The Acadiana Advocate 08-04-2026

‘Selling dreams’

50th annual Louisiana quarter horse yearling auction generates more than $6.2M in sales

BY COURTNEY PEDERSEN Staff writer

The Coushatta Pavilion was filled with a crowd wearing cowboy hats and baseball caps, the wafting smell of manure and the constant sound of flying numbers as hundreds of people bid on the next generation of Louisiana-bred race horses.

Plea deal reached in murder case

Man won’t stand trial second time in 2010 stabbing death of pizza delivery driver

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer

Fifteenth

sentenced

on

Angie

with the plea agreement to 25 years at hard labor on the manslaughter charge and 25 years at hard labor on the armed robbery charge to run concurrently Richards already is serving a life sentence at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola on a second-degree robbery charge He was tried as an habitual offender Assistant District Attorney Alan Haney said.

ä See PLEA, page 5A

This year’s two-day annual Louisianabred Yearling Sale took place Friday and Saturday at Coushatta Casino and Resort in Kinder More than 425 quarter horses were offered for sale, and 329 were sold for a total of more than $6.2 million, an average of $18,878 per animal.

“At these sales, we’re selling dreams; most of the time, it can be a

For 50 years, quarter horse breeders and potential owners have gathered in Louisiana, looking for the ones they want to take to the racetrack, vetting the animals’ health, pedigree, temperament and potential for speed.

nightmare, but every now and then that dream comes true,” said Ryan Robicheaux, manager of the Robicheaux Ranch in Breaux Bridge. “It’s like a Lotto ticket. One of these horses is going to win the milliondollar race next year Not all 470 are going to be great ones, but somewhere in there, there’s going to be one that’s going to make a million dollars or half a million dollars.”

Interim OHSEP chief named as search

BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer

Lafayette Consolidated Government has begun the search for a new director of the Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness following the departure of Chad Sonnier, who was recently appointed Louisiana state fire marshal by Gov Jeff Landry

Effective immediately, Chief of Staff Christina Dayries will serve as interim OHSEP director while the administration conducts its search. Sonnier led the department’s transition into a stand-alone office and oversaw changes to the parish’s emergency management program, including restructuring emergency operations, adopting the Emergency Support Function model

GOP holdouts say they will back Blanche for attorney general

Decision comes after striking deal over ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’

BY MARY CLARE JALONICK and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press

WASHINGTON Two Republican senators who threatened to block acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation to lead the Justice Department

said Monday that they will support his nomination, ending an impasse over plans to create a fund to compensate allies of President Donald Trump. The endorsement from GOP Sens. John Cornyn and Thom Tillis paves the way for the Senate Judiciary Committee to advance Blanche’s nomination on Tuesday after the Justice Department and lawmakers reached a deal to formally rescind the $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” proposed to settle Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service.

Cornyn and Tillis had refused to back Blanche’s bid for the permanent post without official confirmation killing the fund meant to compensate people who believe they were unfairly prosecuted by the Justice Department. Blanche’s written order, issued late Sunday, came after the days of negotiations between the Justice Department and the Republican senators who are leaving Capitol Hill when their terms end in January

ä See BLANCHE, page 5A

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 15.

FILE

STAFF PHOTOS By JAVIER GALLEGOS

Kevin Broussard, of J/B Racing smiles as he applies baby oil to a horse’s coat before its auction during the 50th annual Louisiana Quarter Horse Breeders Association yearling Sale in Kinder on Saturday

Benjamin Cifuentes, right, and Alejandro Resendiz Alvarez manicure a horse together during Saturday’s auction.

Bid spotter Ralph Means looks into the crowd to see if his bidder wants to increase their bid during Saturday’s auction.

ä See SELLING, page 5A

ASSOCIATED PRESS

PHOTO

Trump: Pirro ‘folded’ on reflecting pool case

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump said Monday that U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro “choked” and “folded like an umbrella” in moving to drop charges against a former Olympian accused of vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

Speaking at an unrelated Oval Office event, Trump ducked questions about whether he’d fire Pirro, a former Fox News host and longtime ally he handpicked as top federal prosecutor in the nation’s capital. But the president kept up his drumbeat of sharp criticism, saying he remained disappointed by her assessment that damage to the reflecting pool was the result of shoddy construction, not vandalism.

“Frankly I think she choked because the judge was really vicious. Instead of going after the people that did it, the judge went after her and went after her department, and I guess she choked,” Trump said in response to a reporter’s question after he signed an executive order for military spouses. “I don’t know what the hell happened.”

The move to dismiss charges against David Hearn was an embarrassing setback for the Justice Department and marked a rare moment during Trump’s second term of an aide or political appointee openly defying him. After initially posting on social media over the weekend, “I disagree 100% with Jeanine Pirro,” Trump was still fuming two days later, insisting for several minutes that vandalism had marred the troubled project.

“I was disappointed with Jeanine Pirro, really disappointed,” the president said Monday “She folded like an umbrella.”

States sue to block feds from sharing data

More than 20 states and the District of Columbia sued the Trump administration on Monday to block it from getting wide access to the personal information of millions of recipients of a benefits program for low-income families.

The case is the latest legal action between states and the federal government over the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which like other public programs have come under scrutiny from the Trump administration as sources of potential fraud.

The coalition of states sued in federal court in Washington to stop the agency that controls the program from moving ahead with a rule that would allow it to share recipients’ immigration status, Social Security numbers and additional personal information with other parts of government or potentially with private entities, according to the lawsuit.

“Instead of helping families struggling with the rising cost of living, this administration is trying to turn antipoverty programs against the people they’re supposed to serve,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement.

Nauru changes its name to Naoero

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — The Pacific Island country of Nauru has changed its name to the Republic of Naoero, its president said, matching the spelling and pronunciation in the national language.

The country’s international code will change from NRU to NRO and its people will be known as dei-Naoero instead of Nauruan. Commonly known abroad by the pronunciation of Now-roo, the new name is spoken as Now-ero. The move would return the remote South Pacific island nation to its traditional name, a statement posted Thursday to the government’s Facebook account said. The country became known internationally as Nauru only because its local name was difficult for foreigners to pronounce and was a matter of convenience rather than one of choice, according to an earlier government statement.

“This proposed change seeks to more faithfully honor our nation’s heritage, our language, and our identity,” President David Adeang said when he proposed the move to Parliament in January

Trump: Talks are ‘last chance’ for Iran deal

BY AAMER MADHANI Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump has played this hand before during the 5-month-old Iran war — but this time, he insists it’s different.

The president on Monday said that new talks between Washington and Tehran are the “last chance” for Iran to forge a deal and avoid an escalation of U.S. strikes on the country Trump, speaking at the Oval Office, said he expects negotiations will focus on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and create a pathway for Iran to address the United States’ concerns about its nuclear program. He told reporters they would likely learn about the status of the negotiations “today or tomorrow.”

“The first phase is the opening of the straits. The second phase will be the denuclearization,” the Republican president said. “And that will take a little while.”

While Trump has reveled in the U.S. military decimating layers of Tehran’s leadership and devastating its air force and navy, Iran is betting it can outlast Trump as he faces diminished stockpiles of munitions and the difficulty of executing a war that’s unpopular with the American electorate ahead of November’s midterm election.

Trump said he decided to hold off on ordering American forces to carry out new massive strikes against Iran at the urging of Gulf allies Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

He said a plan was in place for U.S. forces to carry out “the biggest attack since World War II” on Sunday But he decided to scrap the plan and give diplomacy more time to play out after hearing from key Gulf leaders — including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman — as well as at the request of unnamed Iranian officials

But Trump reiterated that he’s running out of patience with Iran.

“This the last chance for them to sign a good document,” Trump said.

Earlier Monday, Trump had criticized Iran on social media as being “unbelievably duplicitous.”

His ire was raised by Iran claiming that its meetings with Oman on Monday were focused solely on establishing a temporary route for safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for the global oil trade

“They ask for a meeting, some would say ‘beg,’ talks begin, with more scheduled in the immediate future, and they say openly and proudly that they’re not having any discussions, that nothing is be-

ing talked about, and they’re only dealing with Oman,” Trump grumbled.

Trump said whether “Iran wants to admit it or not, we are, in fact, talking” about preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

Trump has threatened to escalate attacks on Iran only to edge away from his threats several times since the start of U.S. and Israel strikes on Feb. 28.

Asked by a reporter how Americans view him repeatedly making grim threats on Tehran before backing away, Trump responded that he’s showing patience out of a consideration for Iranian life.

“I want to give them every last chance before decapitation,” Trump said. He added, “Hopefully, they’ll come to their senses.”

Trump may still come to the conclusion that a massive escalation in the conflict with Iran is necessary

But critics say his hesitation also might reflect an unspoken understanding inside the administration that U.S. military might alone may not be enough to compel Iran to back down and bring an end to a now monthslong war that Trump had earlier downplayed as a weekslong excursion.

“I think what we’re seeing here is a president who has an approach that’s just rather erratic,” Sen. Mark Kelly an Arizona Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”

“At this point, he’s trying to get us back to February And I think if he could if he had a big reset button he could hit — he would certainly take that option.”

With this latest episode, Trump suggested that the Saudi crown prince played a particularly important role in him turning away from escalating the fight

The U.S. president spoke by phone with the de facto leader of the kingdom on Saturday before announcing he was halting planned strikes.

The crown prince conveyed that an escalation in fighting could have a severe impact on the global economy if Tehran responded to a new U.S. bombardment by targeting some of the United States’ Gulf allies, according to a person briefed on the call who was not authorized to comment publicly and insisted on anonymity.

Saudi officials, the person added, have underscored in their engagements with the Trump administration that the kingdom is in a good position to defend itself against further potential Iranian strikes — as are fellow energy titans Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — but that Kuwait could be more vulnerable to attacks by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq.

Michigan reports first 2 U.S. deaths related to diarrhea-causing parasite

BY MIKE HOUSEHOLDER and SUDHIN THANAWALA Associated Press

DETROIT Two people have died in the cyclospora outbreak in Michigan, state health officials announced Monday, the first deaths confirmed in the U.S. related to the microscopic parasite.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said both people had underlying health conditions that may have been impacted by the intestinal illness and dehydration. The department said it would not provide additional information about the deaths.

Cyclospora is a microscopic, spherical parasite that commonly causes watery diarrhea “with frequent and sometimes explosive bowel movements,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Outbreaks tend to occur most often in the late spring and summer

The CDC says the illness, called cyclosporiasis, is rarely deadly

The heat-loving parasite infects the bowels and spreads through feces. In the

past, people have been infected by consuming fruits or vegetables that were exposed to feces-contaminated irrigation water

Dr Joel Kammeyer, the division chief of infectious diseases at Wayne State University and the Detroit Medical Center, called the deaths a “tragedy” but noted that despite thousands of cyclosporiasis cases, only two people have died.

“For someone who comes into an urgent care and cyclosporiasis is their only issue, it’s relatively easy to treat,” Kammeyer said. But for people who are struggling with other illnesses, he said, “it stands to reason that there are some patients that might not be able to withstand the dehydration that can come with severe cyclosporiasis.”

Cyclosporiasis is less common than other foodborne illnesses, including salmonella and E. coli Many cases are never linked to a specific food or other source and, for years, few U.S. cyclospora outbreaks were reported. But the number started rising about a decade ago, with a particularly notable spike in 2018 and 2019.

Board of Peace envoy meets with Israeli PM

Official discusses Gaza deal with Netanyahu, urges halt to strikes

BY JULIA FRANKEL and SAM MAGDY Associated Press

JERUSALEM, Israel The Board of Peace official overseeing Gaza’s postwar transition met Monday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a statement, in part to discuss a new disarmament deal the board reached with Hamas.

Nikolay Mladenov, the high representative for Gaza, held “constructive and detailed” talks with the prime minister and his team, the Board of Peace said in a statement.

“The goal is clear and is not in question: the complete decommissioning of weapons in the Strip and the transition away from rule by the gun to civilian governance,” it said. According to two people familiar with the meeting, Mladenov also pressed Netanyahu to halt Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip Mladenov and his team, including senior adviser Aryeh Lightstone, are pressuring Israel to stop striking Gaza as they push ahead with the agreement to decommission the weapons held by Hamas.

In a statement Monday, Hamas said that the group and the various Palestinian factions “remain committed to what was agreed regarding the implementation of the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, including all parties’ obligations.”

It added that the group is awaiting “a clear and official response” from Mladenov and the mediators regarding what was agreed upon.

President Donald Trump announced the agreement, which is part of a broader ceasefire deal reached last year, last Thursday. It called for Israel to cease its military operations and

for Hamas and its allies in Gaza to halt all militant activity The agreement also laid out in general terms what the decommissioning process would look like.

After the text of the agreement was released, Israel said it had “serious security concerns” and that it shared those with the United States. It also ramped up its strikes in Gaza, killing 17 people overnight Saturday and into Sunday, according to local health officials. There were no recorded airstrikes in Gaza on Monday Israeli attacks have killed 1,250 people since the ceasefire deal was reached in October, an agreement that ended major fighting in a war that had raged for two years.

Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, mediators in the Gaza truce negotiations, denounced the ongoing Israeli strikes in a statement Monday, saying that the particular targeting of healthcare facilities, medical infrastructure and resulting civilian casualties constitutes a flagrant violation of international law and international humanitarian law

“The mediators also called on the international community to continue to exert pressure on Israel to fulfill its end of the deal. The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Israel’s military offensive in Gaza has since killed 73,375 people, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Its figures do not distinguish between civilians and combatants but they are considered generally reliable by the United Nations and other international organizations.

Associated Press writer Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel contributed.

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ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALEX BRANDON

President Donald Trump speaks Monday during a meeting about military families in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.

Washington state fires destroy hundreds of buildings

Spokane-area residents forced to evacuate

BY LINDSEY WASSON, MANUEL VALDES and GENE JOHNSON Associated Press

— Some resi-

SPOKANE, Wash.

dents returned to devastated neighborhoods in eastern Washington state to find their homes leveled by wildfires that erupted across a parched landscape over the weekend, covering yards in charred debris. In some cases, only chimneys were left standing.

The fires in and around Spokane, the state’s secondlargest city, were among the most destructive in state history About 700 buildings had been destroyed — a number that was expected to climb and some 67,000 people were under evacuation orders. The cause was under investigation.

“Hundreds of people have completely lost their homes and farms, and many are prohibited from returning to their homes or neighbor-

hoods as crews continue to extinguish smoldering embers,” the state’s entire congressional delegation wrote Monday in asking President Donald Trump to approve an expedited emergency declaration.

The fires jumped roads and rivers and had burned about 12.5 square miles by Monday The sky filled with smoke and haze. Calmer winds and lower temperatures arrived to help firefighters, but it was expected to be hot and dry again by midweek.

In one Spokane neighborhood, blackened vehicles, a boat twisted by the heat and melted plastic recycling bins remained. Across the street, lawns were still green and houses were spared, as residents continued to run hoses or sprinklers to water their properties.

Among those who returned were Miriam and Daniel Sim, both 76. Miriam held her hand over her mouth as she surveyed the ruins of the home where they had lived since 2005

“It’s like a war zone,” Miriam said. “There’s nothing to save.”

“At our age, do we want to

rebuild?” her husband asked.

Cpl. Mark Gregory, a spokesperson for the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, said the county initially received nearly 300 reports of missing people, but by Monday they had cleared all but 14.

Those outstanding reports more likely represented people who had not been in contact since evacuating

Authorities seek motive in shooting at In-N-Out Burger

BY MICHAEL BIESECKER and DAVE COLLINS Associated Press

A driver charging his electric taxi and a former law enforcement officer who tried to intervene were among the seven people wounded in a mass shooting at an Idaho fast food restaurant that also left three people dead according to friends and relatives of the two men. The attack Saturday at a new In-N-Out Burger in Twin Falls ended when the gunman, identified by police as 24-year-old Chad Williams, shot and killed himself. On Monday, police were still trying to determine why Williams carried out the attack, which happened in the afternoon in a busy shopping plaza in the southern Idaho city

Many details about Williams’ life were still unknown Monday, but an initial search of court records in Idaho and Arizona, where he used to live, didn’t show any criminal cases matching his name and birth date.

Elijah Moseley, who lived across the hall from Williams in a College of Southern Idaho dorm a few years ago described him as “an introvert” and “a pretty chill guy.”

“I was never scared or weirded out by him,” he said.

Moseley said he considered Williams a relatively close friend, though they lost touch a couple of years ago.

“I’m shocked by this and sick to my stomach about this,” he said.

Detectives are confident that Williams acted alone, Police Chief Matthew Hicks

said Sunday, noting that Williams’ family is cooperating fully with the investigation.

Two of the wounded were treated at a hospital and released, three were listed as stable, and two others were in critical condition, police said Sunday

During the attack, an offduty state trooper and a civilian fired on Williams and diverted him from the restaurant, the chief said. Police haven’t disclosed their names or those of the victims, but some victims have been identified by friends and relatives.

Twin Falls spokesperson Josh Palmer said Monday that police were still trying to identify next of kin.

The attack happened at an In-N-Out that opened late last month as part of the California chain’s Idaho expansion.

than people who were truly missing or in danger, authorities said.

The Spokane-area wildfires were completely uncontained, said Courtney James, a spokesperson for the Washington State Department of Natural Resources.

They were among dozens across the Western U.S. stretching the ability of fed-

eral, state and local agencies to fight them. At least 390 square miles has burned across Washington, which has contended with severe drought and a paltry snowpack.

Authorities warned people not to fly drones near the burned areas, saying it could force them to delay aerial firefighting operations.

Angela and Wayde Deatherage, both 49, evacuated shortly after 3 p.m. Saturday with a son, grabbing a few bins of family photos and heirloom rings but not much else. Roughly 30 minutes later, their security camera was sending fire notifications to Angela’s phone. Wayde Deatherage took some back roads and returned by early evening. He stopped at the end of the street and called his wife: “Our house is done.” Deatherage, however, wasn’t done with his neighborhood. He propped a hose at another house so it sprayed the property That home survived. The couple returned to their property Sunday “It’s just ash,” Angela Deatherage said of the home where they had lived for nearly 22 years. ”It’s like our house sunk down in the basement. There’s just so much loss for so many people.” Friends and relatives of fire victims posted online appeals for money, clothes and basic necessities. Kory and MacKensie Aspaas were away with their children when the disaster hit.

Capital One: Trump accounts closed over concerns over possible money laundering

BY KEN SWEET Associated Press

NEW YORK Bank accounts held by President Donald Trump were closed by Capital One in 2021 after it flagged financial activity that had characteristics of money laundering, the bank disclosed in a court filing over the weekend.

The court filing is tied to a lawsuit filed against Capital One by one of Trump’s financial holding companies shortly after he was sworn into office a second time. Trump alleges that Capital One illegally closed his ac-

counts for political reasons, following the Jan. 6 attacks on the U.S. Capitol.

Capital One wants the lawsuit dismissed.

“The closures were the result of months of analysis and a careful review by Capital One’s AML team in accordance with bank policies and regulatory guidance,” the bank said in the court filing. The term “AML” is an abbreviation for anti-money laundering.

Trump has sued Capital One, as well as JPMorgan Chase, for allegedly debanking him after he left office in 2021. Debanking

occurs when banks shut down customer accounts because they believe they pose financial, legal or reputational risks to the banks. Both banks have denied they severed their relationships with the president, his sons, and other related businesses for political reasons. The lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase is seeking damages of $5 billion. JPMorgan has said it does not close accounts for political reasons, but closes accounts “with or without cause” and also accounts that create “legal or regulatory risk.”

BY KEVIN FREKING Associated Press

WASHINGTON The House Ethics Committee recommended Monday that Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., be censured after finding that he engaged in persistent unprofessional and inappropriate conduct toward two young female aides in his congressional office. A censure registers the House’s deep disapproval of a lawmaker’s conduct that does not meet the threshold for expulsion.

Edwards has denied that any of his conduct was intended as a sexual or romantic advance, but the committee said his behavior would “lead a reasonable observer to interpret it as such.” It also described his actions as “beyond inappropriate.” The panel highlighted numerous examples of actions it considered improper, including Edwards providing the young women with lavish

and recurrent gifts, making comments regarding their appearance and dress, inviting them to intimate dinners and vacations, and sending notes regarding his affection.

The Ethics panel found no evidence Edwards explicitly propositioned any person under his employ or engaged in any sexual activity with them. But it also said he failed to adhere to “the spirit of rules prohibiting sexual harassment of and unwanted advances to House staffers.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By LINDSEy WASSON

Miriam Sim, 76, reacts Monday while talking about her neighborhood largely burning to the ground after a wildfire hit the northern part of Spokane, Wash.

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Louisiana Quarter Horse Breeders Association Executive Director Misty Coats said the goal of the sale is for the horses to win “The hopes of these yearlings are to go to the track next year, and then not only can they run for the purses, but the breeder that’s selling them here, if they run first, second, or third, they get 25% of the purse just as a breeder, even if they aren’t the owner,” Coats said

The 329 horses that went to new owners were priced from $2,200 to $252,000. Buyers traveled to Coushatta from across Louisiana and Texas, and some came from as far as Mexico, North Carolina, Minnesota and Arizona.

The most expensive horse sold was Pegasus SC, hip No 430, who was purchased for $252,000 by Watson Land & Cattle Keith Nellesen. Nellesen is co-founder of Vivint Inc., a home automation, security and solar energy company

The horse that sold for the second most was RF A Faster Train, hip No. 416, who was purchased for $132,000 by Daniel Miranda in Louisiana from Tim and Jennie Rogers with S&E Sales Prepping LLC as the agent.

S&E Sales Prepping owner Stephen Deville said what made RF A Faster Train worth so much money was that it has a good temperament.

“That horse had a great conformation,” Deville said. “He looked the part, but also his bloodline. His mom’s a really strong mare She’s had multiple other horses that did well in races, including one last

BLANCHE

“We want to express our gratitude to Mr Blanche and his staff for working with us on this, and we look forward to voting to advance his nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee soon,” Cornyn, of Texas, and Tillis, of North Carolina, said in a statement.

Blanche has repeatedly said that the Justice Department was scrapping plans for the fund, which sparked bipartisan outcry over the possibility that violent rioters who attacked police at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, could be considered for payments. But skeptical lawmakers said they were concerned that could be revived without a commitment in writing, especially because Trump has continued to defend the idea.

In his order posted on social media late Sunday, Blanche wrote that the department was confirming “beyond any doubt, that

INTERIM

Continued from page 1A

year.”

Robicheaux Ranch Inc. represented a total of 84 horses throughout the sale and sold 70 for a total of $2.1 million, Robicheaux said.

This year, Robicheaux Ranch Inc won an award at the sale for leading agent, meaning they sold for more money than anyone else

there is no Fund.”

Since the settlement of the president’s lawsuit against the IRS was announced, “No Members were appointed; no funds were transferred; no process for receiving claims was established; no claims were paid,” the order said “This order establishes, beyond any doubt, that there is no Fund.”

Cornyn and Tillis had also pressed the Justice Department to limit the scope of a separate piece of the settlement that provided broad immunity for Trump and members of his family from tax audits.

Under the deal, the Justice Department clarified in writing that the tax audit immunity agreement “applies by its terms only retroactively” to claims open at the time of the settlement and does not protect the president from examination of future tax filings. It also makes clear that only the parties that brought the lawsuit — Trump, two of his sons, and the Trump Organization are covered by the tax agreement.

Cornyn and Tillis said in their statement that they

at the event.

“These horse sales are like the NFL Combine,” Robicheaux said.

“We don’t do the 40-yard dash, but future buyers, future trainers come watch them walk, study their conformation, look at their pedigree.

They X-ray them, they scope and make sure everything is correct

were “pleased” with the concessions made by Blanche.

“From the outset, we were clear that we needed a written document addressing our concerns on the IRS audit agreement and the anti-weaponization fund that included constraining the scope of audit protection by limiting it to the parties of the Settlement Agreement and legally ending the antiweaponization fund,” they wrote.

Democrats, however noted that the order rescinding the fund doesn’t stop the Trump administration from compensating Jan. 6 rioters through a previously established process that allows people to file claims for damages if they believed they were wronged by the government.

“This supposed ‘deal’ doesn’t prevent payouts to violent insurrectionists in the future,” Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff said in a social media post. Schiff added that it also “leaves in place a tax-immunity deal that could help Trump skip taxes on the $2.3 billion he made last year, and still leaves it

that we can tell, and then they’ll put a price that they’re willing to buy them for. Sales at the auction have trended upward since 2020, when they were just short of $4.7 million.

Coats said this is because the market is up and the horses have gotten better over the years.

vague who and what is covered.”

Blanche’s nomination was thrown into doubt last week after the Judiciary Committee postponed a vote that had been scheduled for Thursday morning as Tillis and Cornyn said they needed more from the administration before they could provide the necessary votes.

After the Thursday vote was delayed, Trump said in a social media post that he might pull Blanche’s nomination and resubmit it after Cornyn and Tillis leave office next year And

This year marked the 50th anniversary of the sale, which Coats said is a testament to the Louisiana horse community

“I think it shows the grit and the commitment that Louisiana breeders have to the race industry and to breeding, you know, great horses,” Coats said.

on Saturday the president threatened to push forward with the fund if the two Republicans blocked Blanche’s nomination.

On Sunday evening, Trump said that people who had faced charges from the Jan. 6, attack on the Capitol and could have benefited from the fund had “their lives destroyed.”

“This would be a reimbursement for the pain that they suffered,” Trump said.

“A lot of people like it.”

Blanche, who served as Trump’s defense lawyer in his criminal cases, entered

the Justice Department last year as deputy attorney general. He was elevated to the top post after Pam Bondi was fired in April by Trump, who was frustrated by her failure to successfully prosecute his political enemies. Though Blanche insisted he wasn’t auditioning for the permanent job, he has moved quickly since taking the reins of the department to promote the Trump administration’s agenda and accelerate investigations into the president’s perceived foes.

Dayries will oversee the department during the transition and coordinate with local, state and federal agencies to maintain emergency preparedness and response operations.

“We’re grateful to Chad for his leadership and congratulate him on this welldeserved opportunity to

PLEA

Continued from page 1A and expanding emergency planning and training efforts.

Monday’s plea deal, Haney said, was “more about giving the victim’s (family) finality.”

One requirement of the plea deal was that Richards admit in court that he stabbed Falgout to death

Falgout’s sister, seated in the courtroom Monday, fought back tears as Richards said that on March 29, 2010, he and another man were riding around Youngsville, getting high on drugs and drinking Richards said he doesn’t remember each step of what happened.

“I will acknowledge that I was the one that took Mr Falgout’s life,’ ” Richards said. “I do have remorse.” Richards turned to Falgout’s sister, saying, “I can’t give you back your brother

serve the people of Louisiana,” Mayor-President Monique Boulet said in a statement. “We’re proud of the progress we’ve made, and we’re looking for the next director to continue building on that foundation.”

The OHSEP director oversees Lafayette Parish’s emergency preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery efforts and manages the parish’s Emergency Operations Center The position coordinates emergency planning among municipalities, public safety agencies, healthcare provid-

I hope you are going to have some sense of justice for your loss.”

He was originally found guilty in an April 2017 trial by a 10-2 jury vote and was sentenced to life in prison. In April 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion in the case of Ramos v. Louisiana that nonunanimous jury decisions in cases involving serious offenses were unconstitutional.

Richards petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for a writ at the same time the court was considering the Ramos case. Following the Ramos decision, the Supreme Court vacated the 2017 Richards conviction and remanded it back to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal, which ordered the 15th Judicial District Attorney’s Office in Lafayette to retry the case. The Advocate was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in Sep-

ers, school systems, utility companies, nonprofit organizations and state and federal agencies.

Boulet said the administration is seeking an experienced emergency management professional to lead the department.

Qualified applicants are asked to submit a résumé, cover letter and professional references to applicant@lafayettela.gov with “OHSEP Director” in the subject line.

Email Kristin Askelson at kaskelson@theadvocate. com.

tember 2022 for reporting on the racial impacts of Louisiana’s laws that allowed juries to convict people without a unanimous verdict, a practice that hailed back to the Jim Crow era of discrimination.

The five-part series titled “Tipping the Scales” debuted on April 1, 2018, around the time the state Legislature began debating a bill that would allow Louisiana voters to amend the state constitution to require unanimous jury verdicts

The constitutional amendment passed by about a 2-1 margin, with The Advocate’s reporting credited with pressuring legislators to call for the election and for educating voters, putting names and faces on those impacted by the nonunanimous verdicts.

Email Claire Taylor at ctaylor@theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

Eliezer Ortiz prepares his yearling to enter the arena during the Louisiana Quarter Horse Breeders Association yearling Sale in Kinder on Saturday

If youenjoyedthe weatheryesterday, youshouldlikeitonce again today.Expect amostly sunny, hot, relatively humid daywithalight breeze. Temperatures this afternoon will be slightly aboveaverage, rising to the mid-90s.The dewpoint temperatures are lowerthan theyhavebeen, so the heat index values thisafternoon willrise to 104 or higher.The UV index will be at the extreme levelthis afternoon, so stay hydrated and protect yourself from the sun.

Russia blasts southern Ukrainiancitywithglide bombs

Ukrainiandrones kill at least9

BY ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press

KYIV,Ukraine Russian planes dropped eight powerful glide bombs in aspan of 90 minutes on residential districts of the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, killing one person and wounding dozensof others, regional chief Ivan Fedorov said Monday

Meanwhile, six people were killed by Ukrainian drone debrisinArkhipoOsipovka, asmall town on Russia’sBlack Sea coast in the Krasnodar region, regional Gov.Veniamin Kondratyev said, adding that 40 others were wounded

Three other people were killed and two were wounded in Ukraine’sovernightattack on the illegally annexed

Crimea, said thepeninsula’s Russian-installedhead, Sergei Aksyonov.Hegave no details. Neither side’sclaims could be independently verified. Ukraine’sinnovative longrange drone technology developed during thewar has enabled Kyiv to sign military cooperation agreements with nine countries, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday. Under the deals, Ukraine receives long-term funding for its defense industry while partnercountries getnew defensecapabilities, he said, addingthat agreements with 15 other countries are being negotiated.

Ukraine is using its longrangestrikedronestohit targets deep insideRussia in an effort to push Russian President Vladimir Putin into seekinga peace settlement Zelenskyy said in aspeechto

Ukrainian diplomats

“Wewill work very hard to makethat happen this fall,” he said.

Ukraine wants countries to adoptheavier international sanctions on Moscow,but existing sanctions alsoneed tightening toprevent Rus-

Trumpadministrationoverhaul couldgut Head Startstandards

BY MORIAH BALINGIT Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump’sadministration is planning adramatic overhaul of Head Startthatwouldgut its quality standards, upending the hallmarksofthe early education program for impoverished children, two people familiar with the deliberations said. Head Start, established in the 1960s to help fight poverty,has long been considered by experts to be agold standard early learning program. Its regulations, which stretch more than 100 pages, outlinerequirementsoneverything from child-to-teacher ratiosand child health screenings to family engagement. Trump’sRepublican ad-

ministration would replace thoseregulationswith around adozen pages of rules, leaving most of the specifics up to stateand local law,saidthe people familiar with the deliberations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss information that was notyet public andbecause they feared reprisal. In apost on XonSaturday night, the Department of Health and Human Services, whichoversees Head Start, said to expect arule to be published this week. Theadministration “remains committedto strengthening Head Start by preserving federal investment in theprogram whileadvancingreforms that expand access, increase local flexibility, reduceunnecessaryadminis-

trative burden, and ensure services aredelivered effectively to children and families in need,” department spokesperson Emily Hilliardsaid Monday in an email. The draft ruleswould require moredocumentationfrom parents whoare homelessorunemployed, the people familiar with thedeliberationstold The Associated Press. An early version of the proposal also would have barredparents whoare in the UnitedStates illegally fromenrolling their children, even if the children are U.S.citizens It’s unclear whether those provisions will make the final draft Head Start, which operates in all50states, haslong enjoyed robust bipartisan support

sian companiesfrom exploiting loopholes, he said. Zelenskyy also announced he is appointing Rustem Umerov,who hasbeen involved in U.S.diplomatic effortstostop thewar,ashead of theForeignIntelligence Service.

Russia hasusedglide bombs against Ukrainian towns andcitiessince it invaded its neighbor morethan four yearsago.The Sovietera bombs are retrofitted with guidance systemsand can carry up to 6,600 pounds of explosives, leaving huge craters. Ukraine hasnoeffective countermeasures.

The Sunday evening onslaught on Zaporizhzhia killeda 71-year-old woman andwounded 31 people,including a16-year-old girl, as the glide bombs damaged 22 apartment buildings in four districts of the city,Fedorov said.

While Moscow’sforces have captured the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant andholdotherparts of the region, its capital city of the samename remains in Ukrainianhands. It is one of the four regions, along with Donetsk, Kherson and Lu-

hansk, that Russia illegally annexedinSeptember 2022 even though its forces do not completely control them Other large-scale damage of civilian areas has resulted from Russian ballistic missiles, and late Sunday Zelenskyy made another urgent pleafor countries to send Ukraine more U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems. Only Patriot interceptors can reliably stop ballistic missiles, but they are in short supply due to the Iran war “The UnitedStatesknows what we need. Europe knows what we need. Anti-ballistic missilesmust protect people —not sitinstockpiles,” Zelenskyy said on social media. President Donald Trump last week appeared to back off fromhis earliercommitment to give Ukraine alicense to make Patriots itself. He said Friday that he hasn’t made afinal decision.

Hundreds of migrantchildren arestrandedinSpain’s

BY BERNATARMANGUE and JOSEPHWILSON Associated Press

CEUTA, Spain The teenage girl made it throughthe waves to Spanish territory Her little brother did not, drowning in the Mediterranean, while their mother disappeared in the chaos when tens of thousands of people surged through the breakwater,trying to leave Morocco behind.

Thetragic story of a 17-year-old from Tangier is representative of theplight of many of themorethan 800 minors whofourdays after thecollective push by migrants into Ceuta face a scarypresent and an uncertain future.

ShetoldanAssociated Press photojournalist how

she andher family joined themassive crowdthattried to swim around aborder fence to reach the Spanish territory on Thursday.Like many,she said they did so seeking betteropportunities. The AP is withholding her identity because she is a minorina vulnerable situation.

She described how she saw Spanish police pull the body of her 8-year-old brother from the water

She madeittothe shore but becameseparated from her mother, andhas spent the last four days on herown. She said some localsgave her food and someclothing, with one woman taking her into herhome so she could bathe. She then went to a centerfor youths run by the government for somehelp,

but found it was full.

“I sawpeople stepping on the dead,” she said through a translator sinceshe doesn’t speak Spanish. “Now we are children begging on the street.” She is oneofsome 860minors who remained in Ceuta on Monday after crossing over,according to local officials. AP journalists saw other minors asking forfood Those minors now make up alarge part of the3,000 to 5,000 migrants who have avoidedexpulsionfrom Ceuta of the original 60,000 who cameacross. Spanish authorities confirmed72 people died, mostly in the water, during thecrossing. Moroccoreported11deaths which are not included in the Spanish total, the Spanish interior ministry said.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By DANBASHAKOV

Aburned car is seen Saturday after aRussian missile attack in Kyiv,Ukraine.

JanRisher

LOUISIANA AT LARGE

A Memorable Evening

LSU’sFootball

Women’sClinic brings fans closer together

On Thursday evening, LSU’s air-conditioned indoor football operations center felt warm.A truck-sized opening to the practice field could explain that.But the heat didn’tmatter

At The Huddle, LSU’sFootball Women’sClinic, 333 women shopped, ate, drank, learned some plays, threw passes, tackled and ran pregame drills —all for $200 apiece or $350 forVIP, which included yoga with Lane Kiffin before the main event. When Iwalked in, Iwas surprised to see pop-up boutiques along the sidelines of the practice field —selling all things purple and gold. And the womenwere buying it. The T-shirtoptions were impressive —the most notable styledlike acampaignlogo:

“Kiffin/Orgeron’26,” later spotlightedbyKiffin himself.

Ed Orgeron was standing near one of the goal lines, with aline of women waiting for photos stretching to the 30-yard line. The routine was the same: New group. Handshake. Smile. “Geaux Tigas,” his signature call, over and over.Henever seemed to tire of it. After the shopping and photos came apanel of players, including new quarterback Sam Leavitt, then aQ&A with Kiffin hosted by Taylor Jacobs, LSU football’schief strategy officer She asked afew questions, then worked through questions submitted by attendees: What home game are you most excited for?

“The first one,” Kiffin said. Do you see Whit Weeks being your future son-in-law?

“That’saquestion for Landry’s mom, Layla,overthere,” he said. Football room, football pivot. LaylaKiffin gave athumbs up. Jacobs said, “Whit’shere. Maybe we should ask him.” Lane Kiffin responded, “Let’s see how he plays this year before we do that.” Next came the practice squads. We divided up into assigned groups and went into training rooms with coaches and players.

Ilanded with the Red Stick Socialites, led by coach Kevin Peoples. Our three players turned out to be Weeks, Leavitt and TJ Dottery,atransfer from OleMiss. Ihad taken one of the last seats in the room, and the three players ended up right besidemefor the better part of an hour

They were charming, candid and sincere and talked about what goes into their roles on thefootball team, even before practice officially beginsAug. 5. Plus, Weeks gave more insight into his relationship with the coach’sdaughter Then we headed outsideonto the practice field,where another coach led the group through the

ä See LSU, page 4B

STAFFPHOTO By JANRISHER

Ed Orgeron, right, special assistant to recruiting and defense for LSU football, was one of the officials taking partinThe Huddle:LSU Football Clinic for Women thatJan Risher attended.

The newJSClark Leadership Academy campus in Opelousas is readyfor seventh through 12th grades, featuringa 54,000-square-foot buildingon75acres, cutting-edgefacilities and the BrittneyBoudreaux AlliedHealth Academy

‘New area, newfeel, newvibe’

JS ClarkLeadership Academyopens $20M Opelousas highschool

School staff members give atour of the newJSClark Leadership Academy campus in Opelousas on Friday

BY JOANNA BROWN Staff writer

JS Clark Leadership Academy unveiled a new $20 millionhigh school campus Friday,a milestone that school leaders say will allow the Opelousas charter school to continue expanding after years of rapid enrollment growth.

Thecharter school,whichispreparing to welcome morethan400 students, held aribbon-cutting ceremony Friday to welcome the community to 1040 S. Bullard St. in Opelousas —now home to a54,000-square-foot building, sitting on 75 acres of land on the city’swest side.

The seventh to 12th grade campus is home to the Brittney Boudreaux Allied Health Academy, and afull range of contemporary campus amenities —like amedia studies center,labs, modern gym facilitiesand dual-degree programswhere students can graduatewithanassociatedegreeor technical credentials.

The $20 million expansion has been along-held dream forthe school, whichopenedin2012at 1517 Statesman Road in Opelousas. That school will remain open as the JS Clark Leadership Academy Gateway campus, hosting kindergarten through sixth grade.

School founders Tiffanie Lewis and Victor Lewis said enrollment hastripledsincethe school’s opening, and the plan is to continue growing with anew elementary school on theBullard Street campus, as well as expanding their sports program

They also have awaiting list of over 500 students, but theirgrowth plans areprudent, high school Principal Victor Lewis said.

“Wewant to make sure that our students are successful as we bring them up,” he said. “Our ninth grade only has51students. But next year we’ll add another section to have like 75 in 10th

Funeralset forNew Iberia chief

D’Albordied Saturday after cancer battle

BYJOELTHOMPSON Staff writer

Funeral services for New Iberia Police Chief Todd D’Albor, whodied Saturdayafter an extended battle with cancer,will be held Thursday,according to an obituary released Monday The service will be held at Nativity of Our Lady Catho-

lic Church in New Iberia, with visitation hoursfrom 3p.m. to 8p.m. Wednesday and from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Thursday at Evangeline Funeral Home.

D’Alborservedinlaw enforcement for over 35 years. He was appointed NewIberia policechief in 2017,becomingthe first person to lead the departmentafter it was reestablished following a 13-year absence.

2010, with additional roles at the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office, Jefferson Davis Sheriff’s Office and St. Martinville PoliceDepartment.

He continuedserving as police chief throughout his illness and remained involvedinthe department’soperations, according to thedepartment.

TheNew Iberia Police Department issuedastatement

D’Albor also servedaschief of police for Jennings beginning in

Three Lafayette Parish men

CRIME BLOTTER Advocate staff reports

were arrested Thursday Each was booked on counts of felony theft, theft of an ATMand

resisting an officer Williams’ bail was set at $360,000. Bail for Zachary and Wilson was set at $260,000 each.Wilson also is being held for the FBI in abankburglary investigationand for the Baton Rouge Police Department on acount of aggravated flight from an officer According to the LafourcheParishSheriff’s Office, aLockport police officer sawthe suspects attempting to

steal an ATMfrom New Orleans Firemen’s Federal Credit Union, 400 Crescent Ave., in Lockport. Authorities said the suspects damaged the ATM, stole cash boxesand fledwhenconfronted by theofficer.Investigators recovered thecash boxes after

BY HALEYMILLER Staff writer

At the Louisiana Community and Technical College System,the difference between astudent whofinishes adegree and astudent who dropsout isn’talways therigor of the curriculum. For some students, system Executive Vice President Chandler LeBoeuf said, it’sthe ability to afford food and get their basic needs met. “Oftentimes, it’s notthe academic coursework that stops them from ultimately being successful,” LeBoeuf said. “They have to make the tough decisions of pausing school and education to go to work to be able to put food on the table.” Despite alargely standstill state budget coming out of the 2026 legislative session, astatewide programtoreducecollege student

PHOTOSByROBIN MAy

T. Lewis

V. Lewis

D’Albor

Voters’ choices in fall elections narrow

As anew election cycle gets underwaywith qualifying for municipal andstate offices starting Wednesday,wecan’thelp butnotethat Louisiana voters this fall face adramatically changed landscape.

When the U.S. SupremeCourt’s ruling in Louisiana v. Callais came down in April, fundamentally altering the understanding of Section2of the Voting Rights Act, we said that we hopedit wouldn’tbethe end of thestory andthatvoters would see the importanceoftheirrole in our democratic system.

Since then, we have seen legislators in multiple states quickly revise maps to givetheir party’scandidates an advantage. In Louisiana, that has meant the elimination of oneofthe state’stwo majority-Black congressional districts, which is held by Rep. Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge.

After Callais, congressional primariesset for May were abruptly canceled so lawmakers could redraw districts.Inthe newlyconfigured 6th District, approved by theLegislature in May, aheated race among Republicansisexpected. But Fields has already announced he won’t run. Justasin2024, when thedistrictswereredrawn to comply with acourt orderand thenRep. Garret Gravesdecided not to seek the seat, we believethe political debate becomes poorer when voters have fewer choices.

And that is what is happening withthe intense focus by political parties on rewarding loyalty above all else. We see fewer coalitions forming and fewer candidates who can talk acrossthe aisle.Wedon’thear discussionsofissuesthat are important to large swathsofvoters. That, we fear,leads too many to believetheyhaveno option of supporting someone who’drepresent theirpoint of view or focus on solving their problems.

Let’snot forget that the Callais decisionaffects not just congressional elections, butalso comes into play for redistricting for city councils and school boards —bodies whereworking collaboratively matters.

There is little that the average votercan do to changethisstate of affairs, butitshould be clear to allthat voting matters now more thanever.

This latest bout of redistrictingseekstoguarantee the outcomes that party politicianswant to see. But even as they “pack andcrack”the electorate, their actions offer noguarantees,and indeed could make the paths of their favored candidates more perilousifvoter turnoutis greater than expected.

Our fervent wish is to get to aplaceinour state andinour country where politiciansseek less to pick their voters,but ratherpickupthe challenge of tackling the priorities that matter to abroad majority of theelectorate Until that day,though, we all havea responsibility tofollow the campaigns, demandthat candidates respond to voters andtoshowupatthe ballot box to make our voices heard.

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

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

TO SEND US A LETTER, SCANHERE

OPINION

Time forafresh look at Essencesupport

I’venever missed an Essence Festival.Infact, I was amember of theNew Orleans City Council when we helped negotiate thefirst Essence Festival to come to ourcity. Ibelieved in it then, andafter morethan 30 years,Ibelieveiniteven more today Essence is much more than amusicfestival.Every year,itfillsour hotels, restaurants, conventionhalls andsmallbusinesses, generatingmillionsofdollarsin local andstate tax revenues that benefit all of Louisiana.

Over the years, public investmentand financial incentiveshavesteadily declined,evenasthe festival’simpact hasgrown. That doesn’tmakesense. That’s whyI believeit’stime to take afresh look at howwe support Essence. If we’rewillingtoinvest public dollars to attract major sporting events,conventionsand other tourism opportunities, we should be just as willingtoinvest in Essence, which hasdelivered results for Louisiana for morethanthreede-

cades Othercitieswould welcome the opportunity to host an eventofthis magnitude. We should be doing everything we can to keep this Louisiana treasure right where it belongs. This year,I washonored to participate in empowerment panels, economicdevelopment discussions and communityconversations. Ialso enjoyed themusic, culture andexcitement that have made Essence special formorethan30years. As always, Ileft inspired.

City needstogoold-school on parade land grabbers

In the recent article “New CarnivalrulesOK’d,” thenewspaper reports that grills, tents, furniture andportable toilets remainprohibitedinpublic spaces alongNew Orleansparaderoutes, but the fines for violators will increasefrom $250 to $1,000 and$2,000 each day thereafter.Blah, blah,blah Fineshaven’t worked before, because enforcementisimpossible. Howwill raising finesbedifferent? Whatisthe plan?

At the endofthe parade days, Iwatch land grabbers lowering canopiesand tents, lockingupladders andtables, bundlingchairs andre-staking tarps, knowing they will be there the next day.

Many take turns sleepinginvehiclesorsitting in chairstoprotect

their turf for the next parade. The misuse of public property for the private use of afew should notbetolerated.It’stimethe city goes old-school.Back when it meant business, tow trucks lined up before parades, hauling away illegally parkedvehicles.Then came dump trucks with city employees tossing ladders, furniture, tarps, tents andother prohibited items into them.

One sweep doesn’twork. It must become routine, both before and after parades.

The city does an amazing job of cleaning up after parades. Now is the time to put some teeth into enforcing Carnivalrules SUSAN MUCHMORE NewOrleans

Medicalscience canworkmiracleswithhelp

Ireally appreciated therecent letter from Jonathan Mizrahi, M.D., where he lauds the great strides in finding cures forpancreaticcancer

Dr.Mizrahi emphasizesthatthese breakthroughs came via investments made many years ago, and he points outthatfuture breakthroughs depend on ourinvestment today.

Fourteen years ago, my wife was

diagnosedwith stage 4A breast cancer.Thanks to chemotherapy andhormonetreatment developed yearsago,mywife is nowconsidered cancer-freewith averylow chance of it ever returning.

Let’scontinue to invest in medical science. God worksthrough medical science. QUIN BATES Marrero

Essencehas neverbeen just aboutentertainment. It celebrates entrepreneurship, education,health, culture andopportunity.It brings people togetherand showcases theverybestof NewOrleansand Louisiana Investing in Essence isn’tjust theright thing to do.It’sone of thesmartest economicinvestments our city,our state andour tourism industry can make. We simply cannotafford to take Essencefor granted.

U.S. REP.TROYCARTERSR. NewOrleans

No oneisentitledtoa shredofanyoneelse’s wealth or property

Socialism is evil because it appeals to humans’ lowest form of ambition: the ambition to have someone else do the work while you gain the benefit. Youwork, and Ieat. Would it really be fair for 51% of ademocratic nation to force the other 49% to payfor all their living expenses? Of course not. But if we can grasp this notion, can we notalso say it just as unfair at 60/40 or 80/20 or even 99/1?

Just because someone is smarter,works harder or even is just luckier than you doesn’t mean you are entitled to take their stuff. Some say the 1percenters are greedy,but this yearning to have someone else pay your way is really greed in its truest form. Our country got great and remains great because we gave everyone opportunity.There is no barrier to success other than your own willingness to get out there and take some risks and do some work. Because of this, our people live freer and better than others. Because of this, we leadthe world in innovation, can-do spirit and getting things done. Think any of the socialist countries like Norway or Denmark could withstand an invasion by say,Russia or China? How many minutes do you think they could hold out on their own? It’sthe presence of the UnitedStates as the world’sleading power (also many times more powerful than the next in line) that keeps these other folks safe. And us, too. Our best and brightest’smain ambition would be to “go on the dole,” as the Brits say And that is why socialism is evil.

LOUIS LUZYNSKI Bush

COMMENTARY

LSUsportsmakesequityplay

This week, Gov.Jeff Landry and LSU President Wade Rousse will convene apair of private meetings with top donors to LSU’ssports programs to lay out a new revenue model that could “change the future of college sportsin America.”

Grandiose statements aside, part of the deal may already be done: Baton Rouge news website RedEye reported Monday morning that LSU had already entered into an agreement withaprivate equity firm for $100 million.

Noneofthis should be surprising. College sports is now more than ever a big-money arms race. Every school is looking for new revenue sources that will help keep it at the topofthe heap. That’swhy LSU is searching so hard for more cash.

RedEye’sreport, which is anonymously sourced, says that the investors will provide $100 million in upfront cash. It’ssimilarto deals inked by Michigan State and the University of Utah, the report says In return, the firm will receive either aminimum guarantee or apercentage of media rights whenthe SECnegotiates its next football deal, RedEye reported.

It’sanimportantinfusion for LSU, which runs deficits in most sports

other than football, even popular ones like gymnastics, baseball and women’s basketball.

Player compensation is amajor expense. This is not theold days,with recruiting battles playing out in living rooms and at kitchen tables with mothers and fathers. They are waged in boardrooms and at conference tables, with agentsand consultants.

Butitwould be wrong to lay the blame for this at the feet of the players. For years, college sports was atopdown, closed economy.Within thelast half-century,astelevision brought more and more games into American homes, the money began flowing in. Athletics departments began to act like businesses. But they didn’tpay players in proportion to their value; the moneywent to coaches, administrators and facilities.

This arrangement was justified for years under thefarcical ideal of “amateurism,”even as increasingly wealthy coaches put ever-increasing demands on their players’ time and effort. Players haven’tbeen “studentathletes” for years.

This system allowed schools to keep the majorlabor costs down (coaches excluded) while pulling revenue from media rights.

Today,college athletics is amarketdriven economy.Top players are looking for the best deal for them andtheir

families. They are finally being compensated in relation to the value they bring to theirorganizations, the same as every other employee.

Butitputsthoseatthe top of theprogram in abind. To keep LSU’ssports roaring, to keep Tiger Stadium one of the best places to be on aSaturday night,tokeep the PMAC shaking at the conclusion of aflawless floor routine, LSU officials need to pay competitive rates. That’snot cheap.

Andso, we are in aspot whereLSU has cut its first privateequitydeal. Morethan thetaxpayers, residents, fans, donorsorthe state’spolitical leadership, one privatecompany now has an actual share of the flagship public university’ssports programs. Investors aren’tlooking for wins They’relooking for areturn.

Butthereisabright spot. The best way for private investors to get that return is for LSU sports to remaina hot commodity. Andthe bestway for that to happen is for theprogram to win on the field and on the court. That will do two things:keep fans happy and drive investor returns. It also putsalot of pressure on those at the top. It likely will lead to more such deals. Critics will say LSUhas soldout.The truth is,ithad no choice.

EmailFaimon A. Roberts III at froberts@theadvocate.com.

Who’stoblame when kids aren’t vaccinated?

New Hampshire, South Carolina test Democrats

David Shribman

CRAWFORD NOTCH, N.H.— Twohundred years ago this summer,aferocious storm moved through these mountains, prompting a massive landslide that killed seven members of the Willey family and two hired workers. More than twodecades ago, the Great Stone Face, the beloved rock formation above Franconia Notch that wasthe symbol of this state and the inspiration for scores of 19th-century paintings and the soaring oratory of Daniel Webster, collapsed. Recently,the Democratic National Committee took steps to end morethan acentury’sNew Hampshire tradition of holdingthe first presidentialprimary and delivered the prize to South Carolina.

Nothing if not resilient in the face of sadness and crisis, NewHampshire —shaped by massive geological forces that created the hills and glens of this state, buffeted by economic forces that created and then demolished what once wasthe largest cotton textile complex on the globe —has hewntotradition, nurtured a culture of independence, adjusted to powerfulgales of change, even endured extreme winds (234 mph, mostpowerful recorded in the Northern Hemisphere) and bracing temperatures (wind chill minus 109 degrees).

Nowit’sgirding to fight forthe lifeofits political culture.

One asset: The Republicans show no sign of moving their 2028 primary out of NewHampshire. One response: Guided by aGranite State law that requires the state to hold the first presidential primary “7 days or moreimmediately preceding the date on which any other state shall hold asimilar election” —to the mind of politicos here, and here that means pretty much everybody,Iowa’scontest, acaucus, doesn’tcount —the Democrats likely will hold their primary before South Carolina’s anyway

With the support of GOPGov.Kelly Ayotte, they’lldare the Democrats to refuse to seat its delegates in the national convention. But those delegates werenever the point. In 2020, the last timethe party had acontested presidential nomination, NewHampshire’s24delegates constituted less than 1% of the total.

“There’snoreason we have to listen to this decision,” said former Secretary of State William Gardner,who fordecades fought to keep NewHampshire first.

That’sbecause the impact of New Hampshire always has been to test presidential candidates in an environment of highly engaged voters. It has provided asignal to the country of the legitimacy of somecandidates (Dwight Eisenhower,Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H.W.Bush, Michael Dukakis, John F. Kerry,Bernie Sanders) and the weakness of somehighly touted others (Nelson Rockefeller, President Lyndon Johnson, Edward M. Kennedy,Bill Bradley). Often candidates wholost (Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Joe Biden) were strengthened by the test they endured.

What is the death count under Donald Trump? We’re not talking about loss of life in his war with Iran. We’re not talking aboutnatural deaths by agingorunpreventable diseases. We mean Americans who die because they refuse safe vaccines that Trump or his health secretary,Robert F. Kennedy Jr., question or discourage.

Arecent occurrence of death and suffering comes from the refusal by many parents to let doctors give their newborns avitamin Kshot. Infants are naturally deficient in vitamin K, which helps prevent blood clots and internal bleeding, which can be horrific. Kisavitamin, not avaccine. But ill-informed parents have developed suspicion of anything delivered with aneedle.

Vitamin Kshots were once routinely given, but now many parents refuse them. In 2024,anestimated 5.2% of American babies were notinjected with vitamin K, up from 2.9% in 2017. At least12suchbabies have died, and far more have sufferedpermanent brain damage.

Doctors believe the real numbers are far higher than reported

Who’sto blame —the parents for not studying the matter or ahealth department that hascastaspersions on accepted science?Jessica Kirk,a

pediatric specialist at aFlorida hospital, recalls trying to comfort agrieving parent. “But what Icould notbring myself to say to her was, ‘There’s nothing you could have done.’ ” Fallingvaccination rates are to blame for America’sworst measles outbreak in more than 30 years. Parents are refusing the effective measles, mumps andrubella vaccine over the false claimthatitcauses autism.Trumpissaidtobehounding Bobbytolook deeper for alink that 138 studies by real scientists could not find.Trump now insists that the shot be broken up into separate injections, based on zero science.

Several children infected with measles died last year,whenthere were far fewer cases. Many more had to be hospitalized withseriouscomplications.

Trumpmakes us dizzy complaining that he doesn’tget credit forspeedingupdevelopment of aCOVID-19 vaccineand then putting avaccine skeptic with abizarre past in charge of Health and Human Services. He gushes abouthaving “a Kennedy” from “the greatest political family” in hisadministration. Whatfun that must have been Trumpnever directlydiscouraged Americansfrom getting COVIDshots. Buthekept minimizing the severity of the disease. He said it would “go away” or that it was undercontrol Trump would not receive the vaccine

beforecameras. ThatgaveAmericans whosuspected that vaccinesposed dangers more reasons to avoidthem.

An estimated 250,000 Americans diedunnecessarily from COVIDby refusing to be vaccinated after the shots became widely available.Who’s to blame? The first Trump administration or people whodidn’tseek outexpert advicetoget vaccinated?

Trump is allegedly unhappy with Bobby for notdoing more to fansuspicionofvaccines. Really,RFK Jr.has done quite enough harm already putting Americans’ health at risk.

Complicating matters forTrump are newfindings from afriendly pollster that vaccine skepticism is highly unpopularwith voters. In another survey, 80% of adults said they trusted their doctors most, while only 34% put their faith in Bobby Why is Trump pushing doubt in mainstream science when he andhis family reportedly getall the shots? Could it be fumes circulating in his 80-year-old head?Could it be apleasurable jolt of power from persuading people to, in effect, gamblewith their lives? Thatpossibility is too grim to contemplate.

Sufficeittosay,though, the Trump administration is doing real harm, and some of it is costing American lives.

Froma Harrop is on X, @FromaHarrop. Email her at fharrop@gmail.com

This state has held the first primary since 1920 (winner: Herbert Hoover,who wouldn’t be elected president foranother eight years) and has been established as an important political test since 1952 (the first of two Eisenhower victories).

The key to the cult of NewHampshire is the intimacy of the process, conducted in living rooms, libraries, church basements —a reflection of the truth that Thornton Wilder, whoset his 1938 Pulitzer-winning play “Our Town”inthe fictional community of Grovers Corners, New Hampshire, identified when he wrote, “Inour town, we like to know the facts about everybody.” It is indelibly marked by the aggressiveness of the voters who attend meet-and-greets and town meetings, as former Governor Nikki Haley,accustomed to South Carolina politics and shivering —itwas only November! —asshe entered aHooksett, New Hampshire, meeting site in 2023, discovered first-hand.

But it has adamaging distinction for Democratic policy-makers: It’s 91% White, only 2% Black (Democratic Party: 18%) and 5% Hispanic (Democrats: 16%).

If, forexample, acandidate such as Kentucky Gov.Andy Beshear,who would be expected to do well in South Carolina, contests an early New Hampshire primary and does well, he could solidifyhis position as aputative frontrunner.Aprogressive candidate wholikes to defyconvention, such as, say,Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of NewYork, could campaign here alongside her ally Sanders (winner of two primaries and afamiliar figure across the state border), and have abreakthrough to catapult her into serious contention she’sunlikely to wininSouth Carolina.

Email DavidShribman at dshribman@postgazette.com.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU interim coach FrankWilson leads theteamonto the field against WesternKentucky on Nov. 22 in TigerStadium.

Faimon Roberts

Froma Harrop

SCHOOL

Continued frompage1B

grade, and we’re moving it slowly but consistently.”

Tiffanie Lewis, who is the CEO and head of schoolsat JS Clark Leadership Academy,said the goal is to be a “community school.”

“Weneed to get back to having those community schools where parents come, where they have a place,” she said. “In fact, we have partnered with the Southwest Louisiana Primary Healthcare Centerwith afacilityatthis location where all of our students and families can be safe for theirhealthcare needs.”

The neighborhoodsurrounding the new campus has long dealt with blight and aging infrastructure, but Tiffanie Lewissaid the area has seen new investment since the school broke ground, including fiber lines and workonthe water system.

“Right behindus, they’ve

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—which had been reported stolen in Gretna —and fled on foot. Police used drones, K-9 units and assistance from Louisiana State Policeto locate and arrest the suspects. The investigation is ongoing, and authorities said additional arrests and charges are possible.

COLLEGE

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hunger got afirst-time,$1 million investment from the Legislature.

The infusion has elated campus leaders and food bank workers, some of whom said they were uncertainof the program’sfuture. They say they will be able to deliver morefood,connect students with local food banks and improve on-campus food pantries, among other services.

“Weare thrilled to see this funding increase,” said Zoe Duffield,withSwipe Out Hunger,which championed Hunger-Free Campus legislation across the country,ina statement. “It demonstrates not only the commitment and dedication of the Louisiana Board of Regents to the Hunger-Free Campusprogram, but also the state’soverall investment in the basic needs of higher education.” Millions of college students in the U.S. go hungry

D’ALBOR

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detailing D’Albor’scommitment to the department:

“You fought acourageous battle,” the statement reads. “Even during your most difficult days, youremained dedicated to and involved until your final moment.” The department credited D’Alborwithhelping

alreadybegun to tear down blight for new construction. The community has definitely gotteninvolved, as wellas ourmayor to make sure we have progresson this side of town.The city is movingforward to make sure this area continues to grow, because we’rehere,” shesaid As the campus neared completion this past spring, Tiffanie Lewis was also nearing the end of her doc-

Immigration detainee escapes ICE facility

Acivil immigrationdetainee escaped Fridayfrom the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detentionfacility in PinePrairie,prompting asearch by the Evangeline ParishSheriff’s Office. Deputies said Santiago Manuel Gasper,22, aGuatemalan citizen, escaped from the facility shortly after4 p.m. Friday.Heis describedas5 feet, 1inch

with roughly 1in4students in 2020 saying they had experienced limited or uncertain access to food.

Louisiana does not conductregular surveys of how many college students don’t have enough to eat —how many live in astate of “food insecurity”— but because of thestate’spovertyrate, those numbers are likely higher locally,advocates say.Misconceptions that young, collegegoing people don’tqualifyfor theSupplemental Nutrition Assistance Program compound the problem.

“There’salot of college students that are hungry,and people don’trealize that they are,” Marleah Walker,director of programs and outreach for Feeding Louisiana, said.“They’remaybenot in the area that they’refrom, they don’t have familysupport, and if they don’thave apantry on campus, or they don’thave SNAPbenefits, they’re reallystruggling to make ends meet.”

Louisiana was one of 10 states to adoptHungerFree Campus legislation,

rebuild the Police Department afteritwas reestablished followingits 2004 dissolution.Working with MayorFreddieDeCourt, he helpedestablish the reformed agency,from purchasingits first supplies to outfitting officers and buildingthe department’s fleet.

Otherelectedofficials from New Iberia shared their condolences with D’Albor’sfamily and loved ones, including DeCourt,

toral program in education, where she studied the impact of thedualenrollment model she designedatJS Clark.

“What Ifound in my research is that students are more successful when they areoncampus, in asafe environmentthatteaches them howtobecollegestudents,and teaches them howtobeprofessionals,” she said. “They understand howtoemailprofessors.

tall andweighs about117 pounds.

The Sheriff’s Office said it was notified of theescape around midnight and immediately launcheda search using athermal drone, a tracking dog and ground units. Despiteseveral hours of searching, deputies were unable to locateGasper Deputiessaidtheyreceiveda report Saturday morning that aHispanic man wearing awhiteTshirt and white shortswas seen running south on Fifth

sponsored by Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton Rouge, in 2022. The national initiative encourages uniformity of food services with“HungerFree Campus” designations awarded to schoolsand provides grantsfor institutions to maintain food pantries and otherresources.The Louisiana programismanaged by the Board of Regents.

According to theRegents’ annual Hunger-Free Campus report, widedisparities of food services between Louisiana colleges existed as recently as 2023, withone school offering awooden box stocked with canned goods andanother providing a “one-stop shop” for students complete with perishables and nonperishables, household items, avegetable garden and cooking lessons.

To be deemed aHungerFree Campus, an institution mustmaintaina task force that meets regularly,notify studentsofpotential SNAP eligibility,hold hunger awareness events and connect students with on- or offcampus food resources.

whowas responsible for first appointing him to the position.

“He servedwith an enormousamount of honor,rivaled only by theamount of love he had for his community,”DeCourtsaid. “A true friendtomany,his willingness to serve others will never be forgotten.

D’Albor’sfamily requests that instead of flowers, donations be givento theOfficersBattling Illnesses Foundation.

Aribboncutting washeld at the new JS Clark Leadership Academy campus in Opelousas on Friday

PHOTOSBy ROBINMAy

Theyunderstand whatit takes to look at their degree plan and look at those credits for what they’re supposed to do.

“I think the product speaks for itself,interms of engaging thosestudents early,especially first-generation students. Giving them this type of experience propels themtobesuccessful as they enter the workforce or college.”

For incoming freshman Kevin Mitchell, who performed with the JS Clark band at the ribbon-cutting ceremony, that newschool feeling is exciting, as well as thecampus amenities he’ll be able to access but, on the cuspofhis high school years, he’s mostly excited for the experiences thatare to comeinhis new school home.

“I’m just readytobein high school,” he said. “It’s awhole new area, new feel, new vibe.”

Email Joanna Brown at joanna.brown@ theadvocate.com.

Street in Pine Prairie about 4:30 p.m. Friday.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, ICE said Gasper is a civil detainee, is notconsidered dangerous andhas no known criminal history Anyone withinformation about Gasper’swhereabouts is asked to contact the Evangeline Parish Sheriff’s Office at (337) 363-2161.

The Sheriff’s Office said it will continue working with ICEand other lawenforcement agencies as the search continues.

This is the first investment in the effort by the state Legislature. Previously,the Board of Regents allocated dollars internally toward the program, awarding 21 campuses in 2026 withover $100,000 in awards.

LeBoeuf said tackling college student hunger remains amultifaceted effort.

“We100% are appreciative of the investment of the Legislatureand thework that they continue to do around this space,” LeBoeuf said. “But we recognizethatfor long-termsustainability, it takes partnership of all.”

LSU

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team’spregame drills. My foot is injured, so Icould not fully participate. This would have driven my late father —alifelong football coach —right up awall. Still, Ifelt him out there. Lights on, with an incredible pink and purple sunset to the west.

Mothers were throwing passes to their sons. Mothers were tackling their sons. My father built acareer out of organizing fun like this and for an hour,inthe dusk, so did LSU, with alot more bells and whistles.

The event was so much more than Iexpected. The coaches and players took it seriously,but they were having fun —and so were the participants. It was a blast to stand in lines and try to throw afootball 10 yards into agarbage can.

When the last rotation ended, most of the women hurried toward another field where Orgeron was, with his gravelly voice, setting up footraces. Unable to compete, thanks to my injury,I took my time.

On my slow walk over, Ibegan chatting with two people gathering equipment. Itold them how well-run and fun the whole night had been. One of them fell into step beside me.Turned out he grew up in asmall town in Mississippi, not too far from where Idid. He’d played football at Hinds Junior College, where my uncle spent decades as an administrator

He told me his name was Dwike Wilson, LSU’ssenior executive director of recruiting and personnel.

“I bet you know Tony Hughes,” Isaid. “My dad coached him.”

The guy looked at me sideways.

“Tony Hughes?” he said.

“Tony Hughes coached me.” Hughes played football for my dad at Forest High School in central Mississippi. He went on to coach at many places —University of Southern Mississippi, Louisiana Tech, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and as head coach at Jackson State. Wilson and Itook aphoto together before he headed his way,and Iheaded mine,texting the pic to Tony Hughes as Iwalked. Hughes wrote back in a flash: “Dwike is my favorite. He is like ason to me.Heis my guy!!! Iwas just talking about Coach Risher at Bible study last night.” Hughes and his wife have told me before that, through the decades, he has quoted my father —infootball and in life, on the field and off it. Before Ileft the field, I tracked Wilson down to show him the message from Hughes. Maybe it was the sweat on his face, but to me, it looked like his eyes welled up with tears. My father coached high school football for decades in Mississippi. He has been gone four years. But standing on an LSU practice field under stadium lights, there was no arguing with what Ifelt. He was there.

EmailJan Risher at jan. risher@theadvocate.com.

STAFFPHOTOSByJAN RISHER

LSUcoachLane Kiffinspoketo333 women who participated in The Huddle: LSU’sFootballClinicfor Women at LSU’sfootballoperations center on Thursday.

School staff members givea tour of the newJSClark Leadership Academy gymnasiumonFriday.

BY MATTHEW PARAS Staff writer

Aday after Ja’LynnPolkmade the surprising decision to retire from the NFL, there still wasn’tclarity about why the wide receiver wanted to walk away

Coach Kellen Moore calledPolk’s choice “personal,” declining to share the reasons the 24-year-old provided the Saints. AndMoore saidthere was no illwilltowardPolk, adding thereceiver hadseveral conversationswiththe team in the days before he was placed on the league’sreserve/retired list.

“He just felt like this was the best decision forhim on apersonal level,” Moore said. “And so, youknow, love that guy. He didanawesome jobthrough the entire processhere (over) theyear-plus we had him.”

BY LUKEJOHNSON Staff writer

Kaden Elliss has notspent alot of time re-

flecting on his professionalfootball journey but he quicklycan recall the unfortunate moment that changed the trajectory of his career

It was aMondayNight Football game against the Baltimore Ravens in 2022. Starting weak-side linebacker Pete Werner left the field on amedical cart inthe thirdquarter, an injury that required surgery andsidelined himfor six weeks.

“You pray for everyoneonthe team to be completely healthy all year,” Elliss said.“If Pete doesn’tget hurt against the Baltimore Ravens my last year here,Imight havejust signed back as aspecial-teamer,and that mighthave been my career.You knowwhat Imean?”

The New Orleans Saints suddenly needed to count on Elliss, known mostly for his special-teams ability,ina starting role. He delivered in abig way,recording six sacks and 63 tackles in the final nine games of that season, enough to earn him abig contract from the rival Atlanta Falconsthat offseason

This spring, Ellissreturned to wherehis career startedasa different playerthan the one who needed an opportunity

He has establishedhimself as aproven and dependable startinglinebacker in the NFL. He has earned more than $30 million in his career and will top $50 million if hefinishes out his third contract.

That is not too bad for aformer seventhround pick out of theUniversity of Idaho.

BY DENNISWASZAK AP pro football writer

FLORHAM PARK, N.J.— Breece Hall

came to training camp with anew contract from the New York Jets and an intense desiretojustify the big bucks.

“It makes me more hungry to keepproving Iamwho Isay Iam,” said the star running back, who receiveda three-year extension in May worth $45.75 million. “It’s making me want to do morethan I’ve done in the past.”

Meanwhile, Baker Mayfield said he feels “disrespected” by the Tampa Bay Buccaneersfor not getting the contract extension he sought and plans to play outthe final season of his three-year,$100 million deal.

Several playersknow exactly how they feel, entering theseason with something to prove because of either signing abig-money deal, looking foranother contract,join-

“There’salot of pride,”said gen manager MickeyLoomis,who was ning the front office when the Sa selected Ellisswiththe No. 244 p in 2019. “I think anytime youdra the players that are in thelatter ha of the draftand they develop int All-Pro, Pro Bowl (players) …tha makesyou feel good “Kindofpissedoff that he was i Atlanta over those years and doin that —like,you don’tlike to see t —but you’re happy forthe player kindofmad that you didn’t see it so and keep him here.”

Sometimes the timing works out, though. New Orleans already hada line of communication out to Ellis about the possibility of coming backwhen Demario Davis elected to sign with the New York Jets this offseason. That move created avoid that Elliss wasqualifiedtofill.

Elliss topped 100 tackles in eachofhis three seasons with theFalcons. He wasthe Falcons “green dot” defender,callingdefe sive plays in the huddle.And the skills that first started to show w gothis opportunity to play in New have been evident during early training camp “I’m excitedtoplaywithhim,” tackle Davon Godchaux said. “Ve

ing anew team, tryingtoover-

come an injury orworking to rebound frommediocre play.Here are some players with alittle extra to prove in 2026.

BrianThomas, WR,Jaguars

The2024first-rounderout of LSU set franchise rookierecords for catches (87), yards receiving (1,282) and TD receptions (10), quickly emergingasTrevorLawrence’stop target. But Thomas’ productionnosedivedlast season with 48 catchesfor 707yards and just two TDs. He alsotied for second in the NFL with 10 drops.Thomaswas impressive during offseason workouts and minicamp,and thehope is being in his second year in Liam Coen’s offense will help himmore closely resemble the playmaker he was as arookie.

A.J. Brown, WR,Patriots

The three-timePro Bowlpick

was traded by Philadelphia to New EnglandinJunefor a2028firstround draft pick and a2027 fifthrounder. Brown, who’sstill only 29, had 339 catches for 5,034 yards receiving with32touchdowns in four seasonswiththe Eagles —a tenure also marked by cryptic social-media postsand comments thatsoured his relationship with thefranchise, including quarterback Jalen Hurts. In New England, Brown gets afresh start with his childhood favorite team.

Keon Coleman, WR,Bills

The 23-year-old wide receiver hasthe talent to be astar for the Josh Allen-ledoffense. But inconsistency and lapses in focus on and off the field have prevented Colemanfrom reaching that potential. He hasbeen disciplined threetimes for being late to meetings.After having eight catches for 112 yards in Buffalo’s seasonopener,Colemanhad just

Linebacker Kaden Elliss defends while playing forthe Saints in 2022.

Make no mistake, Polk’sretirement was sudden and will force the Saints to change course after the black and gold hada clear visionfor the former2024 second-round pick. NewOrleans was hoping to salvage Polk’scareer after it acquired him from the New England Patriots last training camp. Polk’stenure ends without ever suiting up in aSaints uniform. He was sidelined allof2025because of ashoulder injurythatendedhis seasonbefore New Orleans traded for him. Let’sexamine the ripple effects of the Saints losing Polk.

Next man up

Before retiring, Polk had established himselfasthe Saints’ fourth receiver —with the potentialtocompete with Devaughn Vele for the third spot.

With Chris Olave and Jordyn Tyson sidelinedthrough thespring during team drills, Polk got valuable reps with the starters and formed anice chemistry with quarterback TylerShough. Polk impressed well enough that Moore madeapoint Monday to tell reporters he wasconfident thewideout could contribute in the NFLifPolk were to reverse his decision. With Polk gone, there’sawide-open windowfor the eight other receivers not named Olave, Tyson and Vele to win that spot. All eyes will turn to the Saints’ recent draft picks. Fourth-round wide receiver Bryce Lance had agood practice Sunday with back-to-back touchdowns whilethe Saints workedinthe redzone. On Monday, it wassixth-round wideout Barion Brown’sturn to stand out. The LSU product flashed by hauling in several long catches andusing his 4.4 speed to torch the opposing corner Third-year receiverKevin Austin perhaps shouldn’tbediscounted. He got work with the first-team offense near the end of practice Monday when the Saints were scaling back the

30 receptions for 292 yards in 12 other games. He acknowledged in minicamp that this is a“make or break” season.

Breece Hall,RB, Jets Hallran for 1,000 yards for the first time in his career last season andalso had 350 yards receiving withfive overall TDs while playingin16games.Hewas mentioned often in trade rumors last year but remained withthe Jets. With FrankReich running theoffense, Hallshouldcontinue to be adoit-all bell cow out of the backfield with the hope he’ll firmly establish himselfasone of the league’stop running backs.

Baker Mayfield, QB,Buccaneers The No. 1overall pick in 2018 by Cleveland revived his career in Tampa Bay after replacing Tom Brady in 2023. Mayfield insists he

STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD

Saints linebacker Kaden Elliss runs adrill during training

AP PHOTO By KELLyJORDAN Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver

Brian Thomas makes acatch during practice at the team’s training camp on Sunday in Jacksonville,

On TV

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RedSox,Phillies, Padres go big

Tradedeadline expires with flurry of moves

BY DAVID BRANDT AP baseball writer

The Boston Red Sox andPhiladelphia Phillies took big swings Monday ahead of baseball’strade deadline, with the Red Sox adding three-time All-Star catcher Adley Rutschman afew hours after the Phillies picked up three-time batting champion Luis Arraez.

Thepairofaggressivemoves highlighted ahectic day of swaps, featuring dozens of deals in the hours leading up to Monday’s 5p.m. deadline. Among Monday’s other fireworks: the Houston Astros added veteran outfielder Daulton Varsho from Toronto in exchange for right-hander SpencerArrighetti, andthe Chicago Cubs got pitcher Clay Holmes from the New York Mets.

The San Diego Padres made multiple moves to deepen their pitching staff, picking up former Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray in adealwith the San Francisco Giants and right-hander Casey Mize from the Detroit Tigers.

Here are Monday’sbiggest deals: RutschmantoRed Sox

Rutschmanwas theNo. 1overall pick in 2019 out of Oregon State and has largely lived up to the high expectations with five qualityseasons with theBaltimore Orioles.

Now he moves to the Red Sox, who started slow this seasonbut revitalized their playoff hopes with afranchiserecord-tying 15game winning streakinJuly.The 28-year-old Rutschman —who is under team control for one more season in 2027 —has hada bounce-back season at the plate with a.762 OPS, which helpedhim earn his third All-Star nod Rutschman is currently on the injured list with left wrist inflammation. He’salso dealt with an ankle injury and aconcussion this year

The Red Sox also received catcher Jake Rogers and cash considerations in the deal. The Orioles gotcatcher Carlos Narváez, minor leagueright-handed pitchers Anthony Eyanson and Kyson Witherspoon, minor league outfielder Enddy Azocar,and aplayer to be named laterorcash considerations. Eyanson, who pitchedon LSU’s2025 national championship team, is one of the top pitching prospects in baseball

BaltimoreOrioles catcher AdleyRutschman follows through on atworundouble against the ChicagoCubsinthe seventh inning on July 7in Baltimore. The Orioles traded him to BostononMonday.

Arraez to Phillies

Arraez comes to the Phillies from theSan Francisco Giants, and he’ll be expected to create RBI opportunities for sluggers Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber

Arraez is hitting an NL-best .324 in aresurgent season after signing a$12 million,one-year dealwith San Francisco earlyin spring training. The 29-year-old hashis highestbatting average since 2023, and he’splayed better defense at second baseafter questionsabout hisglove hindered his market in free agency Phillyalsogot reliever Caleb Kilian back from theGiants in thetrade for two minor leaguers, and it swung aseparate deal for left-handed reliever Brooks Raley with theMets.

Padres loadup

The Padres have won eight of nine to moveone game back of thefinalwild-card playoff position, andthislatestsurge in their up-and-downseasonapparently prompted general manager A.J Preller to tradeyet another chunk of his severely depleted farm system for achance to win now Ray is 10-6 with a3.08 ERA and 107 strikeoutsin1222/3 innings this season, his third with San Francisco. San Diego gave up right-hander

Miguel Mendez and 17-year-old shortstopJoniel Hernandez for the34-year-old Ray, who will be an unrestricted free agent this winter.The Padres also gotcash in thedeal.

The 26-year-old Mize has a4-6 recordand 2.70 ERA this season over 16 starts. The Tigers receivedleft-handedpitching prospects Kash Mayfield and Jackson Wolf.

Astros pickupVarsho

The 30-year-old Varsho has had adisappointing offensive season with a.682 OPS over 99 games with the BlueJays, but he earned aGold Glove award in 2024 and remainsanexcellent defender Houston cameinto Monday’s games witha58-55 record, which is good for first place in the AL West.The Astros took over the division lead for thefirst time since April after athree-gamesweep of theRangers over the weekend.

The Blue Jays received Arrighetti, whois7-5 with a4.60 ERA over 17 starts this season.

Guardians addthree

The Cleveland Guardians pickedupa power batand some outfield versatilitybyadding Jo Adell from the Angels, who receivedminor league catcher Jacob Cozart. Later in theday, they acquired veteran lefty Fos-

terGriffin from the Washington Nationals and sluggerNathaniel Lowe from the Cincinnati Reds.

The 27-year-old Adell has 16 homers and 62 RBIs this season, one year after hitting acareerbest 37 homers with 98 RBIs. Adell has spent his entire career with theAngels after being the 10th overall pick in the 2017 amateurdraft

The 31-year-old Griffin has been excellent for the Natsthisseason with a12-3 recordand 3.06 ERA. He’sback in the big leagues after athree-year stint playing in Japan.

The 31-year-old Loweishaving abouncebackseason with a.266 average, 12 homersand 37 RBIs He’lladd more thump from the left side.

Othertradesofnote

n ThePittsburghPirates added veteran right-hander Luke Weaver from the Mets. Weaver is in the first season of atwo-year,$22-million deal. He had been one of the few bright spots this season for thelast-placeMets, going2-1 with a1.84 ERA with one save in 42 appearances. The Pirates also added veteran right-hander Kirby Yates in adeal with the Angels.

n The New York Yankees added outfielder Heliot Ramos from the San Francisco Giants in exchange for minor league infielder Kaeden Kent andleft-hander HenryLalane. The26-year-old Ramoshas hit.264 with nine homers and 34 RBIsin74games this season for theGiants.

n The MilwaukeeBrewers added right-handed starter Dustin May andleft-handed reliever JoJo Romerofromthe Cardinals in exchange for prospects Alexander Frías andJosiah Ragsdale. May hasa5-7 record and 4.38 ERA over 21 starts. Romero has a3.35 ERA over 44 appearances.

n The playoff-chasing Arizona Diamondbacks gota left-handed bat thatcan fill aspot in left field with the acquisition of Lars Nootbaar from St. Louis forprospects. Nootbaar has hit .234 withthree home runs and 16 RBIs in 48 games since hisseason debut in early June after heel surgery last offseason.

n Torontogot utility player Josh Smith, who played at LSU,and minor league right-handerJosh StephanfromTexas for rookie left-hander AdamMacko. Smith, whoin2024 wonaSilver Slugger as autility player, was at TripleARound Rock. He went into this seasonwith the chance to be the Rangers’ everyday second baseman, but he hit .213 in 45 games andmissed 37 gamesbecauseof injuriesand about with viral meningitis.

Former LSU big man Miller finds newhome with Miami

Former LSU men’sbasketball player Robert Miller III has found anew home after entering the transfer portal on April 10.

The 6-foot-10, 230-pounder is transferring to Miami, his father,Robert Miller II, told TheAdvocate. He averaged 6.1 points, 3.9 rebounds,1.4 blocks and0.9 steals pergameasa sophomore. Miller wasranked the No. 42 power forward in the transfer portal,according to 247Sports.

The Houston native was one of nine players to leave LSU ahead of coach Will Wade’sfirstseason back in Baton Rouge. His new home, Miami, is led by second-year coach Jai Lucas, who guided the Hurricanes to a26-9overall recordand a13-5finish in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

BearssafetyBryant

leaves practice field on acart

Chicago Bearssafety Coby Bryant was injured at practice on Monday with an apparent leg injury and left the field on acart

Bryant,the former Seattle Seahawks player who was acquired in free agency this offseason, was working against tight end Cole Kmet in 1-on-1 drills and clutched his left legnear the knee. He was able to getinthe cart on his own power,but the scenewas scaryfor theBears, who are depending on Bryant’s speed in arevamped starting secondary

The team hasn’tannounced the nature or severity of the injury, butESPNreported Bryantcould miss 8-10 weeks with ahyperextension, bone bruise and small fracture.

NinersWREvans sits out with strainedquadriceps

Wide receiverMikeEvans missed practice forthe SanFrancisco 49ers on Monday because of astrained quadriceps in the latest injury to hit the team’sreceiver room Evanswas able to attend practice as aspectator andevencaught acouple of passes on the side during aspecial-teams drill. But his absence leftthe Niners extremely short-handed at receiver

Projected starter Ricky Pearsall is alreadydonefor theseason because of an injury to his posterior cruciate ligament last season that hasn’thealed and requires surgery.The team’s top draftpick, De’Zhaun Stribling, has missedthe past two practices with tightness in his hamstring.

TexasRangersdesignate

RHP Martin for assignment

Veteran right-handed reliever Chris Martin was designated for assignment by the Texas Rangers on Mondayafter being reinstated from his third injured list stint this season because of aright shoulder issue.

BY NOAH TRISTER AP baseball writer

Thebiggestdealofthistrading season came courtesy of the Detroit Tigers, who sent left-handed ace Tarik Skubal to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday, two days before Monday’strade deadline. Skubal is afree agent after this season, and Detroit is under .500. But even consideringall that,trading away the 2024 and 2025 Cy Young Award winner couldn’t have been easy The Tigers will be judged on how the three prospects they acquired —Zyhir Hope, River Ryan and Brady Smith —perform. History showsthat it’spossible to come out OK when trading apitcher of Skubal’scaliber,but there are plenty of teams whogot little in return.

Here are eight other instances when areigning Cy Young winner was traded before the end of the following season(hattip to Baseball Reference for the transaction recaps):

n FrankViola,Minnesota to New York Mets, 1989: Among theplayers Minnesota received for Viola were Rick Aguilera and Kevin Tapani. The former would save 42 games and the latter would win 16 in 1991, when the Twins won the

World Series. Viola wasn’tarental —after finishing the1989 season in New York,hewent 20-8 in 1990 for the Mets.But NewYork never made thepostseason with him.

n David Cone,KansasCityto Toronto to New York Yankees, 1995: Conewas actually traded twice theyear after his Cy Young season in Kansas City.Toronto acquiredhim forChris Stynes and two players who never made the majors. When the Blue Jays floundered, they dealt Cone —in thefinalyear of his contract —to theYankees for Marty Janzen and two players who never madethe majors.

n Pedro Martinez, Montreal to Boston,1997: Ouch. Montreal knew what it had in Martinez, but he was entering his walk year so the Expos traded himshortly afterthe ‘97seasonfor Carl Pavano andTonyArmas. Bostonwas able to keep him long term, andin1999 and 2000, he turned in oneofthe best two-year pitching stretches in the live ball era: 23-4with a2.07 ERA, followed by 18-6 with a1.74 ERA.

n Roger Clemens,Toronto to New York Yankees, 1999: New York was comingoff a114-win season and aWorld Series title when it sentfan favorite David Wells to Toronto along with reliever Graeme Lloyd and infielder Homer Bush. In return, theYankeeslandedClemens,who like Skubal was fresh of two straight Cy Youngs. He added another

withNew York in 2001 and kept pitching until 2007.

n CC Sabathia, Cleveland to Milwaukee, 2008: Another good comp for Skubal, in that the Brewers got Sabathia as apartial-seasonrental rightbefore he hitfree agency.It wasworthitwhen he went 11-2 with a1.65 ERA downthe stretch to help Milwaukeereach theplayoffs for thefirst timein26years. Outfielder Michael Brantley was aplayer to be named later in the package that went back to Cleveland, and he would become afive-time All-Star

n Cliff Lee, Cleveland to Philadelphia, 2009: Yes, that’stwo straight seasons Cleveland traded away theprevious year’sCy Young winner —and Leewasn’t even apending free agent. He helped the Phillies reach the World Series before being retraded to Seattle. As part of the deal for Lee, Cleveland got Carlos Carrasco, who would pitch there for over adecade.

n R.A. Dickey,New York Mets to Toronto, 2012: The Mets pickedthe right time to deal Dickey,who won 20 games in 2012 before New York sent him to the Blue Jays in December.Right-hander Noah Syndergaardand catcherTravisd’Arnaud were part of the return, and both were still with New York when the Mets won the pennant in 2015.

n Justin Verlander,New York MetstoHouston, 2023: Verlander is atrickycasesince he actually left the Astros as afreeagent

after winningthe Cy Young for themin2022. Then New York traded him back to Houston in the middle of the 2023 season.

Performanceofthe week

Kyle Freeland threw Colorado’s first complete gamesince 2002 on Sundayinan8-1 victory over KansasCity. It wasFreeland’s251st start and first complete game. EduardoRodriguez is nowthe lone pitcher in major league history with at least250 startsand no complete games.

Comeback of theweek

Twoofthe craziest comebacksof the season came this week, courtesy of teams trying to stay in the American League wild card race. Baltimore trailed Detroit 7-0 in thetop of the seventh with Skubal on the mound. The Tigers hada 99.4% win probability according to Baseball Savant.The Orioles finally chased SkubalwithLeody Taveras’two-out RBI single, and by thetime Detroit’sbullpengot out of the inning it was 7-5. Baltimore tieditinthe eighth, both teams scored twiceinthe 11thand then the Orioles won10-9 in 12. On Thursday, Kansas Cityled Minnesota 3-0 with two outs and nobody on in the bottom of the ninth. (Win probability: 99.5%.) Ahit batter,asingle and awalk loadedthe bases.ThenKodyClemens hita grand slam to give the Twins a4-3 victory

Martin, whoturned 40 in June, is 1-1 with a9.00 ERA in 16 games this season, allowing 25 hits and 14 earned runs in 14 innings. He missed 75 games during histhree IL stints.

The 6-foot-8 Martin is an Arlington, Texas, native who initially played for his hometown team in 2018 and2019. He returned to the Rangers last season, when he had a2.98 ERA over 49 relief appearances.

Eala beats Pegula, becomes firstFilipina with WTAtitle WASHINGTON— Alexandra Eala’s breakthrough week at the DC Open lasted one daylonger than expected.Bythe time it ended, the Filipino expression written across the Nike T-shirt she had wornearlierthat week had become areality “Once it grows, it cannot be stopped.”

After the women’sfinal stretched acrosstwo days because of heavy rain, Eala rallied past Jessica Pegula 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 Monday to capture her first career WTATour title. The victory made the 21-yearoldEalathe first Filipina to win asingles title on the tour,completing the samecareer-defining breakthrough thatthe Washington tournament once gave Pegula when she claimed her first WTA title in 2019.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GAILBURTON

Skubal

Offense shines for first time in camp

BY LUKE JOHNSON Staff writer

The pads came on, and the New Orleans Saints offense enjoyed its best performance to date.

After a handful of days where things looked half a click off, Tyler Shough completed 11 of 14 pass attempts. The offensive line gave him a relatively clean pocket to operate from for much of the practice, and when pressure broke through, Shough would answer by using his legs to find space and extend the play It wasn’t just Shough making plays. A rookie wide receiver popped a couple of times Monday morning, and a veteran running back made an impact as a receiver out of the backfield. In both cases, it might not be the player whom you think. Here is what happened during the roughly 100-minute practice Monday morning in Metairie.

Attendance

There were no changes in attendance Monday: Receiver Mason Tipton, and defensive linemen Keeshawn Silver and Zxavian Harris continued to miss practice with injuries suffered before camp began, and right guard Cesar Ruiz missed practice with an excused absence.

New Orleans has not yet made a roster move with defensive lineman Bryan Bresee who is expected to miss the 2026 season with a torn ACL, but it will soon have two roster spots to fill after Ja’Lynn Polk‘s sudden retirement.

Offense shines

Nobody was really worried about the offense this early in training camp, but Monday’s practice was the first one decisively won by the starting offense.

Shough easily had his best day, both in terms of the passes he completed and the rhythm he had the

ELLISS

Continued from page 1C

very good communicator, very good on the blitz, too.”

Like Elliss, Godchaux was a Day 3 draft pick who found a role, established himself and found staying power in the NFL Godchaux is entering Year 10, while Elliss is entering his eighth season Godchaux chose the word “grit” to describe the players who follow that path. They are not the players into whom the franchise has invested heavily, and they are the ones who have to make the limited opportunities count. They also must have a stubborn belief.

Elliss recalled one of his first experiences after a summer practice with the Saints in 2019 — a team that would go 13-3 and win the NFC South. He told his father former NFL All-Pro Luther Elliss, that he didn’t feel intimidated and figured he was one of the better athletes on the team.

His dad laughed him off and made sure he knew that the veterans had a different gear for an organized team activity But the belief never left Elliss, even after he tore his ACL during his rookie season and had to work his way back into feeling like himself.

“I never viewed myself as like a seventh-round pick,” Elliss said “From the jump, I was always like, ‘Man, this is only because I was at Idaho.’ You know what I mean? If I had been somewhere else (in college) and done the same things, I feel like I would have been much higher drafted.”

Email Luke Johnson at ljohnson@theadvocate.com.

Continued from page 1C

has shown himself with the Buccaneers to be a franchise quarterback — and wants to be paid as such. In his first two seasons in Tampa Bay, he made the Pro Bowl and led the Buccaneers to NFC South titles Mayfield got off to another terrific start last season but fizzled down the stretch with injuries.

Kyler Murray, QB, Vikings

Arizona released Murray in the offseason, a disappointing end to what was a promising beginning for the 2019 top pick. He signed with Minnesota in March for the veteran’s minimum of $1.3 mil-

offense in. Only three of his passes during team drills hit the ground — two of them deep shots that he put just beyond his receiver’s reach, and the other a throwaway as he was escaping pressure while rolling left.

The Saints’ pass-catching depth showed up, too: Shough’s 11 completions went to seven different players — three receivers, two running backs and two tight ends.

First-round pick Jordyn Tyson made a nice sliding catch over the middle of the field, going to his rear end to corral a low throw from Shough. Fellow rookie Oscar

POLK

Continued from page 1C

workload for Tyson and Vele on certain reps. It shouldn’t be ignored that Austin also has found his way into playing time the last two seasons because of injuries in front of him, starting three of 16 appearances.

Outside of Austin, Ronnie Bell and Bub Means have had nice moments since camp began.

Will Saints add at WR?

Moore didn’t dismiss that the Saints could add another receiver to offset Polk’s departure, but the coach didn’t sound like New Orleans was rushing to make a move, either

“We’re always looking to see if something suits us, but right now we’ve got a lot of guys in that room that are all getting opportunities,” Moore said.

If the Saints do want to add another receiver, there are a slew of notable veterans still available. Among them, former Los Angeles Chargers wideout Keenan Allen has previous experience with Moore from their time together in 2023, when Moore served as the Chargers offensive coordinator There’s also Brandin Cooks, who rejoined the Saints last offseason but was released in November to allow him to join a contender Allen is coming off an 81-catch, 777-yard season, despite playing only 55% of the snaps.

“Yeah, I mean, I love Keenan,” Moore said. “Obviously I had a great experience with (the) one year But yeah, we’ll see how that goes. We’ll see. Got a lot of receivers.”

lion, giving the Vikings someone to compete with J.J. McCarthy for the starting job. Murray has been productive at his best as a dynamic dual threat. But he has had to deal with injuries and questions about his work ethic, something he’ll try to put to rest with the Vikings.

Michael Penix, QB, Falcons

The eighth overall pick in 2024 came to Atlanta as the possible quarterback of the future. Injuries and inconsistency have threatened those hopes. Penix opened last season as the starter was benched late in Week 3 in favor of Kirk Cousins and then tore an ACL in Week 11. He’s working his way back from that injury, and the Falcons aren’t quite sure when he’ll be fully ready. Atlanta signed

Delp got in the action by catching Shough’s first pass of the day in the left flat and turning upfield.

Importantly the run game also produced a couple of big plays — at least, they looked like they would be big plays. While the players were in pads, they were not fully tackling their teammates to the ground.

Devin Neal hit a hole off left guard and rumbled downfield for a gain of about 10 yards before he was touched by a defender, and Alvin Kamara continued to show he still has something in the tank when he cut through the heart of the defense on a draw for a nice gain.

Odds and ends

n Barion Brown made a name for himself as a return specialist during his time at LSU and Kentucky, but shortly after the Saints selected him in the draft, coach Kellen Moore said he believed he could help as a receiver Monday’s practice was the best evidence in support of Moore’s statement. Brown started things off by beating Rejzohn Wright deep downfield in 1-on-1 drills. He missed another opportunity in team drills when the defense lost him on a scramble drill, failing to track the ball to his hands, but then rebounded with a brilliant over-the-

shoulder catch from Spencer Rattler near the end of practice.

n Travis Etienne prides himself on his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield, and his pass-catching skills flashed Monday He was running to the flat on one play as Shough evaded the rush and rolled to his left. Seeing Shough point downfield, Etienne broke off his route and sprinted, catching an over-the-shoulder pass for a big gain. When the first team took the field again, Etienne set up a screen perfectly, catching the pass and following his blocks for another big gain. He caught all three of his targets.

n Defensive back Isaac Yiadom and linebacker Danny Stutsman both took some first-team snaps during fullteam periods Monday Moore said the Yiadom move, which briefly sent Quincy Riley to the second team, was “no big deal” and that “we’re just giving ourselves different rotations.”

n Tyson went through all the fullteam drills, but he did not participate in the 1-on-1 period.

n Kicker Charlie Smyth had his first miss of training camp, pushing a kick wide from 44 yards. But he made his other five attempts, ending with a 54-yarder that cleared the uprights by a good margin. Smyth is now 15 for 16 on his training camp field goal attempts.

n For as well as the first-team offense played, the second-team defense got its hands on a couple of balls. Dalys Beanum undercut a downfield throw from Zach Wilson intended for Bub Means to pick it off, and backup defensive backs Jayden Price and Lorenzo Styles both had interceptions in 1-on-1 drills.

n The kick-return group included the following players: Brown, Price, Ty Chandler, Trey Palmer, Bryce Lance, Kendre Miller and Jalen Cropper Email Luke Johnson at ljohnson@theadvocate.com.

If anything, Polk’s abrupt decision underscored the importance of drafting Tyson with the eighth overall pick months earlier

Had the Saints gone into the year with Olave, Vele and Polk as their top three, maybe the franchise would have had to scramble after Polk’s news. Instead, the Saints can assess their depth and feel confident in their top-three receivers.

Re-analyzing the trade

When the Saints traded for Polk, the move was regarded as a lowrisk, high-reward trade.

The reward, it turns out, was minimal. But notably, so was the

Tua Tagovailoa in the offseason to compete with Penix.

C.J. Stroud, QB, Texans

The second overall pick in 2023 had a terrific first season, winning AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, leading the Texans to the playoffs, making the Pro Bowl and giving Houston hope its franchise QB was in place. Stroud’s last two seasons might have caused some doubt. The Texans have made it to the postseason in each of his three NFL seasons, but Stroud had his worst performance in the divisional round against New England when he threw four firsthalf interceptions. The Texans exercised the fifth-year option on Stroud’s rookie contract in April and he’s eligible for an extension, with talks ongoing.

cost. The Saints only had to give up a 2027 sixth-round pick in exchange for Polk and a 2028 seventh-round selection.

That type of framework a 6-7 pick swap plus a player — has been increasingly common in the NFL, and the Saints have hit on other trades using the template.

Tackle Asim Richards and defensive lineman John Ridgeway, two quality depth pieces, were also acquired in a 6-7 swap.

Losing a sixth-round pick for a player who ultimately didn’t record a single statistic isn’t ideal, but the Saints picked up a 2027 sixth-round pick from the Chargers last November when the

team shipped out guard Trevor Penning at the trade deadline.

New Orleans will still have a pick in that round.

If this is indeed it for Polk, he ends his career with only 12 catches for 87 yards in 15 games. His underwhelming time in New England didn’t scare off the Saints, who were optimistic that a fresh start would do wonders for a talented wide receiver whom they were high on coming out of the draft.

Sometimes, the vision just doesn’t pan out.

Email Matthew Paras at matt. paras@theadvocate.com

STAFF FILE PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

Saints wide receivers Ja’Lynn Polk, left, and Trey Palmer greet each other during a minicamp practice at the Saints’ outdoor practice field on June 17.

AP PHOTO By SETH WENIG

New york Jets running back Breece Hall participates in a drill during practice at the team’s training camp in Florham Park, N.J., on

STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD

Saints running back Travis Etienne catches a pass over Saints linebacker Kaden Elliss during training camp at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center on Monday

PAST FIVE YEARS

2025: 7-5

2024: 12-3 (state champions)

2023: 12-2 (state runner-up)

2022: 8-4

2021: 10-3

PROJECTED STARTERS

Offense

WR Braylon Calais (6-2, 210, Sr.)*

WR Ashton Ruffin (6-4, 180, Sr.)

WR Nathan Thornton (5-7, 165, Sr.)

RG Ethan Journet (6-1, 295, Sr.)*

RT Kaleb Landry (5-7, 220, So.)

C James Deluna (5-8, 205, Jr.)*

LG Damiyan Hebert (5-8, 200, Jr.)

LT Davion Charles (5-6, 185, Sr.)*

QB Layne Champagne (6-0, 175 Jr.)

RB Deondre Briscoe (6-0, 175, Jr.)*

RB Christian Guidry (6-3, 175, Sr.)

Defense

DE Kennan Batiste (6-0, 230, Sr.)*

DT Kaden Journet (6-1, 240, So.)*

DT Chance Guidry (5-8, 285, Jr.)

DE Dylan Wolfe (6-3, 185, Sr.)

LB Chase Narcisse (5-8, 180, Jr.)*

LB Kaleb Journet (6-0, 180, Jr.)

LB Brandon Lejeune (5-9, 170, Sr.)*

CB Franky Frank (6-0, 175, Sr.)

CB Amiri Noel (5-7, 165, Jr.)

FS Boderick Patt (5-6, 160, So.)

SS Demarcus Babineaux (5-7 175,Sr.)* * RETURNING STARTER

COACHES

Head coach: Cody Champagne (7-5).

Assistant coaches: MatthewAutrey, Kaleb Carter,ChazWard,Alphonso Williams,DonovanWilliams,Hunter Kidder,ChaseTalley,Logan Duplechain, Cade Poirier

PREP FOOTBALL SEASON PREVIEW

Cecilia

What we know

Per usual, the Bulldogs will score a lot of points with an offense that’s led by three excellent playmakers in Braylon Calais, Ashton Ruffin and Deondre Briscoe, and new quarterback Layne Champagne.

Calais, who will line up anywhere on the field, accounted for nearly 2,600 yards and 32 touchdowns while playing quarterback, receiver and primarily running back last season. He’ll mostly be a receiver this year and is rated a four-star prospect (No. 6 in-state player) by 247Sports.

“Absolutely,” coach Cody Champagne said when asked whether Calais will again take snaps at quarterback. “And he’s not just a Wildcat quarterback. He can throw it.”

Ruffin and receiver Christian Guidry have excellent size at 6-foot-4 and 6-3, respectively, as does RB Briscoe, a 6-foot, 195-pounder who will run behind what should be an improved offensive line led by Ethan Journet.

“Up front, we’re going to be better than we’ve been in the past couple of years on both sides of the ball,” said Champagne, who returns three starters on the offensive line and four on the defensive front seven. “We’ve been small, especially on the defensive line.”

To compensate for a lack of size, the Bulldogs used an unconventional defense during much of the past few years where all 11 players stood up prior to the snap.

With more size, including 275-pound defensive tackle Chance Guidry, new defensive coordinator

Curt Ware doesn’t expect to use any gimmicks.

“It’ll be good to have a coach with a lot of knowledge in the room with young coaches,” said Champagne, whose former DC Jason Faulk took a job in administration Ware led New Iberia to its best season in years as the Yellow Jackets head coach in 2020, punctuated by a rout of district rival Southside in the playoffs.

Kicker Aiden Landry was an all-state performer as a sophomore before missing the 2025 season with an injury

What we don’t know

Champagne is eager to see how his team responds to adversity, including three quick turnarounds with Thursday night games.

The Bulldogs will be well-equipped for district after facing Northside, Teurlings Catholic, Barbe, St. Martinville and Notre Dame.

“This new group of seniors has some who have played through the fire, but as a whole, we haven’t,” Champagne said. “We’re pretty good when things go great. When we face adversity, we’re going to see who we are.”

How good will the defense be? Guidry and Northwestern State commitment Franky Frank are listed as new starters because they missed all or much of last season.

“We have a young kid in sophomore BJ Patt,” Champagne said. “He’s the third Patt brother to come through here and may be the best one. The Patts are always around the football.”

How we see it

The Bulldogs got off to a 1-4 start last year before running the table in district and reaching the Division II nonselect quarterfinals.

The district race could be decided in Week 10 when Cecilia takes on a Carencro team moving down from Class 5A.

“When we play these early teams, it’s going to show our weaknesses,” Champagne said.

The Bulldogs have several games that could go either way, such as Notre Dame, Barbe, Teurlings Catholic and St. Martinville, which won the 2025 rivalry game vs. Cecilia.

No matter its record, Cecilia is always a tough draw in the playoffs with a penchant for upsetting higher seeds. The No. 13-seeded Bulldogs outscored No. 4 Lakeshore 54-42 in the second round of the playoffs last year

Mike Coppage

SCOREBOARD

Golf

(Jones 2-2)

5-1),

p.m. L.A.

(Skubal

(Sale

(Hen-

p.m.

(Assad 6-1), 7:05 p.m. San Francisco (Ray 10-6) at Texas (Gore 6-9), 7:05 p.m. Tampa Bay (TBD) at Colorado (Hughes 0-3) 7:40 p.m. San Diego (TBD) at Arizona (Rodriguez 10-3), 8:40 p.m.

Braylon Calais WR, 6-2, 210, Sr. TheLSUcommitment hasrushedformore than1,000yards eachofthepasttwo seasonsandwill movetoreceiver,his projectedpositionat thenextlevel.Theeliteathletealsowill carryandthrowthefootball.Asajunior he scoredatouchdownoneveryeighthcarry andistheleadingreturningreceiver Deondre Briscoe RB, 6-0, 195, Sr. An H-back last year, Briscoe reached the end zone on every fifth catch. He has an ideal frame for a feature back and should find a large measure of success running against defenses spread wide by the Bulldogs’ excellent receiving corps. Briscoe has a 4.2 GPA and power cleans 300 pounds.

Ashton Ruffin WR, 6-4, 180, Sr. Ruffin,the younger brother of former Bulldogs standout receiver Ellis Stewart, would be the No.1 target for most teams. He has deceptive strength with a 275-pound power clean and enjoyed a huge spring game that was followed by a college scholarship offer from Southern.

Franky Frank DB, 6-0, 175, Sr. The Northwestern State commitment,a four-year starter,missed half of the 2025 regular season because of an injury.The cornerback racked up 36 tackles with 10 pass breakups and two interceptions in five games.He earned honorable mention all-district despite playing in only one league game.

Layne Champagne QB, 6-0, 175, Jr. Coach Champagne, who is also the offensive coordinator, doesn’t expect much of a learning curve from his new starter at quarterback, who is more of a traditional QB than his past two predecessors — Diesel Solari and Collin Dore. He more resembles pinpoint passer Alex Soileau. Don’t discount his ability to run.

PGA Tour Statistics Through Aug. 2 FedExCup Season Points 1, Scottie Scheffler, 4,123. 2, Matt Fitzpatrick 3,329. 3, Cameron Young, 3,157. 4, Wyndham Clark, 2,255. 5, Chris Gotterup, 2,254. 6, Collin Morikawa, 2,229. 7, Si Woo Kim, 2,201. 8, Sam Burns, 2,078. 9, Tommy Fleetwood, 2,046. 10, Ludvig Åberg, 1,929. Scoring Average 1, Scottie Scheffler, 68.775. 2, Collin Morikawa, 69.458. 3, Matt Fitzpatrick, 69.509. 4, Cameron Young, 69.655. 5, Tommy Fleetwood, 69.668. 6, Sam Burns, 69.742. 7, Xander Schauffele, 69.780. 8, Chris Gotterup, 69.796. 9, Jake Knapp, 69.800. 10, Si Woo Kim, 69.806. Driving Distance 1, Aldrich Potgieter, 330.4. 2, Michael Brennan, 326.1. 3, Marco Penge, 324.4. 4, Nicolai Hojgaard, 323.9. 5, Rasmus Hojgaard, 322.4. 6, Gary Woodland, 322.3. 7, Chris Gotterup, 322.2. 8, Min Woo Lee, 320.9. 9, 2 tied with 319.4. Driving Accuracy Percentage 1, Russell Henley, 72.81%. 2, Aaron Rai, 71.70%. 3, Davis Chatfield, 71.18%. 4, Joel Dahmen, 70.90%. 5, Lucas Glover, 69.95%. 6, Collin Morikawa, 69.71%. 7, Brandt Snedeker, 69.48%. 8, Si Woo Kim, 69.14%. 9, Emiliano Grillo, 68.99%. 10, Tommy Fleetwood, 68.87%. Greens in Regulation Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. Total Driving 1, Jordan Smith, 59. 2, Neal Shipley, 63. 3, Scottie Scheffler, 66. 4 (tie), Ludvig Aberg and Cameron Young, 69. 6, Kristoffer Ventura, 85. 7 (tie), Gary Woodland and Sudarshan Yellamaraju, 86. 9, Kurt Kitayama, 88. 10, 2 tied with 90. SG-Putting 1, Jacob Bridgeman, .684. 2, Vince Whaley, .678. 3, Akshay Bhatia, .664. 4, Sam Burns, .662. 5, Eric Cole, .598. 6, Scottie Scheffler, .569. 7, Alex Noren, .556. 8, Robert MacIntyre .544. 9, Jake Knapp, .543. 10, A.J. Ewart, .521. Birdie Average 1, Scottie Scheffler, 4.76. 2, Si Woo Kim, 4.56. 3, Collin Morikawa, 4.52. 4, Wyndham Clark, 4.41. 5, Ludvig Aberg, 4.32. 6, Jacob Bridgeman, 4.29. 7 (tie), Robert MacIntyre and Kevin Yu, 4.26. 9, Keith Mitchell, 4.24. 10, 2 tied with 4.23. Eagles (Holes per) 1, Jake Knapp, 52.9. 2, Kristoffer Ventura, 59.5. 3, Nicolai Hojgaard, 79.2. 4, Matt Wallace, 82.5. 5, Aldrich Potgieter, 85.5. 6, Shane Lowry, 91.6. 7, Sahith Theegala, 92.3. 8, Tommy Fleetwood, 93. 9, Rasmus Hojgaard, 94.9. 10, Max Greyserman, 99. Sand Save Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. All-Around Ranking 1, Scottie Scheffler, 165. 2, Ludvig Åberg, 237. 3, Collin Morikawa, 257. 4, Sam Burns, 261. 5, Jake Knapp, 274. 6, Chris Gotterup, 308. 7, Wyndham Clark, 326. 8, Tommy Fleetwood, 329. 9, Min Woo Lee, 334. 10, Doug Ghim, 348. LPGA Tour Statistics Through Aug. 2 Scoring 1, Nelly Korda, 69.18. 2, Haeran Ryu, 69.51. 3, Hyo Joo Kim, 70.16. 4, Jeeno Thitikul, 70.18. 5, Miyu Yamashita, 70.29. 6, Lydia Ko, 70.36. 7, Ruoning Yin, 70.63. 8, Ina Yoon, 70.73. 9, Sei Young Kim, 70.74. 10, Hannah Green, 70.76. Driving Distance 1, Riley Smyth, 288.74. 2, Julia Lopez Ramirez 288.55. 3, Auston Kim, 280.58. 4, Polly Mack, 279.46. 5, Suvichaya Vinjichaitham, 278.26. 6, Ina Yoon, 277.93. 7, Laney Frye, 277.63. 8, Nanna Koerstz Madsen, 276.33. 9, Helen Briem, 276.18. 10, Bailey Tardy, 274.47. Greens in Regulation 1, Haeran Ryu, .80%. 2, Jeeno Thitikul, .75%. 3, Isabello Fierro, .74%. 4 (tie), Dongeun Lee and Lottie Woad, .73%. 6, 5 tied with .72%. Putts per GIR 1, Hyo Joo Kim, 1.71. 2 (tie), Minami Katsu and Angel Yin, 1.73. 4 (tie), Nelly Korda and Mi Hyang Lee, 1.74. 6, Gaby Lopez, 1.75. 7, 6 tied with 1.76. Birdies 1, Aki Iwai, 249. 2, Lottie Woad, 225. 3, Miyu Yamashita, 219. 4 (tie), Minami Katsu and Haeran Ryu, 213. 6, Ina Yoon, 207. 7, Jin Hee Im, 205. 8, Jeeno Thitikul, 202. 9, 2 tied with 200. 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, 6 tied with 7. Sand Save Percentage

PHOTO By MIKE COPPAGE

Cecilia defensive standouts include, top row from left, Kennan Batiste, Franky Frank, Demarcus Babineaux and Dylan Wolfe. On the bottom from left are BJ Patt and Chance Guidry.

Abug anda feature

Meet amuch friendlier insect, bark lice.Itmay be helpingyourcrape myrtlesright now

GARDEN

Uttering theword “lice” rarely inspires enthusiasm or positivity.For some people, the mere thought of lice brings back less-than-fond childhood memories of infestations —and itchy scalps spreadingat school.

While head lice are rightfully despised blood-sucking parasites, there’s anotherkind of lice that is much friendlier. They’re called barklice,and you might find them in your yard if you have crape myrtles. Bark lice are small insects that show up in spring and summer.InLouisiana, we usually see bark lice on crape myrtles, but they can liveon other trees.

LSU AGCENTERPHOTO By OLIVIA McCLURE Bark lice, sometimes called tree cattle, congregate in groups and can be ‘herded’ along crape myrtle trunks.

Adult bark lice are long,slim and brown to black. Juveniles have rounder bodies with stripes. The insects like to hang out in groups to ward off predators like birds.

“Even though they may have ascary appearance withthat large aggregation, they are in fact not causing any harm to the tree,” said LSU AgCenter entomologist Aaron Ashbrook If you spot bark lice on a crape myrtle, restassured

ä See BARK LICE, page 6C

THEPOWER OF PIGMENT

In Louisiana, paintchips don’tlie.Here’swhat four designersthink aboutcurrent

BY JANRISHER and LAURENCHERAMIE Staff writers

When it comes to redecorating, afresh coat of paintislikely the best return on investment. The cost is minimal, but the results can improve the looks of aroom dramatically That is —ifthe paint is theright color While paint chips don’tlie,they don’texactly tell thewhole story, either.A swatch on thewallinthe middle of the afternoon looks nothing like itself at dusk. Ask fourdesigners what colors they’reencouraging this year in homes, and four differentanswers will come back —plusone flatrefusal to play favorites. The bottom line is: There is not one right answer.Still, apatternemerges in the colors of aLouisiana life. Things are warmer,softerand less predictable thanthe stark whites and navy blues thatdominated for years This is the first installment of local designers sharing their thoughts on colors in Louisianahomesright now: What color are you encouraging most often right now,and what’sitreplacing?

RACHEL CANNON —founder, creative director and principal interior designer at

Rachel Cannon Limited: Honestly,none. Idon’tbelieve in aone-size-fits-all color.Every homeand every clientisdifferent,soeverypalette is builtfromscratch aroundthat specific space and the people living in it. WhatImostlyencourage our clientstodoisbebrave when it comes to color!

JERAD GARDEMAL —founder and principal designer at JF Gardemal Designs: Currently,weare encouraging our clients who are in the processofrefreshing their interiors to move away from spaces covered in starkwhites and cool blue/grays andreturn to warmer,morenuanced tones Warm taupe colors, soft putties

and limestone shades, with accents of camel, cognac and even chocolate browns, skillfully layered, give rooms far more depth andlongevity

KRISTINA PETIT —founderand residential designer at Kristina’sCollective Interiors: A softbeige/pink. Think Setting Plaster from Farrow and Ball. It’s my replacement forwarm white.

JEANNE LYONS DAVIS —writer and designer: GrayCashmere by Benjamin Moore is the perfect non-color color

If paint chips hada beauty pageant, it’d winMissCongeniality.Itgets along with everyone.Itreads blue It reads green and it reads neutral, depending on the light and what’s around it. It’sthe best! Is there acolor clients keep asking for that you’dsteer them away from-and why?

DAVIS: Honestly,it’snever the color,it’sthe saturation.

That’swhere things gettricky If aclient loves acolor,wecan always dial back the saturation to soften it. Bottom line: if you love it, we’ll makeitwork!

CANNON: It’s less about one particular colorand more abouttrends in general. Ikeep aclose eyeon what’strending nationally,and my instinct is almost always to steer clients away from it. Nothing ages

BYMADDIE SCOTT

Cannon

Gardemal Davis Petit

PROVIDED PHOTOByKIM MEADOWLARK

Thispinkkitchenisa project from designer Rachel Cannon, whosaysthat she encourages her clients to be brave when it comestocolor

Does thewhole queueget asay in alinecutter?

Dear Miss Manners: At times, agrocery checkout line willbevery long, with only one cashier available. Someone with afull cart, three or four customers ahead of me, willoffer acustomer approaching the long line with only a couple of items permission to go ahead of them. They thereby award the same permission on behalf of all customers behind them in line, even though we were not asked if we would mind waiting aminute or two longer for the single-item customer to check out. If the accommodating customer had asked all of us if we minded, the odds of anyone objecting are almost nil. It is one of those small life

By The Associated Press

unpleasantries, but maybe Miss Mannersmight advise those who would givesuchpermission to ask everyoneinlinefirst,asa courtesy?

objects, I’ll let this lady with only two items goahead,” no one will want to be singled out as the one person saying “I object.”

Butsadly,perhaps not.

It could hardly be moremeanspirited. So much so, that there is no response exceptturning your back on such people.

Judith Martin MISS MANNERS

Gentle reader: While the shopper stands there holding acereal box and astick of butter,listening to thevote? Andinthese contentioustimes, someone shouts,“No fair!She’s busting into line! Get back there, lady.”

Of course, that reaction is what you are trying to avoid.From the number of letters MissManners receives about confrontationsingrocery lines, she is notsure that such courtesies can beoffered without unpleasant repercussions. Perhaps if it is put as, “If no one

TODAYINHISTORY

Today is Tuesday,Aug. 4, the 216thday of 2026. There are 149 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On Aug. 4, 2020, nearly3,000 tons of ammonium nitratethat had been improperly stored for yearsinthe port of Beirut,Lebanon, exploded, killing more than 200 people, injuring more than 7,000 and devastating nearby neighborhoods; it was one of the largest non-nuclear explosions ever recorded.

Also on this date:

In 1790, the U.S. Coast Guard had its beginnings as President George Washington signed a measure authorizing agroup of revenue cutters to enforce tariff and trade laws and prevent smuggling.

In 1916, the United States reachedagreement with Denmark topurchase the Danish Virgin Islands for $25 million in gold.

In 1936, Jesse Owens of the United States won the second of his four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics as he prevailed in the long jump over German Luz Long, who was the firsttocongratulate him.

In 1944, 15-year-old diarist Anne Frank was arrestedwith her sister,parents and four others by the Gestapo after hiding for two years inside abuildingin Amsterdam. (Anne and hersister,Margot, died at the BergenBelsen concentration camp.)

In 1960, Burkina Faso (known then as Upper Volta) declared its independencefrom France after more than 60 years of colonial rule.

In 1964, 44 days after their murders, the bodies of missing civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner were found buried in an earthen dam in Mississippi.

In 1972, Arthur Bremer was convicted and sentenced in Upper Marlboro, Maryland,to63 yearsinprison for his attempt on the life of Alabama Gov George C. Wallace (the sentence was later reduced to 53 years; Bremer was released from prison in 2007).

In 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed ameasure establishing the Department of Energy.

In 1984, the album “Purple Rain,” by Prince and the Revolution, began its 24-week run at the topofthe Billboard200 record chart.

In 1987, the Federal Communications Commission voted 4-0

BARK LICE

Continued from page5C

that they are not feeding on the tree itself. Instead, these insects grazeonalgae, lichens, mold and other organic materials growing on the tree’ssurface.

“So, in some ways, they’re even helping the tree,” Ashbrook said. Bark lice can be asource of entertainment, too. They’re commonly referred to as tree cattle and can be “herded.” Pointa finger or stick near abark lice aggregation, and they’ll moveup the tree as agroup in unison. Now,don’tassume every insect you see on acrape myrtle is harmless. It’simportantto distinguish beneficial bark lice from insect pests such as aphids, which are tiny,yellowish and often found on the undersides of crape myrtle foliage. You’ll also want to keep an eye out for invasive crape myrtle bark scales, which are stationary, white-to-

Dear Miss Manners: Iam69and have worn avisible hearing aid my entireadult life. Ihave had manypeople who know I’mhard of hearing jokingly say “What?” or silently mouth words, as if my hearing loss is somehow humorous. Idoubt they are mean-spirited, but rather cluelessly insensitive. What is thebest way to let them know that people who are hard of hearing find these attempts at humor highly offensive?

Gentlereader: Has it cometothat? That Miss Manners has to inform people that it’snot nice to make fun of others’ disabilities?

to abolish the Fairness Doctrine, whichrequired radio and televisionstationstopresent balanced coverage of controversial issues.

In 1993, afederal judge sentencedLos Angeles police officers Stacey Koon and Laurence Powell to 2½ years in prison for violating Rodney King’scivil rights.

In 2009, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il pardoned American journalists Laura Ling andEuna Leefor enteringthe country illegally and ordered their release during asurprise visit by former U.S.President Bill Clinton.

In 2017, former pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli, who becamenotoriousfor apricegouging scandal,was convicted of federal charges that he deceived investors in apair of failed hedgefunds. (Shkreli was later sentenced to seven years in prison; he was released in 2022.)

In 2019, amasked gunman fired on revelers enjoyingsummernightlife in apopular entertainmentdistrict of Dayton, Ohio, leavingnine people dead and 27 wounded;police said officers shot and killed theshooter within 30 secondsofthe start of hisrampage.

In 2022, American pro basketballstar Brittney Griner was convicted in Russia of drug possession and sentenced to nine years behindbars after police said they found vape canisters containing cannabis oil in her luggage at Moscow’sairport. (Shewouldbefreed and sent home in the politically charged case in exchangefor the U.S. releasing Russian arms dealer Viktor BoutinDecember 2022.)

Today’sBirthdays: Actor-singer Tina Cole is 83. Football Hall of FamerJohnRigginsis77. Actorscreenwriter Billy BobThornton is 71. Actor Kym Karath (Film: “The SoundofMusic”) is 68. Hall of Fame track star Mary Decker Slaney is 68. Actor Lauren Tomis65. Former President Barack Obama is 65. Retired MLB All-Star pitcher Roger Clemens is 64. Actor Crystal Chappell is 61. Author Dennis Lehane is 61. Actor Daniel Dae Kim is 58. Former race cardriver Jeff Gordon is 55. Rapper-actor Yo-Yois55. R&B singer-actor Marques Houstonis45. Britain’s Duchess of Sussex,the former actor Meghan Markle, is 45. Actor Abigail Spencer is 45. Actor/ director GretaGerwig is 43. CountrysingerCrystal Bowersox (TV:“American Idol”) is 41. Actors Dylan and Cole Sprouse are34. Singer Jessica Sanchez (TV:“American Idol”) is 31. Actor Tinsley Priceis14.

LSU AGCENTER PHOTO By OLIVIA McCLURE Barkliceare beneficial insects thatshowuponcrape myrtles in spring and summer in Louisiana.

gray, fuzzyinsects. Aphids and scales both suck sap from crape myrtles —aphids from leaves and scales from bark. They excrete asticky honeydew, encouraging thegrowth of sooty mold on trunks and branches. Bark lice, on theother hand? At most, all they’ll leave behind are thefine, silky webs they sometimes spin as another protectivemeasure. And you can easily wash away thewebs with awater hose if you don’tlike the way they look

Dear Miss Manners: When placing silverware on thetable, does the sharp edgeofthe knifeface toward theplate or away from it?

Gentlereader: The simple answer is: toward the plate.

ButMiss Manners can’thelp offering thewordy answer Until the 19th century,most Westerners, including European royalty, ate with their knives (and considered Italians to be sissies for using forks). Specifically,they ate with their own knives, which they used forhunting and then brought to the dinner table. Somediners noticed that the knives had other uses —picking teeth,for example, and settling

arguments. To cut downonthe carnage —orperhaps on the sight of people picking their teeth —Cardinal Richelieu had the sharp points filed off table knives, and Louis XIV of France decreed blunted knives were to be used fordining.

Today’sdinner knifeisstill sharp, although never quite sharp enough. Youturn it toward yourself to symbolize your intent to use it only on your roast beef and not on your dinner partner

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.

Partner pushes fornobirth control

Dear Harriette: My current form of birth control is abouttoexpire, andmypartner does not wantmetorenew it. He knewthis time was coming, but it feelslike he deliberately waited untiljust afew days priortomyprocedure to tell me he doesn’t wantmetorenew my birth control.Itfeelsasthough if Imoveforward with the procedure,mypartner may feel ignored, while I think Ishould stillbeonbirth control as we figure outwhat’snext for us. WhenI brought up the idea of us having two to fourweeksof no intimacy so that we can think clearlyand decide together if we are ready to prepare for parent-

hood,heresponded glumly that he’lldohis best, but no promises. Iwant to be considerate of my partner,but in the same breath, I’ve never allowed myself to make big decisions under pressure, and Idon’twant to start now.Doyou have any suggestions on how we can compromise without risking pregnancy while we decide? —Split the Baby Dear Splitthe Baby: Your partnerisbeing unreasonably demanding. Youdonot have to accommodate his pushiness. Stand your ground. Begin to talk seriouslyabout the future.Whatdo you twowantfor your lives? What commitmenthaveyou made or

areyou willing to make now? If childrenare aserious part of your vision, when do youwanttohave them? Howmany? Have youset yourselvesupfor successinbuilding alife together? Are youfinancially ready? Do youplantomarry, or whatotherway do youintend to solidify your commitment?

Talk about all of this —and yes, do so without being sexually intimate. Youare looking at the big picture of your lives together.A fewweeks of sober contemplation should not be too much to ask.

Sendquestions to askharriette@ harriettecole.com or c/o AndrewsMcMeel Syndication 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.

COLORS

Continuedfrom page5C

abeautiful room faster thana trend that peaksand fades within a year,and Iwant my clients’ homes and businesses to age well.

GARDEMAL: As much as Ilove navy blue in all itsvarious shades, Ithink it has becomeoverused in the last five years. It’s aclassic color that feels tailored and sophisticated andconsequently has become a“safe” choice for many homes. Kitchen cabinets, accent walls,studies, powder rooms it’sa color that has been so widely adopted that it can begin to feel predictable.

Petit:Not really.Ifyou loveit, let’s go for it

ELLA JEAN’S

Continuedfrom page5C

loves bright pops of color

“She’s gotthiscute, funky, little taste,” Cappo said about her daughter.“It’s amix of me —retro, can do whatever Iwant,because it’sa fun space —and her.” Menu rundown

The shop serves 12 flavors of scoopable, Oregon-basedTillamook icecream:old-fashioned vanilla,chocolate, Oregon strawberry,cookies &cream, cookie dough, mint chocolatechip, white chocolate raspberry,peaches & cream, marionberry pie,butter pecan, campfire peanut butter cup

How do youthink the Pantone Color of the year affects color choices locally?

Petit: Idon’tfind it does.It’sa color Idon’treally agree with currently,based on my first answer

Gardemal: 2026 is the first year that Pantone has ever selected awhite as its Color of the Year.I think it’sa color that aligns wonderfully with ourSouthern sensibilities. It steers clients toward warmer whites and creamy ivories that are welcoming to anyone who walks through the door

Cannon:It’smore of aslow trickle than an instant splash. In my experience, it usually takes two to three yearsafter Pantone’s announcementbefore that color showsupin big-box stores andmassproduced items. By the timeit’severywhere, thedesign world has already moved on.

and lemon sorbet.

Milkshakes, sundaes, banana splits,housemade lemonade, housemade limeade, anddesserts suchasstrawberry shortcake, cookies and brownie alamode are also on the menu. Lots of toppings areavailable, from gummy bears to graham crackers

OneofCappo’sfavorites is the Mookie Cookie, an ice cream sandwich with achoice of ice cream in between two cookies.

“Wewanted to give anod to the Tillamook brand just because it is so good,” she said. “Wecoined the nameMookie Cookie.”

‘Nothing buthappiness’

Cappohopes Ella Jean’s Ice Cream &Treats will be another space where family and friends

This project is aspacefrom designer Jerad Gardemal,who says he is encouraging hisclients to move away fromstark whitespaces and returntowarmer tones.

canhangout, grab abananasplit and enjoy the photogenic atmosphere.

“This is just nothing but happiness,” she said.

The business opened about midJuly,soit’sbeen operating fora couple of weeks. Business has been great, Cappo said.

“The response hasbeen great,” she said. “Wepoured alot into this foralong time.”

Ella Jean’sIce Cream & Treats, 40306 La. 42, Suite 106, Prairieville. Open 11 a.m to 8p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, 11 a.m.to9p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 11 a.m.to6 p.m.Sundays. Closed Mondays. Hoursmay change when the school season starts.

Harriette Cole SENSE AND SENSITIVITy

PROVIDED PHOTOS

This bathroom is aproject from designer Jeanne Lyons Davis.

LEo (July23-Aug. 22) Stretch your imagination, learn from your mistakes and turn your ideasinto areality. Place your energy where it has themost value.Set your emotions on theback burner andput your egoaside VIRGo (Aug.23-sept. 22) Achange may tempt you, but before you make a move, take acloserlook at what you might lose. Reach out to someone you trusttotell youthe truth andsuggest alternatives.Patienceisnecessary

LIBRA (sept. 23-oct. 23) You'llbepulled in differentdirections, allofwhich need consideration.Partnerships, routine andschedules will require finetuning anda lifelineoftheir own.

scoRPIo (oct. 24-Nov. 22) Brainpower is your weapon. Size up situations and think matters through. Refusetolet anyone pressure you to makesnap decisions or to allow them to take control of your life.

sAGIttARIus (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Put everything in context and do what's best. Don't put yourself in harm's way physically or where relationships are concerned.

cAPRIcoRN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Takecare of yourself, your reputation and your future. Invest moretime andmoney in upgrading your skills and qualifications and connecting with people who can help you get ahead.

AQuARIus (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) If you want control, be prepared to follow through. Opportunities are apparent; if you don't take advantage, you won't get areturn.

You areoverdue for achange, so buckle up and seewhat's available.

PIscEs (Feb. 20-March 20) Having proper eating habits, exercising andstaying away from people or situations that could lead to illness or injury arebest avoided. Use your intuition, memory andcommon sense ARIEs (March21-April 19) Emotions, overindulgenceand social settings can lead to arguments. Don't mixbusinesswith pleasure.Being honest is honorable, but there's atimeand place for it.

tAuRus(April 20-May 20) Take hold of your feelings before yougoout the door. You'll tend to overreact today, offering bold andbrazenopinions to those youencounter. Take amoment to calm down and to change your demeanor.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Pick up the pieces and put them back together the wayyou want themtobe. Stop letting negativity and upset take over when practicalityand common sense are necessary

cANcER(June 21-July22) Tread lightly when dealing with others. Sticktothe facts, offerkindness andunderstanding, and keep an open mind when listeningtoothers, and if that'stoo difficult, look inward and do alittleself-help work.

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

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

toDAy'scLuE:A EQuALs H

CeLebrItY CIpher

beetLe bAILeY

Mother GooSe And GrIMM

Sudoku

InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers The objectistoplace thenumbers 1to9inthe empty squares so that each row,eachcolumn and each 3x3 boxcontains thesame number only once. The difficulty level of theSudoku increasesfromMonday to Sunday.

Yesterday’s Puzzle Answer

BLondie

BaBY BLueS

By PHILLIPALDER

Jason Fried, the founder andCEO of Basecamp (formerlyknown as 37signals),said,“Make decisionswhen you have alot of information to make the decision. Not when youhavetoguess about what the decision is goingtobeor use data that doesn’t exist yet.”

We are looking at theRule of Seven, which tells ano-trump declarer how long to hold up his only stopper in the suit that the opponents haveled. In today’s deal, North andSouth havesix spades. Subtracting six from seven tells South to hold up his spade ace at trick one, but to take the second trick. However, is that the right play here?

Whenyouopeninno-trump,donotworry —too much! —about an unstopped suit. Here, if South opens one club and Westpasses(letusassume),Northwould respond one diamond. What would South do next?Hewould have no accurate rebid.

Southstarts with eight top tricks: one spade,three hearts and four diamonds. He needs one club trick to gethome. But should he lead low to his jack or to his king? He does not have enough data to answer the question.

Southneedstoknowhowthespadesuit is splitting. So he should hold up twice and take the third round. Here, declarer learnsthatWeststartedwithfivespades.

If West also holds the club ace, the contract cannot be made —South will lose one club and four spades. So declarer must play aclub to his king, hoping for the best. If it transpires that West has onlyfourspades,Southwillhavetoguess the clubs. Wish him good luck —unless youare East or West.

©2026 by NEA, Inc., dist.ByAndrews McMeel

Syndication

Each Wuzzleisaword riddle which creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON

Previous answers:

word game

INstRuctIoNs: 1. Words must be of four or more

toDAy’sWoRD

Canyou

today’s thought

tell you, No: but, except you repent,you shall all likewise perish.” Luke 13:5

wuzzles

BRIEFS FROM STAFFAND WIRE REPORTS

FAAcertifies Boeing’s new737 Max 7jetliner

The Federal AviationAdministration on Monday approved thesmallestmodel of Boeing’s Max jetliners for commercial service nearly adecade after the aircraft manufacturer first unveiled the plane.

Certification of the Boeing 737 Max7represents amilestone in the company’swork to overcome years of safety,quality and production challenges. Thelongdelayed Max 7ispart of Boeing’s 737 family of commercialjets, which is the company’s bestseller and has been at the center of its troubles.

The FAAsaid it cleared the newplane after years of additionaltesting,design changes andanextensive review of its design and safety systems. The certification was delayed as Boeing addressed technical issues and heightened regulatory scrutiny following two crashes involving thelargerMax 8that killed 346 people in 2018 and 2019.

Since the crashes off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia, the FAAoverhauled how it certifiesBoeing aircraft. It saidits oversight of thecompany would continue beyond the Max 7’sapproval

Before signing off on the aircraft, theFAA said, it required Boeing to make severalsafety changes, including updating flight-control software, improvingcockpit alerts forpilotsand redesigning the engine anti-ice system to prevent overheating

“Our team of dedicated engineers and test experts worked through challenges, an extended pandemic,and thetransitionto new certification processes,” said Stephanie Pope, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

Tentative deal reached with flight attendants

Canada’ssecond largest airline, WestJet,has agreed to a tentative agreementwith flight attendants to end astrike that ledtohundredsofflight cancellationsand thousands of stranded passengers over theweekend.

The union representing the flight attendants said Monday that if the deal is ratified, the work that flightattendants do before flights take off will be recognized.

The union, CUPE 8125, said that flight attendants will be returning to work now that the strike is over.The tentative agreement stillfacesaratification vote. WestJet canceled495 flights Sunday,snarling travelplans in Canada in the middle of along holiday weekend.

Akey issue in the dispute was how flight attendants should be paid for duties performed while still on the ground. The union said some of that work is unpaid, while the company said they staff was indeed compensated, citing pay through a“credit hour” systemrather than an hourly rate.

Cyberattack hits

Liechtenstein’sregister

BERLIN Acyberattack tapped the data of some 31,000 people in Liechtenstein’sregister of people behind companies and foundations in the wealthy principality,the government said.

The “register of economic beneficiaries” wasaccessed at night from Wednesday into Thursday last week, the government said. It said that the breach wasnoticed on Thursday, that measures were taken to secure data and the system taken offline.

Thegovernment said there were no indications that any data wasaltered or deleted.

The list of people behind companies, foundations and trusteeships is part of efforts to combat money laundering and terror financing. Liechtenstein is anation of 40,000 peoplebetween Switzerland and Austria, and the financialindustry is central to its economy The government setupa crisisunit over the weekend to investigate the attack.

States sueTrump over tariffs

SupremeCourt defeat leadstolawsuits

BY PAUL WISEMAN and MAE ANDERSON AP business writers

WASHINGTON— Twenty-fivestates sued the Trump administration Mondayover its latest tariffs, calling them apretext for replacing import taxesthe Supreme Court struck down in February

The United States last month imposeddouble-digittariffs on 59 countries andthe European Union, chargingthattheyhad notdone enough to crack down on imports produced by forcedlabor.The new tariffs took effect just as the clock ran out on temporary tariffs President Donald Trump had turnedto afterthe Supreme Court defeat.

“After losing at the Supreme Court, theadministration is once again trying to illegally raise taxes

on families and businesses witha newroundoftariffs,”saidNewYork AttorneyGeneral Letitia James Joining New York in the lawsuit announced Monday are Arizona,California, Colorado,Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine,Michigan,Minnesota,Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin. Trump, whoargues that high tariffs will revive American manufacturing, last year overturned decades of U.S. policy that favoredlower tariffs andever-freertrade. Invoking the 1977 International Emergency Economic PowersAct, or IEEPA, he imposeddouble-digit tariffs on imports from almostevery country,saying America’slong-standing trade deficit amounted to anational emergency

But the SupremeCourt ruled that IEEPAdid not authorize tariffs. The decision forced the administration to send refunds to importers who’d paid the tariffs. Eager to make up thelostrevenue Trump turned to temporary 10% worldwidetariffs.But they expiredatmidnight July 24.

Nowhe’stappingmore durable tariffs under Section301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which permits the president to impose import taxes andother sanctions against countries found to engage in unfair trade practices. Trumpused Section 301 to impose big tariffs on China in his first term, and they survived court challenges.

The administration invoked Section 301 to impose theforced-labor tariffs, whichrange from 10% to 12.5% andhit countriesthatprovide 99% of American imports.

“The United States is using its

lawfulauthority to obtainthe eliminationofunreasonable acts, policies, andpractices that burden U.S. commerce,” White House spokesperson Kush Desaisaid. “A foreign country’sfailuretoimpose andeffectivelyenforce aprohibitionon the importation of goodsproduced with forced laborisunreasonable and burdens U.S. commerce, including American workers, andmustbe addressed. Section301 tariffs have proventobealegally durable tool sincethe President’sfirst term,and they remainsonow.”

The states’ lawsuit follows two other lawsuits filed in The Court of International TradeinJuly by small businessesthatalso challengedthe 301 tariffs

Bothofthose lawsuits arguethat the government didn’tadequately establish its case against each specific economy or spell howthe tariffs will eliminate the specified practicetheyare being leviedfor, as required by Section 301. U.S. dollar

Falling oilpricesease

Wall Street’s worries aboutinflation

BY STAN CHOE Associated Press

NEW

YORK The U.S.stock market rallied to theedge ofits all-time high on Monday after easing oilprices helped calmWall Street’s worries that inflation could get even worse.

The S&P 500 jumped 1.5% and is just 0.1% below its record set earlier this summer. It was coming offa freneticJuly,where it swung up anddown as oil prices shot higher because of thewar with Iran, before ultimately ending the monthjustabout where it started.

TheDow Jones Industrial Average, which measuresanarrowerslice of theU.S.stock market,climbed 693 points, or 1.3%,toan all-time high, while the Nasdaqcomposite leaped 2.1%.

Stocks gota lift as theprice for abarrel of Brent crudesank4.7% to $83.77. It dropped after PresidentDonald Trumpsaid over the weekendthathedecided to hold offonnew strikes against Iran at the urging of allies in the region

Brent’sprice careened between $72 and $102 last month as worries rose and fell about when the war withIranwould allowoil tankerstofreely exit thePersian Gulf again to delivercrude to customers worldwide Thelatest acquiescence by Trumphelped to ease worries about theglobalflow of crude, andTreasury yieldscorrespondingly fellin thebond market.

The yield on the10-year Treasury sankto 4.68% from 4.75% late Friday.It, though, remains well above its 3.97% levelfrom before thewar with Iran.

Higher yieldsthreaten toundercut prices for stocks and other investments, while slowingthe economy by makingborrowing more expensivefor U.S. households and businesses.The average long-term U.S.mortgage rate has already leaped to its highestlevel in ayear Monday’sease in oil prices helped airlines and other companies with big fuel bills lead the market. UnitedAirlinesflew 5.8% higher,while American Airlines climbed 5%.

BY MAYUKOONO and ELAINE KURTENBACH Associated Press

TOKYO— The U.S. dollar weakened sharplyMonday against the Japanese yenafter President Donald Trump and Japan’sfinance minister confirmedboth sideshad intervened in markets.

Before late last week,the dollar was trading above 163 yen, touching40-year highs. Afterregulators were suspected of stepping in, it fell below 160 yen.

Early Monday,after theofficial announcement of the intervention, the dollar fell to nearly 155.20 yen. That’sabig drop for theexchange rate. Thedollarwas trading at 156.70 yen earlyMonday Eastern time.

Even though it hasattracted millions of bargain-hunting tourists, the yen’sprolongedweak-

Norwegian CruiseLine Holdingssteamed 6.6% higher Boeing jumped8%after U.S. regulators certified its 737 MAX 7planes,clearing them for commercial service.

TysonFoods rose 2.8% afterthe meat company reported aslightly stronger profit for the spring thananalysts expected. CEO Donnie King said strength is continuing in the company’schicken business and its preparedfoods, whichinclude brands like Jimmy Dean and Hillshire Farm.

It joined alengthening list of big U.S. companiestodeliver abigger profitfor the spring than analysts expected.That’simperative forWall Street because stock prices tendtofollow the path of corporate earnings over the long term, and worries wererising thatU.S.stock prices may have broadly already shot too high.

Companies in the S&P 500 are on track to deliver earnings pershare for thespring thatare 47% higher thanayear before, according to FactSet, with more than half of thecompanies in the index having already reported. If that ends up being the case, it

ness against the dollarhas been asourceoffrustrationfor Tokyo. SinceJapan imports so much of what it consumes, aweak currency pushesprices higher.High oilprices have amplifiedthatproblem and that’sputting pressure on the administration of Japanese PrimeMinisterSanae Takaichi to do moretoaddress therising cost of living. Efforts earlier this year to raise the value of theyen against the dollar didlittle to budge the exchange rate. Normally foreign exchange markets determine the relative values of currencies, butthere are many factors thatshape what happens in themarkets

Abig gap between interest rates in the U.S. andJapan hasled investors to sell yen and buy dollars to takeadvantage of the higher yields fromdollar-denominated assets.

would be the strongest growth since the spring of 2021, when the economy wasroaring out of the COVIDpandemic.

Also offering encouragement forprofits wasa report on Monday showing that growth for U.S. manufacturing accelerated to its strongest level since 2022.

Keeping Wall Street unsettled, though, were swings for stocks of companies that make computer chips. They’ve been veering up and downfor weeks on worries about whether their surging revenues because of the artificial-intelligenceboom are sustainable.

If AI ends up producing less profit andproductivitythanhoped, BigTech companies couldcurtailtheir spending sprees on data centers that have helped chip stocks soar to tremendous heights.

Micron Technology wentfrom adrop of 6.4% to againof1.7% through the daybefore ending withagainof0.8%,for example It’s up roughly 190% forthe year so far.

Seoul’sKospi fell 5.1% Monday, coming off Friday’s17.9% surge thatwas its best day in history

Both the Bank of Japan and the Federal Reserve kept their interestrates unchanged at meetings last week, maintaining that gap. So, last week, when the dollar slippedbelow 160 yenand stayed there, theU.S. sidewas suspected of lending ahand.

Officials usually staymum on such actions. But on Sunday, Trump confirmedthatthe U.S. side had helped, and Japanese Finance Minister SatsukiKatayamalikewiseissued astatementsaying the financeministryhad purchased yenincoordination with the U.S. TreasuryDepartment. “Wewill nothesitate to conduct furtherjoint intervention,” she said.

Suchovert acknowledgment of marketintervention is rare, said Neil Newman, managing director and head of strategy at Astris Advisory Japan. He said thelastbig

example was when governments intervened following amassive earthquake andtsunami disaster in northeastern Japan in 2011. Whenaskedwhy Washington was helping, TrumpsaidSunday that “Wehave agood relationship with Japan. We’re very strong—very,very strong financially —and they are, youknow, they have a weakening yen, and they wanted a little bit of help, and we’re always there for Japan. Japan’s been very good to us, with the exception, of course, of Pearl Harbor.” Trumpsaidthe U.S. got “financial benefit”out of theintervention, callingita“signal of friendship.”

“It’salso good forthe world economy,” he said.

Aweaker dollar makes U.S.made goodsmorecompetitive, reducing their costs in yen terms, and might helpincrease American exports to Japan, Newman said.

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOByyUKIIWAMURA

The U.S. stock market surged close to all-time highs on Mondayasoil prices eased,calming worries about inflation.

Trump