��#��货[�����'��r�)S�%�x��t�&n��+�%90E����#�e炦 .�,|5��;�|:���M\=�V�Bx���a6㚼�<�;�K��zU����8G6���r��L���`�/[Rh+L %}�����Y4/R+*��|�~#)+��^m\�JU�ʩ�/x �s��~��ݓ���etB>�*�{g���!�I*�� ���fF�����eIv?��7���ᜤ��mي!���Ϧ���pc�j�A��

��#��货[�����'��r�)S�%�x��t�&n��+�%90E����#�e炦 .�,|5��;�|:���M\=�V�Bx���a6㚼�<�;�K��zU����8G6���r��L���`�/[Rh+L %}�����Y4/R+*��|�~#)+��^m\�JU�ʩ�/x �s��~��ݓ���etB>�*�{g���!�I*�� ���fF�����eIv?��7���ᜤ��mي!���Ϧ���pc�j�A��

Calin Georgescu was in pole position with almost 23 percent after the first round of voting, a political earthquake in the country of 19 million people that has so far resisted nationalist appeals that have gained traction in Hungary and Slovakia. His victory ahead of centre-right mayor Elena Lasconi -- who scored 19.18 percent -- ended the hopes of Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu to compete for the presidency in the December runoff. After coming third at 19.15, Ciolacu said his Social Democratic Party (PSD) won't challenge the narrow result, and announced his resignation as party leader. Experts say the far right's surprise success could affect the parliamentary elections later this week, and even influence the chances of forming a future government. In the runoff ballot on December 8, Lasconi will face Georgescu, a NATO critic who in the past expressed his admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Georgescu's popularity surged ahead of the vote with a viral TikTok campaign calling for an end to aid for Ukraine, which shares a 650-kilometre (400-mile) border with Romania. In a first reaction on his YouTube channel, the 62-year-old independent candidate insisted "there is no East or West", stressing that neutrality was "absolutely necessary". "I am not an extremist, I am not a fascist -- I am a Romanian who loves his country," he said in reference to media reports that "tried to portray" him in a wrongful way. For his rival Lasconi, the upcoming runoff represents "an existential battle", "a historic confrontation" between those who wish to "preserve Romania's young democracy" and those who want to "return to the Russian sphere of influence". "We must not allow anger to throw us back into the past," she said to thunderous applause from her supporters, vowing to stand up for Europe and NATO. The political earthquake comes amid soaring inflation and mounting fears of Romania being potentially dragged into Russia's war in neighbouring Ukraine, as the country has emerged as a key player on the alliance's eastern flank. In Sunday's vote, another far-right contender, AUR party leader George Simion, secured nearly 14 percent. Already pounding the campaign trail for this week's parliamentary elections, Simion said Romania now has "the chance to have a sovereign government and a sovereign president". Overall, the far right won more than a third of all votes in Sunday's presidential ballot. "The far right is by far the big winner of this election," political scientist Cristian Pirvulescu told AFP, predicting a possible "contagion effect" in the parliamentary vote. Extremist forces and Lasconi's centre-right party now have "wind in their sails", sociologist Gelu Duminica said, though "it remains to be seen if they know how to capitalise" on it. The PSD, which has shaped the country's politics for more than three decades, has never before been eliminated in the first round of a presidential election. The National Liberal Party (PNL) party, with whom the PSD currently governs, also suffered a defeat. While many expressed their disbelief over the poll in the streets of the capital Bucharest, others were enthused. Maria Chis, 70, said she was surprised by Georgescu's lead in the first round but had been impressed after watching his TikTok videos. "He seems a man of integrity, serious and patriotic. He inspires seriousness. I think only someone like him can bring change," said the pensioner, who was planning to vote for him in the second round. Alex Tudose, the owner of a construction company, was gloomy. "There is sorrow, disappointment, that after so many years in Euro-Atlantic structures we voted for a pro-Russian by over 20 percent," the 42-year-old said. "There is clearly a strong fragmentation both in society and in the political class, and I think we saw that yesterday," he said. ani-anb-kym/sbk

Is Outlook down? Thousands of Microsoft 365 users report outage issues

DAVID DUVALL Implements A Sell Strategy: Offloads $257K In Core Molding Technologies StockNEW YORK (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump wants to turn the lights out on daylight saving time. In a post on his social media site Friday, Trump said his party would try to end the practice when he returns to office. “The Republican Party will use its best efforts to eliminate Daylight Saving Time, which has a small but strong constituency, but shouldn’t! Daylight Saving Time is inconvenient, and very costly to our Nation,” he wrote. Setting clocks forward one hour in the spring and back an hour in the fall is intended to maximize daylight during summer months, but has long been subject to scrutiny. Daylight saving time was first adopted as a wartime measure in 1942. Lawmakers have occasionally proposed getting rid of the time change altogether. The most prominent recent attempt, a now-stalled bipartisan bill named the Sunshine Protection Act , had proposed making daylight saving time permanent. The measure was sponsored by Florida Sen. Marco Rubio , whom Trump has tapped to helm the State Department. “Changing the clock twice a year is outdated and unnecessary,” Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida said as the Senate voted in favor of the measure. Health experts have said that lawmakers have it backward and that standard time should be made permanent. Some health groups , including the American Medical Association and American Academy of Sleep Medicine, have said that it’s time to do away with time switches and that sticking with standard time aligns better with the sun — and human biology. Most countries do not observe daylight saving time. For those that do, the date that clocks are changed varies, creating a complicated tapestry of changing time differences. Arizona and Hawaii don't change their clocks at all.WASHINGTON (AP) — Special counsel Jack Smith moved to abandon two criminal cases against Donald Trump on Monday, acknowledging that Trump’s return to the White House will preclude attempts to federally prosecute him for retaining classified documents or trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat. The decision was inevitable, since longstanding Justice Department policy says sitting presidents cannot face criminal prosecution. Yet it was still a momentous finale to an unprecedented chapter in political and law enforcement history, as federal officials attempted to hold accountable a former president while he was simultaneously running for another term. In court filings, Smith's team emphasized that the move to abandon their prosecutions was not a reflection of the merit of the cases but a recognition of the legal shield that surrounds any commander in chief. “That prohibition is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the Government’s proof, or the merits of the prosecution, which the Government stands fully behind,” the prosecutors wrote in one of their filings. Smith’s team said it was leaving intact charges against two co-defendants in the classified documents case — Trump valet Walt Nauta and Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira — because “no principle of temporary immunity applies to them.” Steven Cheung, Trump's incoming White House communications director, welcomed the decision to drop the prosecutions against the president-elect, describing it as a “major victory for the rule of law.” "The American People and President Trump want an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and we look forward to uniting our country,” Cheung said in a statement. Trump has long described the investigations as politically motivated, and he has vowed to fire Smith as soon as he takes office in January. Now he will re-enter the White House free from criminal scrutiny by the government that he will lead. The election case brought last year was once seen as one of the most serious legal threats facing Trump as he tried to reclaim the White House. He was indicted for plotting to overturn his defeat to Joe Biden in 2020, an effort that climaxed with his supporters' violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. But the case quickly stalled amid legal fighting over Trump’s sweeping claims of immunity from prosecution for acts he took while in the White House. The U.S. Supreme Court in July ruled for the first time that former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution, and sent the case back to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan to determine which allegations in the indictment, if any, could proceed to trial. The case was just beginning to pick up steam again in the trial court in the weeks leading up to this year’s election. Smith’s team in October filed a lengthy brief laying out new evidence they planned to use against him at trial, accusing him of “resorting to crimes” in an increasingly desperate effort to overturn the will of voters after he lost to Biden. The separate case involving classified documents had been widely seen as legally clear cut, especially because the conduct in question occurred after Trump left the White House and lost the powers of the presidency. The indictment included dozens of felony counts accusing him of illegally hoarding classified records from his presidency at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, and obstructing federal efforts to get them back. He has pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing. The case quickly became snarled by delays, with U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon slow to issue rulings — which favored Trump’s strategy of pushing off deadlines in all his criminal cases — while also entertaining defense motions and arguments that experts said other judges would have dispensed with without hearings. In May, she indefinitely canceled the trial date amid a series of unresolved legal issues before dismissing the case outright two months later. Smith’s team appealed the decision, but now has given up that effort. Associated Press writer Colleen Long contributed to this story.

AP Sports SummaryBrief at 5:31 p.m. EST

Syrian government services come to a 'complete halt' as state workers stay home( MENAFN - IANS) Nairobi, Dec 13 (IANS) The Kenyan government will provide a safe corridor for the migration of skilled labour force to travel and settle abroad, generating revenue for the exchequer through remittances, senior officials said ahead of International Migrants Day, which is observed annually on December 18. Julius Bitok, the principal secretary for immigration and citizen services, acknowledged the pivotal role of migrant workers in socioeconomic development, skills transfer, and cultural vitality, whose legal protection is critical, reports Xinhua news agency. Bitok said the government is committed to a migration agenda that promotes the welfare of local citizens and those of neighbouring countries to achieve growth and stability. "Migration is critical to our nation's development agenda because it promotes talent, cultural diversity, skills and technology exchange. We will ensure there is safe and orderly migration," Bitok said. Ahead of this year's International Migrants Day, Kenya and the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) held a two-km walk in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, to raise awareness of migrants' rights and the benefits of regular migration pathways. Bitok said Kenya has domesticated global instruments to provide a safe haven for migrants from the region escaping from climate emergencies, conflicts or economic uncertainties. Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Roseline Njogu said the day serves as a wakeup call to harness the talent, ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit of migrants to fuel economic growth and social renewal in Kenya. According to Njogu, Kenya is committed to providing legal status to migrants from neighbouring countries and overseas, besides ensuring they have access to basic services like education, health, shelter and gainful employment. IOM Kenya Chief of Mission Sharon Dimanche noted that multilateral institutions have partnered with national governments to facilitate legal migration to bridge the skills gap and foster innovation, peace and cohesion. The 2024 International Migrants Day will be observed under the theme of "Honoring the contributions of migrants and respecting their rights," which underscores their positive contribution to host countries' welfare. MENAFN13122024000231011071ID1108992012 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.LONDON -- Under-pressure head coach Ange Postecoglou has said his team's lacklustre form means he is "in a fight" but the Australian backed himself to get the club out of their slump, adding he loves being in "the middle of a storm." Postecoglou's future as Spurs boss has been called into question following a run of results that has seen the north London club record just one win in their last eight games. Their struggles have caused a portion of fans to lose faith in Postecoglou's project and some of them were involved in a heated confrontation with the manager following Spurs' defeat at Bournemouth last week. Spurs have won four away matches in 2024 and travel to face on Sunday in desperate need of a convincing victory over the division's bottom-placed club. St. Mary's was the scene of former Spurs boss Antonio Conte's famous post-match rant in which he branded his players as "selfish" and accused them of not wanting to play under pressure after they let a two-goal lead slip to draw 3-3 with Southampton in March 2023. Asked on Thursday if he would ever make similar comments about his own team in the way that Conte did, Postecoglou told a news conference: "Look, I don't think it's fair to comment. Antonio, like I said, is a world-class manager and has his own way of doing things, his own reasons for doing that. "I am here, I am in for the fight. I am in a fight, for sure. For better or worse I am not going anywhere at the moment because everything is still in my power and my responsibility. I still have a real desire to get us through this stage so that people see what is on the other side. My resolve and determination hasn't wavered one little bit. "I love a fight, I love a scrape, I love being in the middle of a storm when everyone doubts because I know what it is on the other side if you get through it. My job is to get through it." Postecoglou's patience with some of the performance levels shown by some of the senior players within his injury-depleted squad has seemingly worn thin, with the 59-year-old saying Timo Werner's display in Thursday's with Rangers " Earlier on Thursday, Postecoglou said he had no time for worrying about his players' "bruised egos" when he provides them with direct feedback on their performances and reiterated they need to make meaningful contributions on the pitch. Asked whether those issues tie into the wider problems of Spurs' recent, trophy-less, past, Postecoglou said: "I'm sick of that. That's an excuse for me and that's why even with 's comments [about the Tottenham hierarchy], I just think that's an excuse. "At the moment I'm here, I take responsibility. These players, we're here. If we think some mythical thing exists in this club that prevents success then change it. What's the point otherwise? Don't come here. I just don't buy into that. "At the moment we're in a difficult situation because of kind of where we are squad-wise and team-wise. You either embrace this challenge. If you want excuses there are a million of them. There are a million excuses as to why we can't be successful but if that's what your crutch is, particularly in tough moments, then what's the point? Just move on then and go somewhere else." Postecoglou confirmed that first-choice centre backs Cristian Romero and will miss Sunday's trip to face Southampton as the severity of their respective muscular injuries continue to be assessed. However, fellow defender could return for the game at St. Mary's.

Runway set to be cleared for Airlines to use wet leased planes on new routes

Ryan Reynolds breaks silence with message of gratitude alongside his daughter amid Blake Lively's lawsuitI want to give you a list of AI Christmas music to block in your major music streaming platform. I don’t think it’s comprehensive. I bet there’s a bunch of new ones that I am still unwittingly playing. I just want to feel festive for a moment sometimes, which is why I play this music. But now I know about artificial intelligence (AI) Christmas music, so I can’t be happy in December, either. AI sludge is already everywhere and now it’s here, too. Some stupid list won’t be enough to solve the problem. To be honest, I don’t really know how to fix this. Banning AI Christmas “bands” who receive millions of listens monthly is like killing individual flies coming from a massive open sewer situated right around my house. Well, Merry Christmas. Here is your gift. A little fly swat. (Screenshot via Spotify) AI Christmas songs sound like the real deal. Nothing funny or remarkable about them — the occasional odd instrumentalisation or off-sounding vocal, but little that sparks curiosity and absolutely nothing that sparks joy. That’s generative AI’s job. It thieves from real stuff and shoves it all into a tech mulcher to produce a reasonable aggregate of all the things that ever made you feel something. Now you can enjoy a tech-slop aggregate of those old feelings in your stupid Christmas hat. Like a digital mama bird that regurgitates your own nostalgia into your open beak for you to gulp up. You’ll hear this shit whether you want to or not. It will come up on auto-play if you fire up a lone Nat King Cole song. It’s also infesting all the largest Christmas playlists on streaming platforms. Some of these AI Christmas “bands” have been around for a year or two by now, so they’ve accumulated enough streams and shares to come up in the playlist right after Mariah . A popular bit of software used to make AI Christmas music is Suno . The app follows specific commands to create AI music and vocals accordingly. It also allows artists to hide the AI mulch behind a smattering of real lyrics, vocals and instrumentalisation they can choose to add. All of these AI slop Christmas artists appear to be controlled by the same person or group. There are a few tells. (Screenshot via Spotify) All their Spotify bios begin with a variant of the following statement: ‘ [Insert band name here] are working songwriters, artists and musicians who have joined forces to release holiday-themed cover music on their independent record label, distributed by Warner Music’s ADA.’ (Screenshot via Spotify) Distribution services like ADA and Distrokid accept AI music but are getting increasingly picky about what they allow through the gate. Not because they have morals. They do not. It’s due to the many legal battles cropping up currently around AI thievery. The merest uncredited sample can bankrupt artists and minor labels, so imagine the kind of payday an entirely thieved AI musical salad could deliver. As long as the content is deemed of high enough quality and perhaps spliced in Suno with real vocals or instrumentalisation to help disguise it, they’ll let it through. Another tell: the bios of these “bands” tell you to follow them for more music. But you can’t. The Instagram and Twitter accounts are always locked. (Screenshot via Instagram) They don’t really want people snooping around and verifying the AI-ness of the music. Or determining who is producing it. (Screenshot via Instagram) Oh, well. Another bit of AI slop to have to gulp down whenever I turn one of my hundred bits of shitty tech on for the day. Another shitty facet of the minefield of behaviour modification, guerilla marketing and AI mulch that is my digital life. Tech writer Ed Zitron was writing post-U.S. Election about this misery that is modern digital life: It's time to accept that most people's digital life fucking sucks, as does the way we consume our information, and that there are people directly responsible. Be as angry as you want at Jeff Bezos... but don’t forget Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Sundar Pichai, Tim Cook and every single other tech executive that has allowed our digital experiences to become rotted out husks dominated by algorithms. These companies are not bound by civic duty, or even a duty to their customers — they have made their monopolies, and they’ll do whatever keeps you trapped in them. Funny how recently one of the modern era’s most effective political assassinations appears to have been, in part at least, inspired by the inhuman outputs of AI algorithms. More or less across the political divide, we can all see people cheering the moment of the assassination of the UnitedHealthcare CEO. From that, I suspect we’re able to assess just how unhappy people really are about the encroachment of AI slop, AI thievery and AI-based decision-making into daily life, whether real or digital. AI is here to stay, so get used to it The consensus among experts and pundits on AI technologies such as ChatGPT seems to be that it’s like old age — inevitable, so get used to it. I don’t think that our mainstream discourse has bothered to give people the tools to voice this frustration. Zitron has often written about this as well. Tech writers are too busy breathlessly playing stenographer for the lies of AI snake oil salesmen to address the fact that it’s not really helping anyone. Just one more update! Please! Just one more! You’ll all see! Perhaps the worst thing that AI can do has already been mentioned. Is it the insurance stuff? Or is it Israel’s mass-murdering tech drone equipment ? I know it’s not AI Christmas music. There are greater evils in the world, yes. And I’m sure I’ll push on, drunk in December in my Santa hat. Perhaps in time, I’ll be willing to trade away yet more cynicism at an unending torrent of nostalgic AI mulch for just a little more cheer. But, from my layperson calculations and looking at the average streams of each of these AI “artists”, I believe this “AI art” earns whoever’s behind it hundreds of thousands of dollars every Christmas season. And I don’t like that. The list of AI Christmas music I've uncovered is as follows: Sleighbelle; The Humbugs; Dean Snowfield (come on); Snowdrift Sleighs; Daniel & The Holly Jollies; and North Star Notesmiths. If we’re negotiating how to take a more moral position you probably shouldn’t even be paying for Spotify or Apple Music at all. But you probably do. And you probably do Christmas-y stuff in December, as well. So join me in simply selecting ‘Don’t like this artist’ , or whatever similar function your streaming app offers. Join me as we content ourselves with starving some arsehole of $0.00001 cents this Christmas. Happy holidays. Tom Tanuki is a writer, satirist and anti-fascist activist whose weekly videos commenting on the Australian political fringe appear on YouTube . You can follow him on Twitter @tom_tanuki. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License Support independent journalism Subscribe to IA. Related Articles Countering the influence of 'mass man' with AI Intelligent systems depend on fusion of biology and technology Nightshade empowers artists in the battle against unauthorised AI theft Intuition key to AI being a tremendous force for good AI holds promising future for quantum genetics BUSINESS CONSUMERS MUSIC ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AI Christmas music theft copyright Spotify Suno Apple Music ADA Distrokid Share Article

LAS VEGAS — Players Era Festival organizers have done what so many other have tried — bet their fortunes in this city that a big payoff is coming. Such bet are usually bad ones, which is why so many massive casino-resorts have been built on Las Vegas Boulevard. But it doesn't mean the organizers are wrong. They're counting on the minimum of $1 million in guaranteed name, image and likeness money that will go to each of the eight teams competing in the neutral-site tournament that begins Tuesday will create a precedent for other such events. EverWonder Studios CEO Ian Orefice, who co-founded Players with former AND1 CEO Seth Berger, compared this event to last year's inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament that played its semifinals and final in Las Vegas by saying it "did really well to reinvigorate the fan base at the beginning of the year." "We're excited that we're able to really change the paradigm in college basketball on the economics," Orefice said. "But for us, it's about the long term. How do we use the momentum that is launching with the 2024 Players Era Festival and be the catalyst not to change one event, but to change college basketball for the future." Orefice and Berger didn't disclose financial details, but said the event will come close to breaking even this year and that revenue is in eight figures. Orefice said the bulk of the revenue will come from relationships with MGM, TNT Sports and Publicis Sport & Entertainment as well as sponsors that will be announced later. Both organizers said they are so bullish on the tournament's prospects that they already are planning ahead. Money made from this year's event, Orefice said, goes right back into the company. "We're really in this for the long haul," Orefice said. "So we're not looking at it on a one-year basis." Rick Giles is president of the Gazelle Group, which also operates several similar events, including the College Basketball Invitational. He was skeptical the financial numbers would work. Giles said in addition to more than $8 million going to the players, there were other expenses such as the guarantees to the teams. He said he didn't know if the tournament would make up the difference with ticket sales, broadcast rights and sponsorship money. The top bowl of the MGM Grand Garden Arena will be curtained off. "The math is highly challenging," Giles said. "Attendance and ticket revenues are not going to come anywhere close to covering that. They haven't announced any sponsors that I'm aware of. So it all sort of rests with their media deal with Turner and how much capital they want to commit to it to get these players paid." David Carter, a University of Southern California adjunct professor who also runs the Sports Business Group consultancy, said even if the Players isn't a financial success this year, the question is whether there will be enough interest to move forward. "If there is bandwidth for another tournament and if the TV or the streaming ratings are going to be there and people are going to want to attend and companies are going to want to sponsor, then, yeah, it's probably going to work," Carter said. "But it may take them time to gain that traction." Both founders said they initially were met with skepticism about putting together such an event, especially from teams they were interested in inviting. Houston was the first school to commit, first offering an oral pledge early in the year and then signing a contract in April. That created momentum for others to join, and including the No. 6 Cougars, half the field is ranked. "We have the relationships to operate a great event," Berger said. "We had to get coaches over those hurdles, and once they knew that we were real, schools got on board really quickly." The founders worked with the NCAA to make sure the tournament abided by that organization's rules, so players must appear at ancillary events in order to receive NIL money. Strict pay for play is not allowed, though there are incentives for performance. The champion, for example, will receive $1.5 million in NIL money. Now the pressure is on to pull off the event and not create the kind of headlines that can dog it for years to come. "I think everybody in the marketplace is watching what's going to happen (this) week and, more importantly, what happens afterwards," Giles said. "Do the players get paid on a timely basis? And if they do, that means that Turner or somebody has paid way more than the market dictates? And the question will be: Can that continue?" CREIGHTON: P oint guard Steven Ashworth likely won’t play in the No. 21 Bluejays’ game against San Diego State in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas. Ashworth sprained his right ankle late in a loss to Nebraska on Friday and coach Greg McDermott said afterward he didn’t know how long he would be out. Get local news delivered to your inbox!

WASHINGTON (AP) — Special counsel Jack Smith moved to abandon two criminal cases against Donald Trump on Monday, acknowledging that Trump’s return to the White House will preclude attempts to federally prosecute him for retaining classified documents or trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat. The decision was inevitable, since longstanding Justice Department policy says sitting presidents cannot face criminal prosecution. Yet it was still a momentous finale to an unprecedented chapter in political and law enforcement history, as federal officials attempted to hold accountable a former president while he was simultaneously running for another term. In court filings, Smith's team emphasized that the move to abandon their prosecutions was not a reflection of the merit of the cases but a recognition of the legal shield that surrounds any commander in chief. “That prohibition is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the Government’s proof, or the merits of the prosecution, which the Government stands fully behind,” the prosecutors wrote in one of their filings. Smith’s team said it was leaving intact charges against two co-defendants in the classified documents case — Trump valet Walt Nauta and Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira — because “no principle of temporary immunity applies to them.” Steven Cheung, Trump's incoming White House communications director, welcomed the decision to drop the prosecutions against the president-elect, describing it as a “major victory for the rule of law.” "The American People and President Trump want an immediate end to the political weaponization of our justice system and we look forward to uniting our country,” Cheung said in a statement. Trump has long described the investigations as politically motivated, and he has vowed to fire Smith as soon as he takes office in January. Now he will re-enter the White House free from criminal scrutiny by the government that he will lead. The election case brought last year was once seen as one of the most serious legal threats facing Trump as he tried to reclaim the White House. He was indicted for plotting to overturn his defeat to Joe Biden in 2020, an effort that climaxed with his supporters' violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. But the case quickly stalled amid legal fighting over Trump’s sweeping claims of immunity from prosecution for acts he took while in the White House. The U.S. Supreme Court in July ruled for the first time that former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution, and sent the case back to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan to determine which allegations in the indictment, if any, could proceed to trial. The case was just beginning to pick up steam again in the trial court in the weeks leading up to this year’s election. Smith’s team in October filed a lengthy brief laying out new evidence they planned to use against him at trial, accusing him of “resorting to crimes” in an increasingly desperate effort to overturn the will of voters after he lost to Biden. The separate case involving classified documents had been widely seen as legally clear cut, especially because the conduct in question occurred after Trump left the White House and lost the powers of the presidency. The indictment included dozens of felony counts accusing him of illegally hoarding classified records from his presidency at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, and obstructing federal efforts to get them back. He has pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing. The case quickly became snarled by delays, with U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon slow to issue rulings — which favored Trump’s strategy of pushing off deadlines in all his criminal cases — while also entertaining defense motions and arguments that experts said other judges would have dispensed with without hearings. In May, she indefinitely canceled the trial date amid a series of unresolved legal issues before dismissing the case outright two months later. Smith’s team appealed the decision, but now has given up that effort. ___ Associated Press writer Colleen Long contributed to this story. Alanna Durkin Richer, Eric Tucker And Chris Megerian, The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of Microsoft 365 customers worldwide reported having issues with services like Outlook and Teams on Monday. In social media posts and comments on platforms like outage tracker Downdetector, some impacted said that they were having trouble seeing their emails, loading calendars or opening other Microsoft 365 applications such as Powerpoint. Related Articles Microsoft acknowledged “an issue impacting users attempting to access Exchange Online or functionality within Microsoft Teams calendar” earlier in the day. In updates posted on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, the company’s status page said it identified a “recent change” that it believed to be behind the problem — and was working to revert it. Microsoft shared that it was deploying a fix — which, as of shortly before noon E.T., it said had reached about 98% of “affected environments.” Still, the company’s status page later added , targeted restarts were “progressing slower than anticipated for the majority of affected users.” As of midday Monday, Downdetector showed thousands of outage reports from users of Microsoft 365 , particularly Outlook .