America's 'most dangerous law' goes into effect

January 1, 2023 Published by Fox News

Illinois law enforcement is preparing new ways to best serve and protect law-abiding citizens as the state’s new sweeping criminal justice reform bill takes effect Sunday, a local sheriff said.

“We’ve spent a lot of time trying to prepare for what’s coming,” Franklin County Sheriff Kevin Bacon told Fox News. “Trying to sift through a thousand pages to determine where our role is and what’s going to change and how we can best serve the citizens that we protect has been first and foremost for us.”

Illinois’ Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today (SAFE-T) Act, which went into effect Jan. 1, overhauled Illinois’ justice system with provisions like limiting when defendants can be deemed flight risks and allowing defendants under electronic monitoring to leave home for 48 hours before they can be charged with escape. It was also supposed to eliminate cash bail, but the state’s Supreme Court stayed that portion hours before the law was set to take effect.

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In a previous interview, Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau told Fox News: “When I said that this is the most dangerous law I’ve ever seen, I believe that.”

Bacon, who was elected sheriff in November, said he has sat through “what feels like hundreds of hours of training and discussion” on the new reforms. “And there’s just so many questions that still exist.”

“My focus has been to ensure that the people that commit certain crimes, that they can remain in jail,” he told Fox News. “We work very hard to provide the best services we can, and sometimes we feel like we’re paddling upstream.”

Concerned Illinoisans like Bacon received a win Thursday when Circuit Judge Thomas Cunnington ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit brought by several prosecutors and sheriffs around the state. The class-action lawsuit, which dozens of counties across the state signed onto, argued the pre-trial release and bail reforms in the SAFE-T act are unconstitutional.

ILLINOIS SHERIFF REACTS TO SAFE-T ACT: WATCH HERE

JUDGE RULES ILLINOIS LAW ELIMINATING CASH BAIL IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL

“Today’s ruling affirms that we are still a government of the people, and that the Constitutional protections afforded to the citizens of Illinois – most importantly the right to exercise our voice with our vote – are inalienable,” Kankakee County State Attorney Jim Rowe, one of the lead plaintiffs in the suit, said in a statement.

Illinois’ high court, as a result, blocked the elimination of the cash bail as the state appeal’s the decision, though the rest of the bill remains in effect.

The SAFE-T Act also dropped trespassing from a Class A misdemeanor to Class B. As result, police won’t be able to arrest non-violent trespassers and can instead only issue them a citation.

“If someone’s trespassing on your property, we’re going to remove them from your property,” Bacon said. “Maybe we can’t arrest them, maybe we can’t place them in the county jail, but we’re not going to leave them there.”

SAFE-T ACT: ILLINOIS SHERIFF WARNS PROSECUTORS NOT TO BE ‘OVERZEALOUS’ TARGETING VICTIMS STOPPING CRIMINALS

The sheriff said that while officers will continue to work within the requirements of the law, “there is also common sense and discretion, and we’re going to utilize that.”

“Law enforcement officers — their loyalty remains to victims of crime,” he added.

Sheriff Kevin Bacon said law enforcement’s loyalty remains to victims of crimes, as the SAFT-T act will increase the number of criminals released to the streets.
(AP Newsroom)

Franklin County, located in southern Illinois with a population of roughly 37,000, experiences high numbers of drug-related burglaries, the sheriff said.

“It’s nonstop,” Bacon told Fox News. “Everyday.”

The sheriff said from what he can tell of the SAFE-T act, “there’s not a drug offense other than one involving a firearm or a high-level drug offense that is detainable.”

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As a result, he fears that not only will the high volume of these crimes continue, but low-level criminals abusing drugs may also not receive opportunities to get clean if they’re released immediately after being arrested.

“It’s a snowball effect if the drug issue leads to these deaths and burglaries that we experience,” Bacon said. “They are a struggle for rural departments to keep up with.”

“Simply booking someone and sending them out before they’re even sober, I don’t see a great benefit,” he told Fox News. “I hope I’m wrong, but it’s concerning.”

Teny Sahakian is an Associate Producer/Writer for Fox News. Follow Teny on Twitter at @tenysahakian.

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North Korea’s Kim orders ‘exponential’ expansion of nuke arsenal

January 1, 2023 Published by

US Top News and Analysis

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets troops who have taken part in the military parade to mark the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People’s Revolutionary Army, in this undated photo released by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) April 29, 2022.

KCNA | via Reuters

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered the “exponential” expansion of his country’s nuclear arsenal and the development of a more powerful intercontinental ballistic missile, state media reported Sunday, after he entered 2023 with another weapons launch following a record number of testing activities last year.

Kim’s moves are in line with the broad direction of his nuclear program. He has repeatedly vowed to boost both the quality and quantity of his arsenal to cope with what he calls U.S. hostility. Some experts say Kim’s push to produce more nuclear and other weapons signals his intention to continue a run of weapons tests and ultimately solidify his future negotiating power and win greater outside concessions.

“They are now keen on isolating and stifling (North Korea), unprecedented in human history,” Kim said at a recently ended key ruling party meeting, according to the official Korean Central News Agency. “The prevailing situation calls for making redoubled efforts to overwhelmingly beef up the military muscle.”

During the six-day meeting meant to determine new state objectives, Kim called for “an exponential increase of the country’s nuclear arsenal” to mass produce battlefield tactical nuclear weapons targeting South Korea. He also presented a task to develop a new ICBM missioned with a “quick nuclear counterstrike” capability — a weapon he needs to strike the mainland U.S. He said the North’s first military reconnaissance satellite will be launched “at the earliest date possible,” KCNA said.

“Kim’s comments from the party meeting reads like an ambitious — but perhaps achievable — New Year’s resolution list,” said Soo Kim, a security analyst at the California-based RAND Corporation. “It’s ambitious in that Kim consciously chose to spell out what he hopes to accomplish as we head into 2023, but it also suggests a dose of confidence on Kim’s part.”

Last month, North Korea claimed to have performed key tests needed for the development of a new strategic weapon, a likely reference to a solid-fueled ICBM, and a spy satellite.

Kim’s identification of South Korea as an enemy and the mention of hostile U.S. and South Korean policies is “a reliable pretext for the regime to produce more missiles and weapons to solidify Kim’s negotiating position and concretize North Korea’s status as a nuclear weapons power,” Soo Kim said.

Later Sunday, South Korea’s Defense Ministry reiterated a warning that any attempt to use nuclear weapons by North Korea “will lead to the end of the Kim Jong Un government.” The U.S. military has previously made similar warnings.

“The new year started but our security situation is still very grave,” South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol told top military officers during a video conference. “Our military must resolutely punish any provocation by the enemy with a firm determination that we dare to risk fighting a battle.”

Senior diplomats from South Korea, the U.S. and Japan spoke by phone and agreed that provocations by North Korea would only deepen its international isolation and prompt their trilateral security cooperation. They still reaffirmed that the door to dialogue with North Korea remains open, according to the South Korean Foreign Ministry.

Since his high-stakes summitry with then-President Donald Trump collapsed in 2019 due to wrangling over U.S.-led sanctions, Kim Jong Un has refused to return to talks with Washington and taken steps to enlarge his arsenal. Some observers say Kim would eventually want to make North Korea a legitimate nuclear power so as to win the lifting of international sanctions and the end of the regular U.S.-South Korean military drills that he views as a major security threat.

“It was during his 2018 New Year’s speech that (Kim) first ordered the mass production of warheads and ballistic missiles, and he’s doubling down on that quantitative expansion goal in the coming year,” said Ankit Panda, an expert with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Panda said the reference to a new ICBM appears to concern a solid-propellant system, which could be tested soon. He said a satellite launch could take place in April, a month that includes a key state anniversary.

Worries about North Korea’s nuclear program have grown since the North last year approved a new law that authorized the preemptive use of nuclear weapons in a broad range of situations and openly threatened to use its nuclear weapons first. During last week’s party meeting, Kim reiterated that threat.

Earlier Sunday, South Korea’s military detected a short-range ballistic missile launched from the North’s capital region. It said the weapon traveled about 400 kilometers (250 miles) before falling into the water between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said that the U.S. commitments to defend South Korea and Japan “remain ironclad.”

North Korea test-fired more than 70 missiles last year, including three short-range ballistic missiles detected by South Korea on Saturday. The testing spree indicates the country is likely emboldened by its advancing nuclear program. Observers say the North was also able to continue its banned missile tests because China and Russia have blocked the U.S. and others from toughening U.N. sanctions at the Security Council.

KCNA confirmed Sunday that the country conducted the test-firings of its super-large multiple rocket launcher on Saturday and Sunday. Kim Jong Un said the rocket launcher puts all of South Korea within striking distance and is capable of carrying a tactical nuclear warhead, according to KCNA.

“Its recent missile launches were not technically impressive. Instead, the high volume of tests at unusual times and from various locations demonstrate that North Korea could launch different types of attack, anytime, and from many directions,” said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul.

Animosities between the rival Koreas have further deepened since early last week, when South Korea accused North Korea of flying drones across their heavily fortified border for the first time in five years and responded by sending its own drones toward the North.

2022’s most memorable recalls: Are they still in your home?

January 1, 2023 Published by

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News

Product recalls in the U.S. this year reportedly reached a 20-year high,

According to Sedgwick, a provider of technical and business information, at the end of September there were 1.22 billion units involved in recalls across the five sectors it tracked: automotive, consumer products, food and drink, medical devices and pharmaceutical.

That total surpasses the previous record of 1.20 billion set in 2018 – although the numbers then were for the whole year and the U.S. hit that milestone in just three quarters.

The first quarter, the report noted, experienced the highest number of units recalled in a single quarter over the past two decades.

ENOKI MUSHROOMS LINKED TO LISTERIA OUTBREAK IN TWO STATES: PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS

Compared to the quarterly averages in 2018 for recall events, the year-to-date numbers are lower this year for every sector except consumer products.

A Dec. 1 release from Sedgewick said that the overall rise had been driven primarily by increases in the average recall size for the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.

Here are some of the year’s most memorable recalls:

In February, Abbott recalled three brands of baby formula after infants became sick.

Nearly a year after a nationwide shortage, parents are still not able to find formula on store shelves.

“We have been getting less powder, Nutramigen. So, whatever I have, I’m kind of like, can I just feed him less? But then it’s like, you can’t feed a child less because that’s not fair to them,” mother Ellie Johnston told FOX Business.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned in November that one person had died and 13 others had been hospitalized due to a multistate listeria outbreak linked to deli meats and cheeses.

Seven of the 16 illnesses were found in New York, according to agency data.

AS CONTAMINATED BEEF IS RECALLED, A REMINDER TO CLEAN OUT REFRIGERATORS TO KEEP OUT THE FAMILY SAFE

In October, several brands of brie and camembert cheeses made by Old Europe Cheese, Inc. were recalled over a listeria outbreak.

BrandStorm Inc. issued a voluntary recall in July for two lots of its Natierra Organic Freeze-Dried Blueberry pouches “because of the presence or potential presence of lead above the FDA’s recommended limits; per the serving size specified on the nutritional facts panel,” according to the recall.

Meal service delivery company Daily Harvest temporarily discontinued its French Lentil + Leek Crumbles product in June after several customers posted online that they became severely ill and even went to the emergency room after consuming it.

“At this time, we have identified tara flour as the cause of the issue,” Daily Harvest CEO Rachel Drori said in a July blog post. “We have only used this ingredient in French Lentil + Leek Crumbles and we are no longer sourcing from this producer who does not provide any ingredients for our 140+ other items.”

Nearly 130,000 wall beds that were on the market for about eight years were recalled in April after one fell on a 79-year-old woman in 2018 and killed her, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

The company also received 60 reported incidents “resulting in bruising and other injuries from the wall beds detaching and hitting consumers,” according to the recall.

Fox Business’ Kayla Bailey, Anders Hagstrom, Daniella Genovese and Reuters contributed to this report.

Have a spy on your phone? Take steps now!

January 1, 2023 Published by

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News

I read every single note from people like you who need a hand with something digital. Many people ask how to remove their information on creepy people search sites. Tap or click here for a list of sites where you should delete details like your home or cellphone number, email address and physical address.

What about all the info that pops up when you Google yourself? Google will remove some for you, but there are other methods for info you want to hide. Tap or click for a guide to take back your privacy.

What could you do with $500? You could win a $500 Amazon Gift Card on my site. Enter now at Komando.com/Win!

One common theme lately is from people worried someone is spying on their phones. If that rings true, keep reading. You can drop me your questions on my site here.

With iOS 16, Apple introduced Safety Check. This robust security setting lets you quickly stop sharing your information or review and update sharing with people and apps.

You may have shared access to certain things with someone in the past — or they could have given over access without you realizing it.

You can use Safety Check to:

HOW TO CAST YOUR ANDROID SCREEN TO A TV

Another helpful Safety Check tool is Manage Sharing & Access. You can review and reset information you’re sharing with people, review and reset the information apps have access to, and update your device and Apple ID security.

Here’s how to use Safety Check to review the information you’re sharing:

To stop sharing information with other people:

Tap Continue, then do any of the following:

From there, tap Done. You’re all set.

Emergency Reset is another tool within Safety Check. Use it to stop sharing everything immediately. It also allows you to review and reset settings associated with your Apple ID.

This excellent option if you are in a dangerous or abusive relationship or need reassurance that your phone is locked down quickly.

Here’s how to use Emergency Reset:

Got locked out of your Apple ID account? Tap or click here for instructions to recover it.

Do a factory reset

If your phone is infected with spyware or other malware watching what you do, your best bet is a full factory reset. Tap or click here for steps to do that on an iPhone, Google Pixel or Samsung model.

How do you know if malware is to blame? There are warning signs like your device heating up when you’re not using it, more data usage than usual, and unexplained activity in your accounts. Tap or click here for red flags you’re being watched.

Keep your tech-know going

QUICK TIPS FOR YOUR IPHONE CALCULATOR

My popular podcast is called “Kim Komando Today.” It’s a solid 30 minutes of tech news, tips, and callers with tech questions like you from all over the country. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts. For your convenience, hit the link below for a recent episode.

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Plus, fast charger secrets, the feds crack down on social media censorship, how to find the best router, and the best way to keep your cellphone number private.

Check out my podcast “Kim Komando Today” on Apple, Google Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite podcast player.

Listen to the podcast here or wherever you get your podcasts. Just search for my last name, “Komando.”

Get more tech know-how on The Kim Komando Show, broadcast on 425+ radio stations and available as a podcast. Sign up for Kim’s 5-minute free morning roundup for the latest security breaches and tech news. Need help? Drop your question for Kim here.

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Is Pete Buttigieg’s political future grounded forever after Southwest holiday travel disaster?

January 1, 2023 Published by

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News

The Christmas travel nightmare involving Southwest Airlines left a wide wake of destruction with long-lasting implications. From frustrated travelers on the nearly 16,000 canceled flights to the reputation of the once-popular airline to the political future of Pete Buttigieg – it’s been a tough week for all involved.

Americans’ memories tend to be short, but this fiasco will leave behind serious scar tissue. Those passengers who missed family gatherings will always remember this episode, especially after the last two holiday seasons were curtailed by the pandemic.

Southwest and its leadership will face tough questions about their outdated technology and misplaced priorities. At the top of that list is their obsession with going green and shoveling millions of dollars toward “carbon neutrality” to appease the woke crowd. No word yet on how many emissions were saved this week amid the mass grounding of flights.

For Transportation Secretary Buttigieg, the headaches are only just beginning. Critics are questioning the credentials of a 40-year-old former mayor of a city of 100,000 residents to oversee an agency with nearly 60,000 employees.

BUTTIGIEG UNDER FIRE FROM BOTH PARTIES AMID SOUTHWEST HOLIDAY TRAVEL FIASCO

Already, he has become a pinata within his own party. For an ambitious and talented politician with his eye on higher office, this spells trouble. The Bernie Sanders-aligned wing of the party has been especially noisy. Nina Turner, who co-chaired Sanders’ 2020 campaign, accused Buttigieg of “failing up.”

Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., another co-chair, accused Buttigieg of ignoring his warnings, tweeting, “this mess with Southwest could have been avoided.”

Some Republicans have piled on with their own criticism – largely focused on the $7 billion dollars Southwest received from taxpayers in COVID aid – but the more pointed critiques have come from Buttigieg’s left, which makes sense.

Having exceeded all expectations in 2020, Buttigieg is viewed as a rising star, a name to watch in the coming years. His move from deep red Indiana, where Democrats are going extinct, to neighboring blue Michigan only fueled that speculation.

GOP LAWMAKER BLASTS BIDEN, BUTTIGIEG AFTER KIDS STRANDED IN BALTIMORE AMID AIRLINE CHAOS

Initially, Buttigieg’s cabinet position was seen as a stepping stone to higher office. Like Vice President Kamala Harris, it has become a political lead balloon.

The Southwest fiasco was not the first blemish on his resume. It was the latest episode in a growing pattern of events. In 2021, the term “supply chain” morphed from an esoteric term in a textbook to real life pain for frustrated consumers waiting for goods that used to be readily available. This year it was revealed Buttigieg was vacationing in Portugal while back home heated rail contract negotiations veered toward a strike.

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Meanwhile, the current standard bearer of the Democratic Party, an 80-year-old Joe Biden, faces ongoing questions about his ability to wage another national campaign. A USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll found that just 8% of respondents called 66-80 years old an ideal age for a president.

Yes, Biden’s Democrats enjoyed a far more successful midterm election than anyone expected, but his approval rating remains stuck closer to 40 than 50. Should he run again, Biden won’t have the cover of COVID to keep him out of the spotlight.

To be sure, Buttigieg remains a talented politician in a political party with an exceedingly shallow bench in desperate need of some younger faces. It’s not out of the question he could spin this entire episode into a net positive.

But one thing is clear: he will need to take it head-on. For almost every Democrat (and sadly too many Republicans), the federal government is the immediate scapegoat to every problem under the sun – even in the private sector. Gone are the days of free markets and letting consumers punish Southwest by choosing other airlines.

For a Democratic Party soon in search of its next leader, Christmas 2022 could be a make-or-break moment for one of the potential contenders.

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Georgia ends national championship drought and more headlines that topped college football in 2022

January 1, 2023 Published by

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News

When you spend your life watching sports, you begin to understand exactly what each sport brings to the table.

The NBA brings a connection to the youth of today, of being consistently introduced to the next batch of above-the-rim stars as 19-year-olds take over the league.

Major League Baseball is nostalgic, reminding you of the simpler times – when “baseball was life” and the only thing that mattered was the bat, ball and the glove.

The NFL is deeply rooted, with fandom passed on from father to child regardless of the pain it may bring.

DEION SANDERS GETS FORMER TOP RECRUIT TO FOLLOW HIM TO COLORADO

And then there’s college football.

It’s the sport that brings us back to our best days each Saturday during the fall. When our adult lives were just getting started, our eyes wide with innocence as the world was splayed in front of us, ripe for the picking.

You see, college football provides the deepest connection with its fans.

Fans either attended the university they cheer for or they have a family or regional tie so deep that the school is part of their soul.

Since each collegiate roster gets a fresh crop of players every four years, the allegiance is not really to the players. It’s to the colors, to the college town that holds such a special spot in our souls.

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College football allows us to see the different parts of our beautiful country that make the United States the best darn country in the history of mankind.

From the Pacific Northwest to The Plains, down through the bayou and into the Deep South, each weekend of college football gives us a glimpse into a different culture.

Each corner wonderfully American in its own way.

Each with a unique tie to college football.

So, let’s take a dive into the wonderful ride that was the 2022 college football season.

It was finally time for the student to defeat the teacher.

After suffering its first defeat of the season to Nick Saban and Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, Kirby Smart won the only game that mattered, defeating Alabama 33-18 in the national championship game.

NO. 1 GEORGIA WINS SEC TITLE OVER NO. 14 LSU IN DOMINANT FASHION

Former walk-on Stetson Bennett threw for 224 yards and two touchdowns, and the Bulldogs snapped a 40-year championship drought.

“How about this university? How about these fans? This is a special moment for the University of Georgia, a special moment for this team,” Smart said in his postgame interview.

It was Smart’s first win against Saban and just the second time the seven-time national champion had been defeated by a former assistant.

With name, image and likeness taking over college football, it was inevitable that feelings were going to be hurt.

Texas A&M had a monster offseason, with Jimbo Fisher bringing in the top-ranked class of 2022.

CLEMSON’S DABO SWEENEY GIVES HIS UNIQUE TAKE IN NIL: ‘WE BUILT THIS PROGRAM IN GOD’S NAME, IMAGE AND LIKENESS’

The grumblings began early that A&M was “buying” its players, a rumor that Nick Saban seemed to get behind.

At a May conference, Saban said Texas A&M “bought every player on their team.”

Fisher didn’t appreciate the accusation and called a press conference in order to refute the claim and blast Saban in the process.

“Some people think they’re God. Go dig into how God did His deal. You may find out about a guy, a lot of things you don’t want to know. We build him up to be this czar of football. Go dig into his past or anybody who’s ever coached with him. You can find out anything you want to find out what he does and how he does it,” Fisher said.

“I don’t cheat. I don’t lie. If you did my old man slapped me across the face. Maybe someone should have slapped him (Saban),” Fisher said.

The two reportedly put the spat behind them, but it sure did make for some offseason fun.

UCLA playing at Rutgers? USC taking on Penn State in Happy Valley?

It may sound strange, but it’s time to get used to the two West Coast programs playing in the middle of the country each year.

The Trojans and the Bruins announced that they will join the Big Ten in August 2024, leaving the Pac-12 to wonder what will become of West Coast football.

It had been nearly 16 years and six coaches since Tennessee last beat Alabama.

But on a beautiful fall day in Knoxville, the Vols finally vanquished their Nick Saban demons.

In a game that will go down as one of the great regular season college football games of all time, No. 6 Tennessee beat No. 3 Alabama 52-49 at Neyland Stadium.

DEION SANDERS’ SON, QUARTERBACK SHEDEUR, TRANSFERS TO COLORADO

After a wild four quarters, Tennessee kicker Chase McGrath nailed a 40-yard field goal as the clock expired and Neyland Stadium emptied onto the field.

“This is college football at its absolute best,” Vols coach Josh Heupel said. “We were the best team on the field tonight. That’s all we can control.”

Tennessee had been 0-15 against Saban since he took over at Alabama in 2007, and the win catapulted the Vols to the No. 1 spot in the CFP rankings for the first time in program history.

ARCH MANNING, NEPHEW OF LEGENDARY NFL BROTHERS, OFFICIALLY SIGNS WITH TEXAS

Two weeks later, it all came crashing down in Athens as Georgia handled quarterback Hendon Hooker and Tennessee.

Two weeks after that, South Carolina ended Tennessee’s national championship hopes by hanging 63 points on ol’ Rocky Top.

But the verdict was already in – Tennessee is back. And college football is better for it.

It took a few months of negotiating, but the College Football Playoff will expand to 12 teams starting in the 2024-25 season.

The College Football Playoff Board of Managers voted to expand the playoff to 12 teams in September, with an eye on the 2026 season for the first year with the expanded field.

JD DANIELS, ONCE HIGHLY SOUGHT-AFTER QB RECRUIT, TRANSFERS TO FOURTH SCHOOL: REPORT

But the Rose Bowl’s decision to amend its contract for the 2024 and 2025 seasons allows the CFP to expand from four teams to 12 officially in 2024.

There are certainly going to be those who oppose the new format, as it’s nothing more than a money grab for the schools and conferences.

But will anyone be complaining when there are more meaningful playoff games in December? It’s doubtful.

It was only a matter of time before an FBS school gave Deion Sanders a shot.

After going 27-6 at FCS Jackson State, Sanders will look to revitalize the once-proud program in Boulder as he becomes the next head coach at Colorado.

SHANNON SHARPE ROASTS DEION SANDERS OVER AMPUTATED TOES: ‘I THOUGHT YOU WAS MAGIC’

The Colorado program has fallen on hard times, firing head coach Karl Dorrell after an 0-5 start to the season. The Buffs ended their 2022 campaign 1-8 in the Pac-12 and were blown out by Utah in their final game, 63-21.

Sanders’ arrival in Boulder has already brought energy to the program, with Prime Time getting two 2023 ESPN 300 recruits and the commitment of his son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders.

The college football world was devastated on Dec. 12 when it learned that Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach died of complications from a heart condition.

Leach, known affectionately as “The Pirate,” was one of college football’s most eccentric personalities.

Leach spent 21 years as a head coach, with stops at Texas Tech and Washington State before becoming the head coach in Starkville in 2020.

MIKE LEACH, LONGTIME COLLEGE FOOTBALL COACH, DEAD AT 61

He went 158-107 in his 21 seasons, going 8-9 in bowl games.

Well known for the “Air Raid” offense, Leach has an impressive coaching tree, with Arizona Cardinals’ Kliff Kingsbury, USC head coach Lincoln Riley, TCU’s Sonny Dykes, Tennessee’s Josh Heupel, and Houston’s Dana Holgorsen all coaching under Leach.

“There’s a ball game going on right now in heaven,” former Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops said at Leach’s memorial. “And can’t you just see Mike? It’s 4th & 2, he’s on his own 40, and you know he’s going for it.”

No. 1 Georgia was matched up against No. 4 Ohio State, while No. 2 Michigan went up against No. 3 TCU – the newcomer to the CFP – on New Year’s Eve.

REGGIE BUSH RIPS OUTGOING OUTGOING NCAA PRESIDENT MARK EMMERT OVER HEISMAN TROPHY ISSUE

The Bulldogs got the opportunity to become the first to win back-to-back national championships since Alabama did it in 2011-12.

It’s been a wild ride in college football since January 2021, and it isn’t close to being over.

Enjoy bowl season. There’s nothing better than being a college football fan.

Market misery deals sovereign wealth funds historic setback in 2022: Study

January 1, 2023 Published by

US Top News and Analysis

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021.

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Heavy falls in stock and bond markets over the last year have cut the combined value of the world’s sovereign wealth and public pension funds for the first time ever – and to the tune of $2.2 trillion, an annual study of the sector has estimated.

The report on state-owned investment vehicles by industry specialist Global SWF found that the value of assets managed by sovereign wealth funds fell to $10.6 trillion from $11.5 trillion, while those of public pension funds dropped to $20.8 trillion from $22.1 trillion.

Global SWF’s Diego López said the main driver had been the “simultaneous and significant” 10%-plus corrections suffered by major bond and stock markets, a combination that had not happened in 50 years.

It came as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine boosted commodity prices and drove already-rising inflation rates to 40-year highs. In response, the U.S. Federal reserve and other major central banks jacked up their interest rates causing a global market sell-off.

VIDEO8:2608:26

Markets wrap up worst year since the financial crisis

Fast Money

“These are paper losses and some of the funds will not see them realized in their role as long-term investors,” López said. “But it is quite telling of the moment we are living.”

The report, which analysed 455 state-owned investors with a combined $32 trillion in assets, found that Denmark’s ATP had had the toughest year anywhere with an estimated 45% plunge that lost $34 billion for Danish pensioners.

Despite all the turbulence though, the money funds spent buying up companies, property or infrastructure still jumped 12% compared with 2021.

A record $257.5 billion was deployed across 743 deals, with sovereign wealth funds also sealing a record number of $1 billion-plus “mega-deals”.

Singapore’s supersized $690 billion GIC fund topped the table, spending just over $39 billion in 72 deals. Over half of that was piled into real estate with a clear bias towards logistics properties.

In fact, five of the 10 largest investments ever by state-owned investors took place in 2022, starting in January when another Singapore vehicle, Temasek, spent $7 billion buying testing, inspection and certification firm Element Materials from private equity fund Bridgepoint.

In March, Canada’s BCI then agreed to acquire 60% of Britain’s National Grid Gas Transmission and Metering arm with Macquarie. Two months later, Italy’s CDP Equity wealth fund spent $4.4 billion on Autostrade per l’Italia alongside Blackstone and Macquarie.

“If financial markets continue to fall in 2023, it is likely that sovereign funds will keep ‘chasing elephants’ as an effective way of meeting their capital allocation requirements,” the report said.

It tipped SWFs from the Gulf such as ADIA, Mubadala, ADQ, PIF, QIA to become much more active in buying up Western firms having received large injections of oil revenue money over the past year.

New Year’s Eve shooting in south Alabama leaves 1 dead, 9 injured

January 1, 2023 Published by

Latest & Breaking News on Fox News

A shooting in downtown Mobile, Ala. left at least one person dead and nine others injured on New Year’s Eve.

The Mobile Police Department said officers responded to shots fired in the 200 block of Daulphin Street around 11:14 p.m. Saturday, Fox 10 Mobile reported.

The shooting took place as thousands of people were attending the city’s 15th annual MoonPie Over Mobile New Year’s Eve event.

Mobile Police Cpl. Ryan Blakely told local media outlets that one person died, and nine others were transported to local hospitals where they were treated for injuries. As of early Sunday, their conditions were unknown.

BLOODY NEW YORK CITY NEW YEAR’S EVE ‘GANG RELATED’ STABBING IN TIMES SQUARE SENDS MAN TO HOSPITAL

A graphic video circulating on Twitter showed at least two people lying on the sidewalk with injuries moments after the shooting. Witnesses in the area told Fox 10 groups of people started running for cover as soon as the shots rang out.

Carly Bragg, who was downtown celebrating New Year’s Eve, told Fox 10 the gunshots were terrifying and “sounded like super-close fireworks.”

“The timing of it was wild,” Bragg said. “We walked right past the area, and then it happened.”

She told the outlet she and her friends hid inside a corridor that was “maybe 15 to 20 feet away from the sound and noticed the window shot out of Urban Emporium when we realized how close we were.”

MULTIPLE NYPD OFFICERS STABBED WITH MACHETE NEAR TIMES SQUARE

A store owner on South Royal Street told Fox 10 that people started pouring into her store in search of a safe hiding place after the gunshots.

Mobile police are investigating the shooting and a potential motive.

No suspects are in custody as of early Sunday morning, according to Blakely.

The New Year’s Eve festivities took place as scheduled following the shooting.

Mobile police did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

This is a developing story.

The Greek island helping Europe dodge an energy crisis

January 1, 2023 Published by

US Top News and Analysis

International Digital Originals

The Greek island helping Europe dodge an energy crisis

Europe has been forced to shore up its energy supplies since Russia invaded Ukraine. The continent has averted a worst-case scenario for this winter. Now, it’s racing to build new liquified natural gas infrastructure ahead of the next one.

08:14

an hour ago

Julianna Tatelbaum

Europe raced to shore up its energy supplies in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and it appears to have averted a worst-case scenario this winter — largely thanks to liquified natural gas.

For years, Europe was heavily dependent on Russian pipeline gas. But when Russia attacked Ukraine, and Europe could no longer count on those gas flows, it pivoted hard to LNG, a flexible energy source that comes largely from the United States, Qatar, Australia and Algeria.

Europe has successfully filled its gas storage capacity to 95%, which means all should be OK this winter. But next winter is a different story.

Because Europe was so reliant on Russia, it has limited LNG import capacity. European countries are scrambling to build new infrastructure to be able to import more of it.

CNBC visited the only LNG terminal in Greece that receives, stores and turns the critical fuel back into gas. Watch the video above to learn more.

Chinese state media seek to reassure public over Covid-19

January 1, 2023 Published by

US Top News and Analysis

Revelers prepare to release balloons to celebrate the New Year on pedestrian street Jianghan Road on December 31, 2022 in Wuhan, China.

Getty Images | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Thousands of Chinese took to the streets to mark the New Year as authorities and state media sought to reassure the public that the Covid-19 outbreak sweeping across the country was under control and nearing its peak.

Though many people in major cities have continued to isolate as the virus spreads through the population, New Year revelries appeared to be mostly unaffected as people celebrated the end of 2022 and the turn into 2023.

In Wuhan, where the coronavirus was first identified at the end of 2019, residents said anxieties about the impact of easing strict zero-Covid restrictions to live with the disease had now abated – at least for the young and healthy.

“Basically, now my friends and I feel relatively positive and optimistic,” said a 29-year old tutor surnamed Wu. “Many people are going out and about.”

“We all know that especially for the middle-aged and the elderly, especially those over 60 years old, especially those with underlying diseases, they will be affected by this virus,” he said.

A long line of people queued at the emergency department of Wuhan’s Tongji Hospital, a major facility for Covid-19 patients, such as 72-year-old resident Huang, who wanted to be identified by her surname only.

“I don’t feel well. I have no energy. I can’t breathe. I used to be in good health. I had X-rays to check my lungs… This hospital is a lot of trouble, you have to wait a long time,” she said.

Data under scrutiny

China’s abrupt U-turn on Covid controls – as well as the accuracy of its case and mortality data – have come under increasing scrutiny both at home and overseas.

The surge in cases has raised fresh worries about the health of the economy and in his first public comments since the change in policy, President Xi Jinping called in a New Year’s address for more effort and unity as China enters a “new phase”.

VIDEO5:4005:40

It will take a while for China to return to normal, says former U.S. Ambassador to China Gary

Squawk Box

China reported one new Covid-19 death in the mainland for Dec. 31, the same as a day earlier, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said on Sunday.

The accumulated official death toll in China now stands at 5,249, far lower than in other large countries. The government has rejected claims that it has deliberately underreported the total number of fatalities.

At the Hankou funeral home on the outskirts of Wuhan, an intermittent stream of mourners and hearse drivers were arriving on Sunday.

Staff at the site’s heavily guarded entrance declined to answer questions about their recent workloads. But funeral homes in other cities in China – including Chengdu and Beijing – said that they were busier than ever since China abruptly ditched its Covid curbs last month.

China’s CDC reported 5,138 official confirmed cases on Saturday, but with mass testing no longer in operation, experts say the actual number of infections is significantly higher.

State media in the city of Guangzhou in southeastern China said on Sunday that daily cases peaked at around 60,000 recently, and now stand at around 19,000.

Authorities have been trying to reassure the public that they have the situation under control and state news agency Xinhua published an editorial on Sunday saying that the current strategy was “a planned, science-based approach” reflecting the changing nature of the virus.

REASSURANCE

Xinhua said separately the manufacturing of medicines had accelerated in the last month, with production of pain relievers ibuprofen and paracetamol now at 190 million tablets per day, five times higher than in early December.

VIDEO2:1202:12

China: ‘Small risk’ of a new variant replacing omicron, research institute says

Squawk Box Asia

Antigen test kit production has nearly doubled to 110 million per day in a month, it said.

On Sunday, Australia and Canada joined the United States and others in requiring travellers from China to provide negative Covid-19 tests when they arrive. Morocco will impose a ban on people arriving from China, its foreign ministry said.

Australian Health Minister Mark Butler said additional measures would also be considered amid concerns that China is not disclosing enough information about the nature and extent of the current outbreak.

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen offered on Sunday to provide China with “necessary assistance” to help it deal with the surge in Covid-19 cases.

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The Greek island helping Europe dodge an energy crisis

Data under scrutiny

REASSURANCE