.”

Still, “I really believe that Marcel will get justice in someform,” she added, “because of the kind of guy he was.”

Email James Finn at jfinn@ theadvocate.com.

Continued from page1B

Saturday,students who assault school employees will be automatically expelled foratleast two semesters.

A2024 law requires teachers to remove students from the classroom if theirbehaviorprevents other students from learning or poses asafety risk It also prohibits principals from discouragingteachersfromdisciplining disruptive students.

Brumley also reminded schools that they must take steps to prevent bullying, which he noted can occur “inhallways, buses, online or other areas where supervision is morechallenging.”Hepointed to arecent legislative resolution urging schools to follow state laws thatrequire themto adopt anti-bullying policies, train staffonbullying preventionand investigate reports of bullying.

In theinterview, Brumley said social media has contributed to arise in cyberbullying andonline spats, which can turn into physical altercations at school.A 2024 state law

banned students from having cellphonesout during the school day

Anewer discipline issue schools have had to contend with are“deepfakes,”or artificial intelligence-generated nude images. The issue grabbed headlines last year when amiddle school student in Lafourche Parish was criminally charged for sharing fake nude photos of an eighth grade girl. The school districtfaced backlash for temporarily expelling the girl because she hit the boy who was spreading the AI-created images. Anew state lawaddsadditional criminal penalties forcreating or sharing deepfakes. It also requires principals to provide informationtostudents in grades sixthrough 12 at the start of the school year about the consequences of spreading deepfakes.

“As artificialintelligence advances, it’sgoing to be really importanttostay vigilant on new waysthat bullying can occur,” Brumleysaid, “so thatevery child feels comfortable going to school each day.”

Email Patrick Wall at patrick.wall@ theadvocate.com.

us/j/84709497273? pwd=9Wdhe1KNgXW tN1DGcz23eOeN0jKXXS.1 MeetingID: 8470949 7273 Passcode: 999103 In accordance with Louisiana RS 38:2212 vendors maysubmit their bidelectronicallyat the websitelistedabove Bidders wishingtosub‐mit theirbid electroni‐cally must firstberegis‐tered within LCGVendor Accessatthe website listedabove.The regis‐tration processcan take sometime; therefore, LCG recommendsregis‐teringdaysinadvance of the time that bids are due.Itisthe sole respon‐sibilityofthe bidder to ensuretheir bidisdeliv‐ered(whether electroni‐cally viaVendorAccess inperson, or viamail) to the Purchasing Division prior to thescheduled dateand time of thebid opening.Vendors may request thebid package electronicallyfrom ThomasMetrejean at tg‐metrejean@lafayettela gov. Vendorssubmittingbids

STAFF PHOTO By JANRISHER

SETTING UP CAMP

Here’s what to watch for as Saints officially begin 2026 preparations

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer

NFL training camps have begun to fire up across the country, and the New Orleans Saints join the mix when they take the field for their first camp practice of the 2026 season Wednesday in Metairie.

If things feel different than recent years, there is a reason for that. A rookie quarterback led the Saints to a strong finish to close the 2025 season, and the team built on that momentum this offseason by adding several players who should play key roles In the span of a couple of months, New Orleans went from rebuild to renewed.

It has been more than five years since the Saints last participated in a playoff game. It is far too soon to say the Saints are Super Bowl contenders, but there are legitimate reasons to believe their postseason skid may be snapped this year

Now comes the hard part: Can they turn optimism into success on the field?

Here are four things to keep in mind when the team opens camp this week

The quarterback

Out of all the things New Orleans did to improve its team this offseason, the main driver of its fortunes will be second-year quarterback Tyler Shough.

Shough was magnificent after taking over as the starter midway through last year He posted solid, but not great, numbers — 2,256 yards passing, 10 touchdowns, five interceptions and a 95.8 rating in his nine starts — but his performance was about more than statistics Shough

BY DENNIS WASZAK AP pro football writer

The heat is on several NFL coaches, and it has nothing to do with the soon-to-be steamy dog days of training camp.

The regular season is still more than six weeks away, but some coaches already face questions about their job security.

For a few such as the New York Jets’ Aaron Glenn, Tampa Bay’s Todd Bowles and Cincinnati’s Zac Taylor, slow starts could make their seats pretty toasty early in make-or-break seasons. For some others, such as Green Bay’s Matt LaFleur and Philadelphia’s Nick Sirianni, there’s not immediate pressure, but that could change if their squads don’t live up to lofty expectations.

energized a moribund franchise, and the results followed.

Everything that has transpired since the end of the season has fueled optimism about what Shough can be in New Orleans. He went on a media tour singing the praises of his adopted city and was the grand marshal for the Krewe of Pyg-

Here is a list of coaches who are looking over their shoulders heading into the 2026 season.

Todd Bowles, Buccaneers Through four seasons with Tampa Bay, Bowles is 35-33 in the regular season and has won three NFC South titles But last season’s collapse, during which the Buccaneers went 2-7 down the stretch to finish 8-9 and miss the playoffs, had some thinking Bowles’ days with the team were done. Instead, the Bucs opted to stick with him. He’ll likely need doubledigit wins, a rebound performance from quarterback Baker Mayfield under new coordinator Zac Robinson and some postseason success to stick around. The Bucs defense, which Bowles calls himself, also must be much improved.

malion. He clearly took charge of the offense during the summer workouts, then paid the expenses for a group of his pass catchers to work together earlier this month at a retreat in Southern California.

Now he’s got to continue applying it

Dave Canales, Panthers Carolina made the playoffs for the first time since the 2017 season, but it did so with an 8-9 record. The Panthers started 1-3 before three straight victories, and then alternated losses and wins over the next eight games before dropping its last two and backing into the playoffs, where the Panthers lost in the wild-card round. Canales is 13-21 in his first two seasons in Carolina, which hired him in large part to develop Bryce Young into a quarterback worthy of his No. 1 overall selection in the 2023 draft. But Young has been up and down. Canales handed off playcalling duties to offensive coordinator Brad Idzik, and his job could

BY JON BLAU Staff writer

Of all the exceedingly honest statements Ole Miss coach Pete Golding made at SEC media days last week, his recounting of a sales pitch to quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and running back Kewan Lacy may have been the most blunt.

Chambliss and Lacy shouldn’t follow Lane Kiffin to LSU, Golding said, because they would be hated in Oxford, Mississippi, as much as their former coach.

“The dude they’d have built a statue of here three days ago, Google his name right now,” Golding recalled telling Chambliss and Lacy during an interview with ESPN.

“They wouldn’t piss on him if he was on fire. They’ll do the same thing to y’all, too.”

The 13-win season and College Football Playoff run they just made wouldn’t matter Their legacies would be tarnished forever Linebacker T.J. Dottery was one of four Ole Miss players who decided to transfer to LSU anyway. And yes, Golding put it to Dottery just like he did with Lacy and Chambliss.

“Kind of the same general statements in the conversation, for sure,” Dottery said. “I knew that would be some of the aftermath of me leaving. But the opportunity at LSU was big and huge for me, and I couldn’t turn it down.

“It wasn’t personal; it was all business.” Dottery, in his gold suit, was front and center at SEC media days last week, not only explaining the appeal of LSU but also why he followed Kiffin when others didn’t. It wasn’t all about Kiffin. Dottery looked at LSU and saw a program with history on the defensive side of the ball, including greats such as Tyrann Mathieu, Patrick Peterson and Devin White. He had a chance to play alongside a current star in Whit Weeks, who was just named preseason first-team All-SEC. Dottery also rationalized Kiffin’s decision in a way many fans in Oxford couldn’t He saw a coach “grabbing” an opportunity at a “blue-blood” institution, taking a chance to grow despite any damage to his reputation.

“Once you sit back and kind of think about those things,” Dottery said, “I kind of saw a big opportunity for me as well.” Dottery said LSU is “another step” in his football career He points to the advanced recovery facilities LSU has at its disposal He thinks about the virtual reality system football players use to get simulated reps off the field.

He compared where he was and where he is now, and Dottery said there is a different “standard” LSU players hold themselves to.

STAFF PHOTOS By SOPHIA GERMER

Saints quarterback Tyler Shough takes part in

the team’s indoor practice facility.

ASSOCIATEd PRESS

PHOTO By FRANK FRANKLIN II New york Jets head coach Aaron Glenn speaks at a news conference during rookie minicamp at the team’s practice facility on May 8 in Florham Park N.J

Saints head coach Kellen Moore watches a minicamp practice at the indoor practice facility on June 16.

Still swinging at age 103

Omaha golfer found passion later in life

BY ERIC OLSON AP sportswriter

OMAHA, Neb. — Bob Walls was getting set to tee off on the first hole at his home course last week when his partners interrupted his pre-shot routine.

“Get back here, man,” James King said.

“We’re playing blues today,” Dawn Dozier added.

Walls wasn’t having it.

“When you’re over 100, you can hit from anywhere you want,” he told them.

Then, with a silky smooth swing from the forward white tees, he thwacked the ball down the right side of the fairway just short of the green on the 180yard hole.

Not bad for a 103-year-old Actually, pretty incredible.

A record 6.3 million Americans 65 and older played golf in 2025, the National Golf Foundation reported this month. The NGF does not track the number of centenarians, but there undoubtedly are few, if any, who play as well and as often as Walls.

Walls is fit and trim and looks 30 years younger He has survived a heart attack, has had multiple heart surgeries and overcame a transient ischemic attack (mini stroke). He credited good genes — both of his parents lived into their late 90s — for his longevity, along with staying active.

The notion that he’s a freak of nature doesn’t register with him.

“I don’t feel 103. I don’t act 103,” he said. “To me it’s no big deal.” Born in St. Marys, Kansas, in 1923, Walls moved to Omaha in 1947 after he served in World War II. He spent most of his working years owning and operating a janitorial service.

He retired at 74 and, with friends’ encouragement, took up golf. Steve Hogan, who was Nebraska’s first Black PGA professional, taught Walls how to play at what was then Miller Park. The two became close friends, and Walls honors Hogan’s memory by volunteering seven days a week at the course, which was renamed Steve Hogan Golf Course after his death in 2008.

Walls spends five or six hours riding around in his open-top cart with a bucket of seed-and-

sand mix on the passenger side. He fills divots and repairs ball marks, picks up trash and fishes other golfers’ errant shots out of the lagoon with his ball retriever

Always strapped on the back of the cart is his golf bag, because he never knows when the mood will strike to stop and play a hole or maybe work on his game. Outside the clubhouse are a couple of training devices Walls made to help young players get a feel for the golf swing arc. He

has worked with kids in the First Tee program and gives lessons to adults for $50 per hour The course holds an annual tournament, the Bob Walls Invitational, to raise money for equipment for neighborhood kids.

When he gets home from the course each day, he often gets on his iPad and watches hours of training videos.

“When I visited him for his 101st birthday, I wasn’t even in the door and the first thing he said to me was that he was breaking down his whole game, changing this, changing that,” Dozier said. “He’s always working on his game.”

Walls has still got plenty of game. He regularly shoots in the low 30s on the par-3 Hogan course. In fact, the other day he shot 31 to win a match against course manager Mike Rice.

“The first time I beat him and I haven’t beaten him very often — I had to have a hole-inone to do it,” Rice said. “Who’d ever thought a 103-year-old gentleman could knock a ball 180 yards consistently every day and have enough energy and strength to do it?”

Walls spends the fall and winter in Phoenix and is on a course or practice range every day there, too.

“Golf is the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning,” he said. He fusses over his stance, swing plane and the direction his shoulders are pointing at his finish. Recently, he’s been working on getting more consistent with his lob wedge so he doesn’t have to rely so much on his sand wedge.

“He’s going to hit right down the middle and the next shot is going to be on the green,” King said. “He’s not going to do anything to hurt himself. Sweet and easy That’s what I love about his game. And he practices, too. Every day he hits a few balls, and I know he does because I’m down here most every day I love playing with him. I think he’s one of kind.”

Weiss blames limit on pitchers for roster churn

BY NOAH TRISTER AP baseball writer

The Atlanta Braves called up right-hander Elieser Hernández from the minor leagues, and a few days later he finally appeared in his first big league game since 2024

After throwing three scoreless innings in relief and earning the win at Baltimore, he was immediately designated for assignment.

“I hate it, to be honest with you,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “I wish the rules were different.” What Atlanta did is fairly common now If a pitcher works several innings of relief — even if he does so effectively keeping him is essentially wasting a roster spot for the next couple days So a fresher arm is brought in to replace him.

Baseball’s union is proposing rule changes related to this type of roster churn. The players want pitchers optioned shortly after an outing of at least nine outs or 50 pitches to get major league pay and service time for the four days following the appearance. The union is also proposing to reduce the number of optional assignments to the minors from a maximum of five per season to three.

That wouldn’t necessarily have helped Hernández, since he was designated for assignment, not optioned Weiss didn’t mention the option rules but instead took aim at the limit of 13 pitchers on a roster.

“I wish the number of pitchers weren’t restricted,” Weiss said Saturday “I think if you were able to carry an extra pitcher here and there, you wouldn’t have to do those things — have to DFA a guy that was one of the heroes of the game last night.

the

during

game

We want to be able to reward those guys, not DFA them.”

Performance of the week

Dylan Cease threw a onehitter in Toronto’s 6-0 win over Boston on Saturday He was the first Toronto pitcher to throw a one-hit shutout since Brandon Morrow in 2010.

Cease threw a no-hitter two years ago, but he was with San Diego then Earlier this month, he took a no-hitter into the ninth at San Francisco, but he was pulled after it was broken up. Comeback of the week

Houston trailed the Chicago White Sox 5-0 before scoring eight runs in the top of the sixth Friday night. The Astros went on to win 9-5. Christian Walker hit a threerun double to make it 5-4, and one out later Cam Smith hit a two-run homer that put Houston ahead to stay Team of the week

This honor goes to the team with the best record over the past seven days, using run differential as a tiebreaker if need be. A tiny sample, yes, but this is basically the amount of time it takes to win a playoff series.

Acuña returns to Braves after missing 7 weeks

NEW YORK — The Atlanta Braves activated outfielder Ronald Acuña from the injured list on Monday after missing almost seven weeks with a left hamstring strain. Acuña was the leadoff hitter in Monday night’s opener of a threegame series at the New York Mets. The five-time All-Star is hitting .251 with seven home runs, 22 RBIs and 15 steals. His season has been shortened by two hamstring injuries. He missed 15 games in May with the same injury

When Acuña was placed on the injured list on June 9, the Braves topped the majors with a 45-23 record and led the NL East by eight games over Philadelphia. Atlanta struggled in June without Acuña but has rebounded following the All-Star break.

North Carolina places GM Lombardi on paid leave

North Carolina football general manager Michael Lombardi has been placed on paid administrative leave.

The school announced the move with a statement Monday morning, coming days before the Tar Heels open preseason camp. The school didn’t provide details as to the reason, noting that employees and athletes aren’t permitted to address the topic.

Lombardi joined Bill Belichick in making the NFL-to-college move when the school hired the former New England Patriots coach in December 2024. Lombardi’s career as an NFL executive had included being the GM of the Cleveland Browns in 2013, and he was an immediate hire by the six-time Super Bowl-winning coach in Chapel Hill.

Michigan AD Manuel to receive $7M in separation

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel will be paid a lump sum of $7.14 million as part of his separation agreement with the university

The school announced July 20 that it would buy out the remaining three years on Manuel’s contract and he will step down at the end of 2026. Manuel agreed to step down following investigations into former football coach Sherrone Moore’s relationship with his executive assistant and a probe into the athletic department.

The university also agreed to make a $108,000 contribution to his retirement account and pay his attorney fees of $82,000. Manuel agreed to remain employed by the university until he voluntary resigns Dec. 31.

Commanders part ways with TE coach Steele

The Washington Commanders have parted ways with tight ends coach Ben Steele on the eve of training camp, a move made in the aftermath of his arrest on suspicion of driving while intoxicated last month.

Steele was placed on administrative leave after informing the team following the arrest, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The person said offensive assistant Wes Welker assumed Steele’s responsibilities during minicamp. Coach Dan Quinn is expected to address the situation at his camp-opening news conference on Tuesday Steele, 48, had just been hired by Washington after spending the previous three NFL seasons with Arizona.

Reds slugger Steer put on 10-day IL with wrist sprain

CINCINNATI

Friday

The Tampa Bay Rays went 6-1 this past week and are still holding off the New York Yankees atop the AL East The Rays lead by three games. Tampa Bay took three of four at Toronto before sweeping three against Cleveland, shutting out the Guardians in the final two games. The Rays are extremely likely to make the playoffs in some fashion for the first time since 2023. The question now is whether they can pull off a deadline deal that helps them outlast the Yankees and the surging Red Sox for a division title and first-round bye.

The Cincinnati Reds placed infielder/outfielder Spencer Steer on the 10-day injured list Monday with a right wrist sprain and recalled infielder/outfielder Ivan Johnson from TripleA Louisville.

Steer left Sunday’s game at the St. Louis Cardinals after fouling a pitch off the end of his bat in the fifth inning. He repeatedly shook his wrist following the swing and decided not to continue the at-bat after meeting with manager Terry Francona and training staff. The versatile Steer is batting .238 with 16 home runs and 40 RBIs in 98 games. He has played all three outfield positions while also appearing at first base, second and third this season. Cincinnati

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By ERIC OLSON

Bob Walls, a 103-year-old golfer tees off on the third hole at Steve Hogan Golf Course on Friday in Omaha, Neb.

ASSOCIATEd PRESS PHOTO By TERRANCE WILLIAMS Atlanta Braves pitcher Elieser Hernández throws

a

against

Baltimore Orioles on

in Baltimore.

N.O. native Verrett adjusts to life without SportsCenter

BY PEYTON DOYLE Contributing writer

When Stan Verrett returned to New Orleans for this week’s Advocates Professional Golf Association Tournament at TPC Louisiana, he knew the first stop he had to make was Johnny’s PoBoys on St. Louis Street.

“Any excuse I can get to be back home is great,” Verrett said. “It’s always great to be home seeing familiar faces and familiar places and just being in New Orleans.”

Verrett, a St. Augustine grad and former SportsCenter host is back in his home city to take part in the first-ever Michael Eaves Classic and Celebrity Pro-Am. Eaves is an anchor for ESPN’s SportsCenter The tournament takes place Tuesday and Wednesday. Eaves, Verrett and other celebrities like Ryan Clark, Jemele Hill, Torii Hunter, Matt Kemp and J.R. Smith will compete.

As a part of the event, Verrett and others have made a point to support the golfers by showing them potential pathways outside of the course. To help facilitate this, Verrett took part in a panel discussion Sunday night.

“It was to help the players understand life beyond golf, with the lessons that golf can teach you,” Verrett said. “We talked a lot about networking, hard work, about relationships that can help your career

SAINTS

Continued from page 1C

on the field The competition will get stiffer (none of the five wins Shough authored last season came against a team with a winning record) teams will have more film of him to dissect, and Shough must also carry the burden of expectation.

He seems built to handle all of that, but he needs to prove it over the course of a full season

The new faces

The offense will feature at least three new starters running back Travis Etienne, guard David Edwards and receiver Jordyn Tyson and several new role players. It is without question a more talented unit than the Saints have fielded in a while, and coach Kellen Moore is going to have to figure out how to best distribute the ball to a suddenly deep group of skill players.

The defense also will look different, though some of this is a result of subtraction. Demario Davis, the longtime heart and soul of the Saints defense, signed a free agent contract with the Jets. Alontae Taylor a four-year starter in the secondary and most recently the Saints’ “Star” defender, agreed to a contract with the Titans.

NFL

Continued from page 1C

depend on Young finally showing consistent progress this season.

Aaron Glenn, Jets

The former Pro Bowl cornerback returned to New York as a head coach to lead the Jets back to respectability Instead, Glenn became the first in team history to lose his first seven games in his debut season with the team, which went 3-14 and missed the playoffs for the 15th straight year

Glenn overhauled his coaching staff and hired Frank Reich to run the offense, and Brian Duker was brought in as the defensive coordinator, but Glenn will now make the play calls for a subpar defense that became the first to not get an interception for an entire season. New York traded for Geno Smith as a bridge to the team’s future QB. Another losing season will put the Jets in play to draft one early next year, but Glenn might not be around in that scenario.

Matt LaFleur, Packers

Wait, how’s he on this list? LaFleur has made the playoffs six times in seven seasons, is 76-40-1 in the regular season and got a multiyear contract extension in January.

But he has only one playoff win since 2021 and his 3-6 record in the postseason has some Packers fans getting restless A four-game losing streak to end the regular sea-

pired last summer

that golf can facilitate.”

Joining Verrett on Sunday’s panel was Marrero native and former LSU star Ryan Clark, who discussed his transition from being a professional athlete to a media figure.

“When it came to football, I kind of maneuvered through both throughout my career until I found my sweet spot, the sweet spot of having enough knowledge to know what makes me better,” Clark said Sunday during the panel “What makes Mike great on TV or Stan great on TV wasn’t going to make me great on TV, so I couldn’t approach it their way.”

Where Clark has found success particularly in recent years is with “The Pivot” podcast, co-hosted by Channing Crowder and Fred Taylor In Verrett’s eyes, enterprises like The Pivot are what will keep Clark a major player in the field despite being let go by ESPN last week in a round of layoffs.

“He’s fine, he’s got The Pivot, he’s built his own platform and he’s going to be fine,” Verrett said. “That’s the sort of resiliency that you can have when you build your own platform in addition to doing the network model.

“I think that’s instructive for a lot of people who are currently at the network level who have the opportunity to build their own platforms. It can really come in handy at times.”

Verrett himself has had to find ways to adapt to the new media landscape the past year After 25 years at ESPN, he opted to leave the network when his contract ex-

New Orleans signed one of its former draft picks, Kaden Elliss, to fill Davis’ on-field role and shifted safety Jonas Sanker to Taylor’s old spot. Veteran Julian Blackmon, who missed most of last year with a shoulder injury, is in line to start at safety alongside Justin Reid. And don’t forget the specialists. Free agent Ryan Wright should solve the punting problem that has plagued the Saints for years, while incumbent kicker Charlie Smyth will have to beat out intriguing UFL signee Tanner Brown to keep his job.

The injured players

Moore and general manager Mickey Loomis will address the media Tuesday, and at that point we should have a clearer understanding of who won’t be ready to take the field for the start of camp.

Running back Kendre Miller is one to watch. The fourth-year running back has been beset by injuries throughout his career and he is trying to return from an ACL tear suffered midway through the 2025 season. Outside of walkthroughs, Miller did not participate in the on-field portion of the summer workouts.

Miller may be a candidate to open camp on the physically unable to perform list. It’s an important camp for him and the other young running backs on the roster,

son and a first-round playoff exit at Chicago — during which Green Bay blew a 15-point lead in the fourth quarter didn’t help. With the Packers expected to again be playoff contenders with quarterback Jordan Love leading the way, LaFleur’s job status likely won’t be an issue until January Things could go from lukewarm to sizzling, though, if Green Bay doesn’t win at least one postseason game.

Nick Sirianni, Eagles

Similar to LaFleur, Sirianni’s job would seem to be in no immediate danger He has a Super Bowl victory, two NFC championship wins, three NFC East titles and a 59-26 regular-season record in his five years. There was major disappointment last season, though, after the Eagles lost at home to San Francisco in the wild-card round. A bounceback performance, including a solid postseason run, is expected, even without A.J. Brown as Jalen Hurts’ go-to receiver in new coordinator Sean Mannion’s offense. Sirianni was on the hot seat entering the 2024 season after the Eagles started 10-2, faded down the stretch and got blown out by Tampa Bay in the wild-card round. He followed that by leading Philadelphia to a Super Bowl victory Sirianni and the Eagles — and their fans — would certainly sign up for a repeat of that rebound.

Shane Steichen, Colts

Steichen was mentioned as a po-

“I’m not done, I still wanted to work, so I had to find the resiliency within myself to say, ‘OK, how do I do this now? I haven’t had a resume or a tape in 25 years,’ ” Verrett said. “And the whole thing’s changed in the last 25 years so you have to be adaptable to new technologies and how they’ve changed the business.”

A part of Verrett’s evolution was developing a podcast with his longtime SportsCenter co-anchor Neil Everett called “The Stan and Neil Show.” While the exact schedule and layout took time to come together, the pair found success in their first year discussing the NBA and NFL.

In addition to the podcast, Verrett has worked on broadcasts for the Los Angeles Clippers and provided national coverage on FanDuel TV and NBA TV He’s also gotten to return home to host Saints Gameday Live, a show providing coverage of the team each week before kickoff.

For Verrett, it’s a chance to be back in the city he loves and work closely with the team he grew up cheering for. This last season it also allowed him an up-close look as the next era of Saints football begins to emerge.

“There’s a lot of optimism right now Tyler Shough really came on at the end of last season and they put a lot of good pieces around him now,” Verrett said. “I like the feeling that there’s something building that’s going to be special and that feeling is a lot of fun. Just the optimism around the team and a new regime coming in and setting things up their way.”

who may be fighting for one roster spot behind Etienne and Alvin Kamara. It will be interesting to see how the Saints handle Tyson New Orleans was extremely cautious with the first-round pick this summer, mostly limiting him to individual periods. Injuries were part of Tyson’s college story but at some point the Saints are going to need to get him up to full speed.

The vibes

This one is subjective, but it usually ends up mattering In recent years, the vibe has been off at Saints camp either players were trying to speak good vibes into existence when there wasn’t much to be excited about (go look back at some of Davis’ comments before the 2024 season) or the positive comments from the players about the upcoming season did not feel grounded in belief. That felt different this summer The roster seems to genuinely believe in the program that Moore has built, and the momentum from last season can be carried over into 2026 with Shough under center Vibes aren’t tangible it’s just a feeling in the air But when the dust settles on the 2026 season, the vibes at the start of the year may be the first thing someone points to when trying to explain what happened.

tential AP Coach of the Year as the Colts got off to an 8-2 start. Then, quarterback Daniel Jones was lost for the season with a torn Achilles tendon and Indianapolis lost its last seven games — even after bringing in Philip Rivers out of retirement — to miss the playoffs.

Owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon was encouraged by the team’s strong first half, though, and decided to keep the coach in place. Steichen is 25-26 in his three seasons with the Colts, who have missed the playoffs the past five years. With Jones healthy and signed to a two-year extension, Steichen would feel a lot more secure if the Colts resemble the promising team through 10 games last season.

Zac Taylor, Bengals

The Bengals have been notoriously slow starters in September under Taylor but they opened last season 2-0 and appeared on their way to putting that narrative to rest. A turf toe injury sidelined quarterback Joe Burrow for nine games and Cincinnati crawled to a 6-11 finish and a third straight season without a playoff appearance. A healthy Burrow is paramount to the success of the Bengals, whose Super Bowl trip in the 2021 season is becoming a distant memory A revamped defense, including acquiring defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence, should help. So it’ll be on Taylor, in his eighth season with Cincinnati, to break the playoff slump or that might be someone else’s task next year

LSU men’s hoops schedule is set

BY TOYLOY BROWN III Staff writer

LSU announced its full 202627 men’s basketball schedule on Monday for Will Wade’s return campaign.

The Tigers will face five powerconference teams in the nonconference and will play a total of 19 home games at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center The season opener is against LSU-New Orleans on Nov 3 at home.

The first time LSU will take the court will be for an exhibition game against McNeese State on Oct. 8 at Townsley Law Arena in Lake Charles. Wade coached the Cowboys from 2023-25 and led them to back-to-back NCAA Tournament berths.

LSU will play three exhibition games overall. LSU also faces Central Florida on Oct. 14 at the PMAC and Florida State on Oct. 24 on the road.

The first major challenge on LSU’s schedule will be its firstever meeting against Gonzaga on Nov 14 in Spokane, Washington. Gonzaga has been a preseason Top 25 team every year since the 2009-10 season and has finished a season outside the final poll only four times in that span. The Tigers’ next power-conference opponents come in the Palm Springs Classic, a multiteam event at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, California. On Nov. 25-26, LSU will face two of the three other teams in the field: SMU, Arizona State or Southern California. The opponent hasn’t been decided yet.

LSU will play five mid-major teams at home in November After the season opener against LSU-New Orleans, Wade’s group will face Texas Southern (Nov 6), Louisiana Tech (Nov 9), UL-Monroe (Nov 17) and Queens University (Nov 20). The first higher-level opponent LSU will see in December is Wake Forest on Dec. 1 at home in the ACC/SEC Challenge. The last difficult nonconference contest will come against powerhouse

LSU

Continued from page 1C

Dottery wouldn’t say Kiffin, who left ahead of the Rebels’ CFP run, “persuaded” him to transfer to LSU. But he was apt to listen to his pitch because there’s a relationship.

Kiffin gave Dottery a second chance after he was dismissed from Clemson in July 2023 for an unspecified violation of team rules.

Dottery, who was ineligible for the 2023 regular season because of the timing of his transfer, went on to post 76 and 98 tackles, respectively, in his sophomore and junior campaigns with the Rebels.

“I just love his story,” Kiffin said this spring. “All the guy does is continue to work continue to develop as a player.”

Kiffin said Dottery knew rumors about what led to his Clemson dismissal would be raised if he entered the transfer portal. Kiffin has described Dottery as a “victim” and said another person was jailed for their part in what transpired at Clemson.

“I can do the comfortable, easy thing and stay here and nobody is going to bring up that story of what happened to me at Clemson,” Kiffin said, “or I can do the challenging thing, that will make me uncomfortable, that he believed was the best for him And he did it.” It was certainly uncomfortable.

Jan. 19 or 20 vs.Texas

Houston on Dec. 13 at the Toyota Center, the home arena of the Houston Rockets. Houston is expected to field a competitive team as it has won at least 30 games each season since 2021-22 and reached at least the Sweet 16 in six straight seasons. An additional layer of intrigue is that one of the Cougars’ premier transfer portal additions is former LSU point guard Dedan Thomas. The 6-foot-1 lefty averaged 15.3 points, 6.5 assists and 1.6 turnovers per game as a junior for LSU before having season-ending foot surgery in February LSU has four other contests in December, all at home. It will face Hofstra (Dec. 5), High Point (Dec. 18), UL (Dec. 22) and Washington State (Dec. 28). High Point was an elite mid-major team last season, beating No. 5-seeded Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament and finishing the year with a 31-5 record. SEC play starts Jan. 2 and concludes March 6. The SEC Tournament is March 10-1 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

Dottery said he was so “invested” in his relationships at Ole Miss that he cried some nights while thinking about leaving. His departure set off dominos that led to consternation elsewhere When Dottery left Ole Miss, Golding turned to Cal linebacker transfer Luke Ferrelli, who previously visited Oxford but had already enrolled at Clemson. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney alleges Golding tampered with his signee, texting Ferrelli during an 8 a.m. class to send him a copy of a $1 million contract. Ferrelli jumped to Ole Miss right before the portal closed. Dottery faces Clemson in Week 1.

“I had a great time at Clemson, built some great relationships with coaches and staff. I can even call cCoach Swinney and we can talk right now He’s awesome,” Dottery said. “I don’t think the emotions will be too high. Just another opportunity to play football.“

Dottery tried to say LSU’s Week 3 game at Ole Miss is the same, “just another opportunity to play football,” but it’s hard to classify Sept. 19 as just that. Dottery still professes love and respect for the teammates he left behind, but he’s trying to focus more on the embrace of his new teammates at LSU.

“I feel like that’s made it the easiest, me just being able to be myself and be the guy I am,” Dottery said, “and they like me for that.”

STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU president Wade Rousse, left, and athletic director Verge Ausberry hold a win bar as they introduce new men’s basketball coach Will Wade during a news conference on

Verrett

2026 SCHEDULE

Catholic-NI

PAST FIVE YEARS

2025: 10-3

2024: 13-1

PROJECTED STARTERS

Offense

WR Khylon Edwards (5-8, 155, Sr.)*

WR Maddox Nacol (6-1, 170, Jr.)*

WR Gavin Kading (6-0, 160, Jr.)

TE Bryant Smith (5-10, 200, Jr.)

OT Avery delcambre (6-1, 220, Sr.)*

OG Wesley Broussard (5-10, 250, Jr.)

C Peyton Clement (5-10, 240, Soph.)

OG Kullen Judice (5-9, 290, Jr.)

OT Luke Hewitt (Sr.)*

QB John-Parker Robison (6-0, 185, Jr.)

RB Cooper Parich (5-9, 170, Jr.)

Defense

dE Jagger LaBauve (6-3, 210, Jr.)*

dT Holden Cormier (5-11, 290, Jr.)*

dE Jack Bigler (5-10, 185, Sr.)

LB Michael Haik (5-10, 210, Sr.)*

LB Charlie Viator (5-9, 185, Jr.)

LB Ashton Benintende (5-11, 175, Sr.)

CB Khylon Edwards (5-8, 155, Sr.)

CB Noah Cavagnaro (5-8, 155, Jr.)

dB Kyan Batiste (5-11, 170, Soph.)*

S Gavin Kading (6-0, 160, Jr.)*

S Maddox Nacol (6-1, 170, Jr.)

* RETURNING STARTER

COACHES

Head coach: Matthew desormeaux (86-21)

Assistant coaches: Henry Ohrenberger (dC/Associate head coach),Trey Provost, Colby Hebert, Jon Michael Viator, James Lay, david Jordan, Josh dworaczyk,Tucker Lewis, and Bennet Boudreaux.

What we know

The defensive line, which is moving to a threeman front, will be stout.

Ends Jagger LaBauve and Jack Bigler will join nose guard Holden Cormier on the unit, with all three posting impressive weight room numbers.

LaBauve, a rangy junior who bench-presses 335 pounds, is a star in the making. Cormier (385-pound bench press) will command double teams.

“All three of those guys played a ton last year,” coach Matthew Desormeaux said. “Tucker Carpenter will rotate in at nose guard.”

Quarterback John-Parker Robison, who is replacing Xander LaBauve, has made strides during the offseason. The junior will have a strong group of receivers in Khylon Edwards, Kyan Batiste, Maddox Nacol and Gavin Kading, who has the potential to become a fast-rising recruit.

Kading and Nacol, a blue-chip baseball prospect, are projected as starters on offense and defense at safety and receiver

What we don’t know

There are position battles across the entire roster, starting with an offensive line that returns starting tackles Avery Delcambre and Luke Hewitt.

“We have three open positions on the offensive line with Wesley Broussard, Malik Broussard, Peyton Clement, Bennett Minvielle, Ian Valteau and Kullen Judice (competing for starting roles),” Desormeaux said.

Look for Wesley Broussard to lock down one of those spots. The cornerback room is also up in the air. Edwards, the top returning receiver, will take some reps in the secondary although Desormeaux wants to keep him fresh for offense. Noah Cavagnaro is a projected starter, while freshman Bryce Roberts looks to make an impact like Batiste did last year Batiste, a first-team all-district pick as a freshman, is moving from cornerback to a nickel role where he can roam the field.

There are a few players in the mix at linebacker Charlie Viator, Ashton Benintende, Bluze Pourciau

and Zack Desormeaux all seek to join returning

starter Michael Haik in prominent roles.

“Every position group can be very strong once we figure out our top guys,” Desormeaux said.

The Panthers graduated longtime leading rusher Owen Morris (nearly 2,000 yards in 2025). Cooper Parich should garner the bulk of the carries, while Haik will see spot duty in the backfield. Tight end Bryant Smith (300-pound bench press) is a new starter who should be an effective blocker in the run game.

Two other names to watch are receiver Gavin Smith and running back Collin Kading Both are sophomores.

How we see it

The Panthers’ success will hinge on how well the new starters jell against a formidable nondistrict schedule that includes a Week 2 home game vs. rapidly improving Class 4A Lafayette Renaissance, followed by road games at Class 3A Kaplan and Notre Dame, which edged the Panthers by one point last year

“Iron sharpens iron,” Desormeaux said. “You don’t want to play no-win teams just to get a good record. We open with Vermilion Catholic, which is always good under coach (Broc) Prejean.”

The district got a lot more difficult when Houma Christian was replaced by Lafayette Christian, which ousted the Panthers in last year’s Division III select quarterfinals.

Loreauville, which won the league last year, shouldn’t lose a step despite the graduation of star quarterback Blake Delcambre. West St. Mary nearly knocked off defending champion South Plaquemines in the playoffs.

“We have a chance to be a strong competitor in Division III select, but it will depend on some younger players stepping up early and often,” Desormeaux said. “The Panthers graduated a lot of seniors last year, so it leaves a lot of room for new starters to step up. If the new starters can learn and grow quickly then we can be a dangerous team.”

The kicking game could be the difference in tight games with James Chauvin returning for his senior campaign.

Mike Coppage

SCOREBOARD

Michael Haik

LB 5-10, 210, Sr. Haik,who averaged 5 yards per carry last year at running back,also started at linebacker He’ll take every snap on defense and is the leader of the unit.He has a sturdy frame and hard-nosed mentality

John-Parker Robison

Colorado (Lorenzen 3-9) at San Diego (King 6-7), 8:40 p.m. Milwaukee (Henderson 4-1) at San Francisco (Roupp 7-8), 8:45 p.m. Seattle (Castillo 3-9) at L.A. Dodgers (Lauer 5-5), 9:10 p.m. Golf PGA Tour Statistics Through July 26 FedExCup Season Points 1, Scottie Scheffler, 4,123. 2, Matt Fitzpatrick, 3,329. 3, Cameron Young, 3,086. 4, Wyndham Clark, 2,255. 5, Chris Gotterup, 2,254. 6, Collin

Morikawa, 2,229. 7, Si Woo Kim, 2,188. 8, Sam Burns, 2,078. 9, Tommy Fleetwood, 2,046. 10, Ludvig Åberg, 1,929. Scoring Average 1, Scottie Scheffler, 68.775. 2, Rory McIlroy 69.222. 3, Collin Morikawa, 69.458. 4, Matt Fitzpatrick, 69.509. 5, Tommy Fleetwood, 69.668. 6, Sam Burns, 69.742. 7, Chris Gotterup, 69.755. 8, Cameron Young, 69.779. 9, Jake Knapp, 69.800. 10, Si Woo Kim, 69.832. Driving Distance 1, Aldrich Potgieter, 330. 2, Rory McIlroy 328.5. 3, Michael Brennan, 326.5. 4, Marco Penge, 324.4. 5, Nicolai Hojgaard, 323.6. 6, Chris Gotterup, 322.6. 7, Gary Woodland, 322.3. 8, Rasmus Hojgaard, 321.8. 9, Min Woo Lee, 320.9. 10, Jesper Svensson, 319.6. Driving Accuracy Percentage 1, Russell Henley, 72.78%. 2, Aaron Rai, 71.70%. 3, Davis Chatfield, 71.17%. 4, Joel Dahmen 70.61%. 5, Lucas Glover, 69.77%. 6, Collin Morikawa, 69.71%. 7, Si Woo Kim, 69.21%. 8, Tommy Fleetwood, 68.87%. 9, Emiliano Grillo, 68.83%. 10, Andrew Putnam, 68.67%. Greens in Regulation Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. Total Driving 1, Scottie Scheffler, 60. 2, Scottie Scheffler, 63. 3, Ludvig Aberg, 65. 4, Neal Shipley, 68. 5 (tie), William Mouw and Cameron Young, 79. 7, Sudarshan Yellamaraju, 80. 8 (tie), Michael Brennan and Gary Woodland, 81. 10, Kurt Kitayama, 82. SG-Putting 1 (tie), Akshay Bhatia and Vince Whaley, .681. 3, Jacob Bridgeman, .675. 4, Sam Burns, .662. 5, Scottie Scheffler, .589. 6, Jake Knapp, .561. 7, Erik van Rooyen, .559. 8, Alex Noren, .556. 9, Robert MacIntyre, .544. 10, Eric Cole, .540. Birdie Average 1, Scottie Scheffler, 4.76. 2, Si Woo Kim, 4.58. 3, Collin Morikawa, 4.52. 4, Wyndham Clark, 4.47. 5, Ludvig Aberg, 4.32. 6, Kevin Yu, 4.3. 7, Rory McIlroy, 4.29. 8, Jacob Bridgeman, 4.28. 9, Robert MacIntyre, 4.26. 10, Akshay Bhatia, 4.25. Eagles (Holes per) 1, Jake Knapp, 57.6. 2, Kristoffer Ventura, 63.8. 3, Nicolai Hojgaard, 79.7. 4, Aldrich Potgieter, 82.5. 5, Shane Lowry, 91.6. 6, Matt Wallace, 91.8. 7, Sahith Theegala, 92.3. 8 (tie), Tommy Fleetwood and Max Greyserman, 93. 10, Keegan Bradley, 96. Sand Save Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. All-Around Ranking 1, Scottie Scheffler, 167. 2, Ludvig Åberg, 236. 3, Collin Morikawa, 259. 4, Sam Burns, 268. 5, Jake Knapp, 285. 6, Chris Gotterup, 289. 7, Wyndham Clark, 294. 8, Tommy Fleetwood, 322. 9, Rory McIlroy, 323. 10, Si Woo Kim, 341. LPGA Tour Statistics Through July 26 Scoring 1, Nelly Korda, 69.05. 2, Haeran Ryu, 69.4. 3, Hyo Joo Kim, 70.05. 4, Miyu Yamashita, 70.14. 5, Jeeno Thitikul,

Kyan Batiste

QB 6-1, 185, Jr. Robison separated himself as the starting quarterback with a tremendous summer at college camps and position-specific events like QB Impact, as well as the daily grind on the practice field.The hard work paid off for the junior, who has an excellent group of receivers to work with.

DB 5-11, 170, Soph. Already a major college prospect, Batiste is ranked as the No. 26 player in Louisiana by Prep Redzone. He’ll often get reps in a receiving corps that can stretch the field with four solid options and is moving to nickel on defense.As a freshman, he qualified for the state track meet in four events.

Khylon Edwards WR 5-8, 155, Sr. Edwards has terrific speed and top-tier shiftiness with the ability to make defenders miss in the open field.As a junior he was a bigplay wideout who averaged a touchdown every fourth catch.“Has great change-of-direction skills,” desormeaux said of Edwards, who could play football or soccer in college.

Avery Delcambre

OL 6-2, 220, Sr. A three-year starter delcambre played a significant role on the state championship team two years ago. He and fellow tackle Luke Hewitt have good size with a ton of experience under their belts.

and Jeeno Thitikul, .74%. 4 (tie), Pajaree Anannarukarn, Nelly Korda, Andrea Lee Dongeun Lee and Lottie Woad, .73%. 9, 2 tied with .72%. Putts per GIR 1, Hyo Joo Kim, 1.71. 2, Angel Yin, 1.73. 3 (tie), Minami Katsu and Mi Hyang Lee, 1.74. 5 (tie), Ariya Jutanugarn, Nelly Korda, Minjee Lee and Gaby Lopez, 1.75. 9, 5 tied with 1.76. Birdies 1, Aki Iwai, 239. 2, Lottie Woad, 215. 3, Miyu Yamashita, 214. 4, Ina Yoon, 201. 5, Minami Katsu, 200. 6 (tie), Yan Liu and Haeran Ryu, 196. 8 (tie), Jin Hee Im and Jennifer Kupcho, 194. 10, Jeeno Thitikul, 191. Eagles 1, Brooke M. Henderson, 14. 2, Nelly Korda 9. 3 (tie), Hye-Jin Choi, Minji Kang, Sei Young Kim and Ryann O’Toole, 8. 7, 4 tied with 7. Sand Save Percentage 1 (tie), Ryann O’Toole and Pornanong Phatlum, .61%. 3, Nelly Korda, .60%. 4, Peiyun Chien, .59%. 5 (tie), Minjee Lee and Jing Yan .58%. 7 (tie), Minami Katsu, Lucy Li and Patty Tavatanakit, .57%. 10,

Desormeaux

PHOTO By MIKE COPPAGE

Jack Bigler, Ashton Benintende,

Haik

Parker-Robison

Batiste

Edwards

Delcambre

Reading thetea leaves LIVING

diagnosing and dealing with scaleinfestations in camellias

Your camellia has yellow blotches on its leaves and seems to be struggling. Aren’t these flowering shrubs supposed to be tough? In general, yes: Camellia japonica and Camellia sasanqua plants are usually easy to care for.They’re ubiquitous in Southern landscapes for areason! But atiny insect called tea leaf scale sometimes surprises us with problems.

Tealeaf scale (Fiorinia theae), or simply tea scale, insects use piercing-sucking mouthparts to feed on plant juices, causing yellow spots on leaves and, in severe cases, defoliation. In camellias, scale damage can even affect the plant’sability to produce its trademark blooms.

Teascales occasionally show up on hollies but are much more common on camellias. That’show this insect got its name —tea comes from the leaves of Camellia sinensis, a species that’scloselyrelated to the camellias we grow in landscapes. To figure out whether acamellia is suffering from ascale infestation, flip over adiscolored leaf. Scales live in aggregations —orlarge groups —underneath foliage, where they leave behind awhite, cottony residue.

“They are trying to hide from the light, heat and airflow because they are susceptible to desiccation,” saidLSU AgCenter entomologistAaron Ashbrook. “That’ssomething we actually can use for their management.” Ashbrook recommends four methods for taming scale infestations. Each is best done at aparticular time of year

Option 1: Pruning

Camellias have dense foliage that offers plenty of protected hiding spots for scales. By pruning excess growth, you can increase airflow

Not only does pruning discourage scales from takingup residence. It also makes it easier to get even coverage if you decide to treat the plant with insecticides or other products, Ashbrooksaid.

The best time to prune camellias is after they finish blooming in late winter.This is because camellias will be setting buds for next year’s flowers later in the year.Some selective pruning to open up the shrub for insectcontrol is acceptableright now —just understand that you mightreduce next year’sflower volume on the branchesyou prune.

Option 2: Systemic insecticides

Youcan apply asystemic insecticide such as dinotefuran during summer or any

ä See SCALE, page 6C

PROVIdEd PHOTOS FROM THEBATON ROUGEGALLERy

Mónica de Miranda’s2022photo ‘Whistle for the Wind’ from ‘The Island’isfeatured in the national traveling exhibit, ‘Free As TheyWant To Be:Artists Committed to Memory.’

BREAK FREE

Ashowtoo big forone gallery will connect metro, northand west BatonRouge

BY ROBIN MILLER Staff writer

Randell Henry flips through the catalog for the exhibit, “FreeAs

They Want To Be: Artists Committed to Memory,”pointing outhis favorite works on thepages

Most of the piecesare based in photography,and thesight of them brings Henry back to that moment when he was asked if Southern University’sgallery would be available to show some of theworks

Henry is amember of the board of directors for Baton Rouge Gallery,which, in 2024, beganconsidering the possibilityofbringing the traveling exhibit to Baton Rouge.

He continues thumbing through thecatalog,offing commentary on worksbysuch noted artists as DawoudBey,Hank Willis Thomas, Radcliff Bailey and Bisa Butler. They’re amongthe show’s30artists, each exploring legacies of slavery and Black identity.

He also shows his ownframed work, “The Land of Milk andHon-

OmarVictor diop’s‘Frederick

ey,” which will be oneoffive pieces by BatonRouge Galleryartist members —along with Johny Alleyne, JohnIsiah Walton, Justin Tyler Bryant and Malaika Favorite —that will complementthisshowofmore than 60 national artworks.

“With all of this, we knew it would be big, but it was so big that we knew

all the works wouldn’tfitinto Baton Rouge Gallery,alone,” Henry said.

Details, plus free ridestovenues So the gallery opted to partner withother spaces with direct connections to theshow’stheme. As a

ä See EXHIBIT, page 6C

‘ASFREE AS THEY WANT TO BE: ARTISTS COMMITTED TO MEMORY’

WHEN: Aug. 1-23 l WHERE: Baton RougeGallery,1515 dalrymple drive;Frank Hayden Visual Arts Gallery, Frank Hayden Arts Building,8229 Elton C. Harrisondrive,SouthernUniversity; West Baton RougeMuseum, 845 N. Jefferson Ave., Port Allen. l GALLERY HOURS: Baton RougeGallery,noon-6 p.m. TuesdaythroughSunday; Southern University,10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Tuesdaythrough Saturday; West Baton RougeMuseum, 10 a.m.4p.m. Tuesdaythrough Saturday and 2-5p.m. Sunday. l ADMISSION: Freeatall three venues. l ALSO: Three charteredbuses will offer free transportation to all of thevenues on Aug. 8and Aug. 22. To signupfor aspot, call Baton RougeGallery at (225) 388-1470. l VISIT: batonrougegallery.org and westbatonrougemuseum.org

Cheba HuttoopensecondlocationinBR

BY MADDIE SCOTT Staff writer

The Kali Mist sandwich convinced Tommy and Meredith Wiggins to open aCheba Hut franchise

LSU AGCENTERPHOTO By OLIVIA McCLURE

Tealeaf scales gather on the underside of acamellia leaf.

Is

this an ‘ifyou’reontime, you’re late’thing?

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Iamconfused on the proper time to arrive at an event or social function, whether in private homes or public venues. When attending an event like aconcert, play,church service or something else in apublic space, Iunderstand the announcedtime is when the event starts, and that you should arrive early enough to be in your seats before then. But at aprivate event in someone’shome or elsewhere, Idonot understand when you should arrive. Ihave gone to bridge club meetings,book clubs and dinner parties where people

By The Associated Press

Today is Tuesday,July 28, the 209th day of 2026.There are 156 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On July 28, 1945, aU.S. Army B-25 bomber crashed into the 79th floor of New York’sEmpire State Building, killing 14 people. Also on this date: In 1794, Maximilien Robespierre and Louis Antoine de Saint-Just wereexecuted by guillotine during the French Revolution.

In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson announced he wasincreasing the number of American troops in South Vietnam from 75,000 to 125,000.

In 1984, the Los Angeles Summer Olympics officially opened; 14 Eastern Bloc countries, led by the Soviet

EXHIBIT

Continued from page5C

result, “Free As They Want To Be” will simultaneously open on Aug. 1and run throughAug. 23 at Baton Rouge Gallery,Southern University’sFrank Hayden Visual Arts Gallery and the West Baton Rouge Museum in Port Allen.

In 2024, both Henry and Jason Andreasen, Baton Rouge Gallery’spresident and CEO, knew this feat would be a challenge.Itwas showing at Clark Atlanta University at the time, and Andreasen sent Kelsey Livington, the gallery’sdirector of exhibitions, to check it out.

In the meantime, Andreasen asked Henry if Southern University could accommodate part of the show “At first, Ithought, ‘It’ll be August, when the campus is empty,’”Henry said. “No one would be on campus. But then Ithought, ‘Wecan make this work.’ We hadto make it work. Iknew Southern had to be apart of this show.’

The West Baton Rouge Museum also jumped at the chance to participate.

“Given that the subject matter touches on ideasof personal freedom and legacy of slavery,westarted thinkingabout these potential partnerships,” Andreasensaid. “Wedidn’t want to let this show pass Baton Rouge by.Ithas some really incredible artists, so we started looking at potentialspaces that have atie to the exhibit’slegacy.That led us to Southern as an HBCU and then West BatonRouge Museum, aplacethat really tells the story of sugar production in Louisiana. And in the end, it’saway for us to bring Metro Baton Rouge, North Baton Rougeand West Baton Rouge together in one show.” The West Baton Rouge Museum will host an opening program by La Capitale Chapter of The Links, Inc., 2p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on opening day,Aug. 1. The program will feature apanel discussion, spokenword artist Luke St. John McKnight and live music by saxophonist Eric Whitfield.

At 6p.m. Aug. 5, Baton Rouge Gallery’sFirst WednesdayOpening Reception will feature Deborah Willis, who co-curated the show with Cheryl Finley And Henry,along with

Judith Martin MISS MANNERS

arrive10-15 minutesbefore the stated time. Ifeel like this can be an inconvenience to thehost or hostess. Iamvery conscientious aboutbeingontime, and yet Iamoften the last one to arriveatthese functions. Iwenttoatea at a church recently,arrived aboutfive minutes before the start time, and everyonewas already seated. Please helpmeunderstand the distinctions so I can handle these events better

GENTLEREADER: It sounds as if your townisinneed of traffic snarls. Not that Miss Manners is excusing thosewho burst into dinner

TODAYINHISTORY

Union, boycottedthe Games. In 1995, ajury in Union, SouthCarolina, rejected thedeath penalty forSusan Smith, sentencing her to life in prison fordrowning her two youngsons (Smith will nextbeeligible for parole in November 2026) In 1996, 8,000-year-old humanskeletalremains (later referred to as Kennewick Man) werediscovered in a bank ofthe Columbia River in Kennewick, Washington. In 2015,it was announced that JonathanPollard,the formerU.S. Naval intelligenceanalystwho hadspent nearly threedecadesin prison forspying for Israel, hadbeen granted parole In 2018, PopeFrancis accepted theresignation of U.S.Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, theemeritus archbishop of Washington,

parties after the roast has been ruined —along with theother guests’ attitudes, most likely and then blame it on traffic. But showing up when the hostsare in their bathrobes is generally not appreciated, either.Nor does she condone the practice ridiculously called “fashionably late.” Club meetings, even sociable ones, are supposed to startatthe hour named. Butfor purely social gatherings, thesweet spot is after the hosts have attended to thelast-minute tasks and before they start to wonder whether they mixed up thedates and will have to eat all the food themselves. That would be on thehour or up to 15 minutes after

SCALE

D.C., following allegations of sexual abuse, including one involving an 11-year-old boy.Both died in April 2025. Today’sbirthdays: Music conductor Riccardo Muti is 85. Former Senator and NBA HallofFamer Bill Bradley is 83. “Garfield” creator Jim Davis is 81. TV producer Dick Ebersol is 79. Actor Sally Struthers is 79. Architect Santiago Calatrava is 75. CBSTV journalistScott Pelley is 69. Actor Lori Loughlin is 62. Jazz musician-producer Delfeayo Marsalis is 61. UFC president Dana White is 57. Actor Elizabeth Berkley is 54. Basketball Hall of Famer Manu Ginobili is 49. Actor John David Washington is 42. Actor DustinMilligan is 41. Rapper Soulja Boy is 36. Englandsoccer star Harry Kane is 33.

PROVIdEd PHOTO By BATONROUGE GALLERy

Bisa Butler’s‘Strawberry Letter #23’ is featured in theexhibit, ‘Free As They Want To Be: Artists CommittedtoMemory.

Southern Assistant Professor of Art and Gallery Director Samantha Combs, has since figured out away to keepthe gallery open duringthe university’sdown time. Theexhibit’s hours at Southern are 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Southern’sgallery will be staffed by volunteers on weekends,and it will host the closing reception for theoverall exhibit 4p.m.to6 p.m. Aug. 20. with live music by students in the musicdepartment and a choreographed program by the school’sdance ensemble On Aug. 8and Aug. 22, three chartered buses will provide free transport for gallerygoers to andfrom Baton Rouge Gallery,Southern University and West Baton Rouge Museumto see the full exhibit. Visitors can choose thevenue where they want to start. No easy task

“Free As They Want To Be: Artists Committed to Memory” features photography, video projection, sculpture and mixed mediainstallation.The exhibitoriginated at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center as part of the2022 FotoFocus Biennial in Cincinnati, Ohio.It’smade several stops throughout thecountry before landing in Baton Rouge. And gettingithere was no easy task.Along withsecur-

ingthe venues,Baton Rouge Gallery had to raise money to fund it.

“I’ll just saythat we raised in thetensofthousands of dollars,”Andreasen said.

When thethree Baton Rouge museum directors gathered to choose thepieces they would exhibit in their respective spaces, West Baton Rouge Museum Director AngeliqueBergeronimmediately called dibs on apiece by BisaButler

“A few years ago, Ididn’t realize how famousBisa Butler was,” she said. “I just sawher work andloved it This was back when Iwas acurator,and Iwrotetoher and asked her if she would consider doing ashowhere. Inever heard back. Butanyway,she was probably like, ‘Oh, how sweet.’” Bergeron can’thelp laughing at her own naivete.

“She’sindemand everywhere,” shesaid. “AndI was asking her to exhibit in West Baton Rouge. Butyou never know if you don’task, right?Sonow,I’m excited to say that we’re really going to have one of her works in our museum.”

And for now, Henry has closed his copy of the exhibit catalog. He doesn’thave to look at pictures of theartworkanymore, because the exhibitwillopeninBaton Rouge in afew days.

Andhe’ll be standing within the real thing.

That your circle behaves differently is odd. Didthey all go to the sameschool, where entering class while the bell was ringing was considered tardy? Didthe local watchmaker retire?

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I’mserving a cold soup at adinner party using thetwo-handled cold soup bowls that are part of my set of Minton china. Should we drink the soup or use spoons? My soup spoons happen to be rather large, andthese bowls are rather small. If we don’tdrink thesoup, would teaspoons do, as I have no smaller soup spoons?

GENTLE READER: As if Miss Manners does not get enough shock waves when she mentions that

Continuedfrom page5C

time that plants are not in bloom

“This should be applied every seven to 10 days because theproduct does break down quickly,” Ashbrook said.

Systemic insecticides are applied to the root zone and absorbed by theplant, making its juices deadly to feeding scales and other insects. It is important to makethese applications before flowering to protect pollinators.

Option 3: Horticulturaloils

Horticultural oils can provide non-chemical control of many insects, including scales.

“What’s importantisthat theapplication is done underneaththe leaves to access theinsects,”Ash-

CHEBA HUT

Continuedfrom page5C

“We’ve been proudto serve Baton Rouge for five years, and now we’re excited to open Long Farm and invest in the community we call home,”Beck-Wiggins said. “Whether someone calls it Baton Rouge, St George, Ascension Parish or justhome, everybody’s welcome at our table.”

Menu rundown

The newlocation’s main menu and hourswill be the same as theBen Hur location,open 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily

Acrowd favorite is the Kali Mist,a subwithroasted turkey breast, bacon, chipotle mayo, jalapeno, avocado, pepper jack cheese, tomato, onion,pickles and housedressing. Another popular dish is theWhite Widow withgrilled chicken breast,bacon, ranch, mushrooms, provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion,pickles and house dressing. Side dishes (called “munchies”onthe menu) includebites like Cool RanchDoritoNot’Chos, pretzel bites withhoney mustard,garlic cheese breadand BowlO’Balls —a savory snack of meat-

asparagus is traditionally afinger food. She can imagine the faces of the other guests watching someone drinking directly from the cup. Youshould provide whichever of your spoons will makethe least mess. And be prepared to defend anyone whojust drinks by saying, “Well, whydoyou think they have twohandles?”

Sendquestions to Miss Manners at herwebsite, www missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@gmail.com; or through postal mailtoMiss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City,MO 64106.

brook said. “Also, the temperature is really important forthat application.

Youwant to use oils when it’sless than 85 Foutside or else you might damage the plants.”

So, file this information away foruse in the cooler months.

Option 4: Insecticides

Between March and May, scales are in their crawler stage of life. These young, mobile insects can be controlled with contact insecticides such as acephate and malathion applied to the undersides of leaves, Ashbrook said. When using insecticides, be sure to follow all label directions and wearappropriate personal protective equipment.

balls dressed up with veggies, cheese anda choice of sauce.

For something on the sweet side, there’s brownies, chocolate chip cookies, krispy bars andgoo balls, which are like Rice Krispie Treatsfoldedinto peanut butter, cocoa, honey,butter and marshmallows.

Thenew location will also include afull bar with drinks and signature cocktails, such as the Buzzed Bong Water,anelectricblue colored beverage with Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum blue curacao, lemonjuice, blue raspberry Kool-Aid andtoppedwithlemon-lime soda.

There’smore customers can look forward to.

Flying under the radar is the“secret stash menu,” a collection of unique subs that are specific to each location. For example, for those wholikethe French dip sub, calledthe AK47, there’ll be the Berry White, aFrench dip with jalapeno cream cheese, bacon and a jalapeno au jus sauce to dip into.

Turning5

Cheba Hut is celebrating five yearsinBaton Rouge witha special birthday krispy bar in August. Each sweet comes with afree custom mural stickerthat’ll

go on themural inside the Ben Hur location. The new Cheba Hut will also have an interior mural, but this one has atwist.

“We’redoingalot of fun things with this mural,” Beck-Wiggins said. “I don’t want to saytoo much,because there is asurprise aspect to the mural, but it’s definitelysomethingpeople will be talking about.”

The couple is currently on the hunt for where to open athird location,potentially in the Lafayette,northshore or West Bankareas. The challenge is finding a quick-service space that can occupy about 2,000 to 3,000squarefeet. At each Cheba Hut location, the atmosphereismoreelevated than what most customers may expect forquickservice.

“Wegive them the fine dining side of quickservice,” Wiggins said. “We want to make sure we’re goingout there, touching everybody’stable, talking to you, picking up your trash foryou.”

Beck-Wiggins said they have always believed that restaurants should bring people together

“Welike to say hospitalityisfree,” Beck-Wiggins said. “It doesn’tcostanything to be niceorkind to someone.”

LSU AGCENTER PHOTOByOLIVIA McCLURE

Tealeaf scale infestations causediscoloration of leavesand even defoliation.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) Listen and learn. The information you pick up will help you recognize what you want to keep in your life and what to discard. The process of elimination comes with clarity.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Get moving, be present and promote what you can offer. Attending networking functions or visiting unique settings will offer insight into how to fine-tune your plans to reach your goals.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Use your imagination to discover new possibilities. Explore opportunities, and find people who can add to your plans. By putting your energy where it counts, you'll prosper.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Impressions can be deceiving. Do your research, consider background checks and make changes to your agenda that encourage you to align yourself with the best people for the job.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Finish what you start. Making less of a change will have a greater impact on the outcome of what you pursue and achieve. Charisma and knowledge alongside time, effort and cash — will help you get ahead.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Pay attention to medical, financial and legal matters, and you'll create greater opportunities to bring about affordable change. Don't feel obligated to make a spur-of-themoment decision.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) You can take on more than you think if you channel your energy toward achieving your

objective. You've got nothing to lose and plenty to gain if you partner with someone who has attributes you lack.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Take on one problem at a time, and leave nothing to chance. A thorough investigation of what's entailed to reach your goal will pay off. Make a promise to yourself to not let your ego prompt poor decisions.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) Initiate your plans. Engage in learning, sharing and experiencing life. Let your imagination lead the way, and push yourself to finish what you start.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) You'll gain the most by working alone. Find a quiet spot and concentrate on expanding your knowledge and skills through hard work and practice. Positive change is the result of doing what's best for you.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) A playful attitude will get you much further than trying to enforce your will on others. Take it upon yourself to look inward and to pay attention to what will benefit you most.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) If you look for opportunities, you'll discover new possibilities. A partnership will help you recognize the value in sharing skills, time and money. Be open to suggestions.

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

CeLebrItY CIpher

For better or For WorSe

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers1 to 9inthe empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of the Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.

Yesterday’s PuzzleAnswer

THe wiZard oF id

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

Hi and LoiS CurTiS

Bridge

BY PHILLIP ALDER

Edgar Fiedler, an economist who worked under presidents Nixon and Ford, said, “Ask five economists and you’ll getfive different answers —six if one wenttoHarvard.”

In this deal,how wouldyou play the club suit if you need five tricks?

Southisinsixno-trumpandWestleads theheart jack. With the given hands, what shouldhedo? Andsupposethe diamond king were only the queen. How would that affect declarer’s approach?

South’s leap to sixno-trump withonly 17 high-card points seems optimistic, but since Northhas shown at least asixcard club suit and all of South’s points are in aces and kings, it is areasonable gamble.

Southneeds five club tricks to go with twospades, threeheartsand twodiamonds. As he can afford one club loser, declarer should take the first trick and cash dummy’s club ace. Here the king dropsandSouthcanclaim.Butiftheking does not appear, declarer crosses to his hand and leads aclub toward dummy’s queen. Thelikelihood of success is about 72 percent

Nowlet’sweaken theSouthhand by metamorphosing the diamond king into thequeen. South canget home with either fiveclubs and twodiamonds, or six clubs and one diamond. To find out

whichwaytoturn,heshouldtakethediamond finesse first. If it wins, he tackles clubs as justdescribed. But if the diamond finesse loses,declarer needs six club tricks. He mustplay low to dummy’s queen and hope West started with exactlyking-doubleton. South’schances have dropped to just under 50 percent. ©2026 by NEA,Inc., dist. By Andrews

McMeel Syndication

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

Previous answers:

word game

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

toDAY’s WoRD WARDRooM: WORE-droom: Living quarters on awarshipfor commissioned officers.

Average mark 16 words

Timelimit 30 minutes

Can you find 24 or morewords in WARDROOM?

YEstERDAY’s WoRD —FILIGREE

wuzzles

loCKhorNs

marmaduKe

Bizarro

hagar the horriBle

Pearls Before swiNe

garfield

B.C.

PiCKles hidato

mallard

BRIEFS

FROM WIRE REPORTS

Stocks drift on Wall Streetasoil prices drop

Stocks on Wall Street drifted to amixed closeMonday as oil prices fell after the U.S. and Iran paused their attacks while work resumed on restarting negotiations to end the war

The S&P 500 roseless than 0.1% after spending much of the day bouncing between small gains and losses. The benchmark index was coming off two weekly losses in arow

The Dow Jones IndustrialAverage rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.2%, its fourth straightloss.

The three major stock indexesare on pace to close out this month in the red. It would be the second straight monthly loss for the S&P 500and Nasdaq Oil prices reversed course from aweek ago, when asharp escalationinfighting between the U.S. andIran worsened worries about global oilsupplies. The price of Brent crude, the internationalstandard, dropped 6.3% to settle at $85.87 abarrel forOctober delivery.Prices surgedtoover $100 abarrel last week before easing.

U.S. crude oil for September delivery fell 7.5% to settleat $82.61 abarrel.

The war between the U.S. and Iran has sharply curtailed, and at times halted, traffic through thevital Strait of Hormuz. That hashad aripple effect throughout theworld’seconomy.Gasoline prices have surged and shipping costs formost goods are rising, with businesses typicallypassing those costs along to households.

Markets closed higher in Europeand Asia.

Bond yields fell. The yield on the10-yearTreasuryfellto 4.65% from 4.69% late Friday Technology companies were behind much of the shifts in the market, with gains and declines for amix of bigcompaniesresulting in uncertain trading Nvidia fell 5% andMicron Technology slumped 2.3%. At the same time, Microsoftrose 1.9% and Apple rose1.2%. They areall among themost valuable companies in the world, and those huge valuationsgive them more influence overthe direction of the broader market.

The mix of gains and losses from avariety of those companies hadmore impact in pushing and pulling the market, even as the majority of companies in the S&P 500gained ground. Communications company stocks were among the gainers Monday.Google parent Alphabet rose 2.1%,whileCharter Communications jumped 6.7% and Comcastrose 2.3%.

Chinese chipmaker

CXMT’sshares soar

HONG KONG Shares of CXMT, China’slargestmemory chipmaker, shot skyward Monday as they begantrading in Shanghai in mainland China’sbiggest initial public stock offering in recent years.

CXMT’sshares surged 466% in their first day of trading.The company has become themost valuable onelisted on amainlandChinese exchange, with an estimatedmarketcapitalizationofmore than $487 billion. Butthat’s still smaller than those of South Korean and American memory chipmakers likeSamsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Micron Technology. CXMT,orChangXinMemory Technologies, is among many chipmakers that have profited mightilyfrom the boom in artificialintelligence. Its business is thriving as China pushes for greater self-sufficiency in leading-edgetechnologies while contending with limited access to advanced chipmaking machinesdue to American-led restrictions. The company raised at least $8.6 billion with the offering, priced at $1.3 per share, in its listingonthe Shanghai Stock Exchange’sNasdaq-like STAR market, also known as theScience andTechnology InnovationBoard.

BY DEE-ANN DURBIN AP business writer

Cracker Barrel’sCEO is stepping down nearlyayear after an attempted rebrand of the chain led to afierce customer backlash.

Cracker Barrel said Monday that CEO Julie Masino will step down next monthbut remain with the company until Oct. 9inanadvisory capacity

David Deno will succeed Masino on Aug. 10 as CEO. Deno served

as the CEO of Bloomin’ Brands, which owns Outback Steakhouse and other chains, from 2019 until he retired in 2024. He has also held executive rolesatBest Buy and YumBrands, whichisthe parent company of KFC and Taco Bell. Lebanon, Tennessee-based Cracker Barrel hired Masino, a longtime Taco Bell and Starbucks executive, in July 2023. She was chosen for her recordasaninnovator withthe hope that she would attract newcustomers to Cracker Barrel, which operates nearly 660 restaurantsin43states Masino introduced updated menu items, like Hashbrown Cas-

serole Shepherd’sPie,toincrease CrackerBarrel’sdinnertimetraffic.She also started remodeling the company’sdark, antique-filled restaurants, lightening the walls and installing more comfortable seating. Then, last August, Cracker Barrel announced plans to ditch its longtimelogo, which features an older,overall-clad manleaning on abarrelaswellasthe words“Old Country Store.” The company said it would continue to honor Uncle Herschel —the man in itslogo, whorepresentsthe uncle of Cracker Barrel’sfounder —onits menu and on items sold in its stores. But

the new logo would be simpler and easier to read on road signs and in phone apps. The backlash wasimmediate. Fans didn’tlike the new logo and also rebelledagainst thestoreredesigns. Even President Donald Trumpweighed in,saying in a Truth Social post that Cracker Barrel “should go back to the old logo.” Masino reversedcoursewithin afew days, but the damage was done. Cracker Barrel’ssame-store restaurantsales plunged5%last fall and7%inthe quarterending Jan. 30. Same-store sales at the retail storesconnected to its restaurants dropped even further

Fedfaces newpressuretohike ratesasprice

BY JONNELLEMARTE and MARIA ELOISA CAPURRO Bloomberg News (TNS)

Federal Reserve officials will head into their policy meeting this week confronting aresurgence in price pressures that could make theirdecisiononwhether to hold or hike interest rates aclosecall —and acontentious one.

Renewed tensions in theMiddle East have sent oilprices soaring again, overshadowingatamer-than-expected reading on June consumer prices that seemed to offerofficials breathing room to keep rates stable. Addtothat ademand boom fueled by artificial intelligence and theTrump administration’s announcements of new tariffs,and Fed watchers see the possibility of dissents at the Tuesday-Wednesday meetingsifofficials again leave policy unchanged.

Investors in recent days have also boosted their bets thecentral bank could hike at this week’smeeting, putting the odds close to 40% at one pointlast week.

“Things are definitely heatingupinthe conflict in the MiddleEastand, for oil, the risk of moving significantly higher from here hasincreased,” said Alex Payne,a seniorportfoliomanager at Vanguard. “The market is adjusting to the risk of inflation being alittle bit stickier due to some of these geopolitical issues.”

Oil prices retreated somewhat over the weekend as theU.S. and Iran held back from initiatingfresh military strikes. But fresh economic data provided further evidence of astrongU.S. economy, with orders for business equipment rising in June by morethan projected.

Potentialpushback

Agrowing number of policymakershave outlinedarationale for why they support higherrates now,orcould soon.

Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan earlier this month called for modestly higher rates, citing herview thatinflation isn’t headingsustainably back to the Fed’s2%goal Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack also chimed in recently,saying “there is no conflict” in theFed’smandates and inflation is abiggerconcern than employment currently.Both will vote on this week’sinterestrate decision and could dissentifofficials opt to hold steady.

“It is clear listening to the Fed officials that you have asmall group —like Logan, Hammack —who probably are ready to get going,” saidClaudiaSahm, chiefeconomist at New Century Advisors LLC. “And then there’sapretty large group thatwants to see

BY ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE Associated Press

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’splantoopena slateof government-ownedgrocerystores stirred up critics whoroasted the idea as the democratic socialist’s first step toward creating communist bread linesin the city The mayoroffered adifferent vision for the city-owned shops on Monday,announcing that they would instead provide a30% discount on produce, meat anda host of other kitchen staples as away to offset therisingfoodpricesinone of America’s mostexpensive cities.

moreimprovement— and soon.”

Even at lastmonth’smeeting, when officials left policy stable for afourth consecutivetime, afew policymakers already saw a case for raising rates.

Minutesofthatgathering also showed most officials haddiscussedscenarios in which inflation remained elevated due to AIrelated demand, the Middle Eastconflictor the effectsoftariffs. And almost all in that group indicated that such scenarios would likely warrant higher rates.

Since that meeting, theTrump administration said it would impose fresh tariffs on Canada and other trading partners, afragile ceasefire between Iran andthe U.S. fracturedand robustAIinvestmenthas shown few signs of slowing.

Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh has reaffirmed theFed’scommitment to reducing inflation, vowing on Capitol Hill this month to use the central bank’stoolstoachieve price stability. But his reluctance to offer specifics on how he plans to use those toolshas keptmarkets guessing about where ratesare headed even in the near term.

As of Monday morning, investors were pricing in about a35% chance forarate increaseatthismeeting, according to federal funds futures contracts. Those odds had dropped to roughly 10% after Labor Department data releasedonJuly 14 showed the U.S. ConsumerPrice IndexfellinJune for thefirst time in sixyears as gasoline prices declined. Butthe drop reversed amidthe reescalation of the war with Iran.

“Roughly one third of the banks we work

with are positioning for further rate increases, while the rest are hedging against cuts,” said Pradeep Bhatia, chief executive officer of Derivative Path Inc., which helps financial institutions hedge rates and currency risks. “Thatkind of bifurcation tells you the market has stopped trying to predict the Fed and started preparing forboth outcomes.”

Nowvs. later

Officialsmay be comfortable leavingrates unchanged on the heels of the cooler June inflation reading, said Veronica Clark, an economist at CitigroupInc. If future data reports show limited pass-through from higher energy prices and rising unemployment, policymakers may opt to extend the hold on borrowing costs or even cut rates, she said.

Some officials have indeed suggestedthe Fed can be patient fornow.But they’ve also said the central bank may need to hike in upcoming meetings if price pressures don’t abate.

“In ascenario where actual inflation does notstart to cool down soon,I believe that it could be appropriate to reconsiderour current policy stance,” Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson said two days after the CPI report. Lifting rates this month could help Warsh build credibility in his fight against inflation and maybeviewed as less political than a rate move closer to the midterm elections in November, saidJoseph Lavorgna,chief economist of the Americas forSMBC Nikko Securities America and aformer Treasury Department official during President Donald Trump’ssecond term.

The five storesare expected to be placed in each of the city’sfive boroughs, with thefirst set to open toward theend of 2027 in the Bronx. He planstohaveall five operational by the end of his four-year term.

“Thirty percent off adds up to real money for New Yorkers,” Mamdani, aDemocrat, said at a news conference at awarehouse in Brooklyn while standing in front of adisplay of fruits and vegetables. “In the wealthiest city, in the wealthiestcountryinthe history of the world, no New Yorker should have to worry aboutbeing able to affordtofeed their family.”

The cityhas started the process of picking private operators to handle day-to-day operations of the shops. The administration will provide storefrontswhile covering

toward policies to help the city’s struggling working class. At one point last year,heframed theidea as amodest experiment and said if it doesn’twork, “C’est la vie, then the idea was wrong.”

rentalcosts and property taxes, officials said. Mamdanicampaignedonthe proposal as aplank in awider affordability platformcenteredon shifting thepower of government

Still, theplanhas rankledsome smallergrocersand ownersofthe city’subiquitous bodega corner stores, who worry they won’tbe abletocompete withprices at the city-run shops. Mamdani said the city-owned stores would not sell hot food or other items like beer or cigarettes, as away to avoidsappingaway profitablebusiness from private stores.

Andrew Rein, president of the Citizens BudgetCommission, a watchdog group, called for amore thorough public analysis of theprogram’scost.

TNS PHOTO By KAyLA BARTKOWSKI

Honor Fuchs, 25, right, pumps gasalongside aUPS driver at agas station in Los Angeles.

AP PHOTO By RyAN MURPHy