Here's the most recent top news you may have missed in Aurora. Joe Neguse pushes congressional hearing on Aurora immigration detention facility Joe Neguse wants Congress to investigate the immigration detention facility in Aurora. Read the full story on DenverWestword . Aurora Police Department will review use-of-force policy, chief says This comes after the release of body camera footage showing a man's death following a prolonged confrontation with officers. Read the full story on 9NEWS . Aurora police release body camera footage of disturbance leading to death in December AURORA, Colorado-- Aurora Police released new body camera footage Monday night from an in-custody death that happened in December. On December 17th, 2018, Officers from the Aurora Police Department responded to 10653 East Jewell Avenue after a woman called 911 saying that there was a verbal and physical domestic fight occurring inside of the apartment. Read the full story on KDVR . Aurora teams up with land trust to develop affordable housing The City of Aurora is working on creating more affordable housing options to balance out expensive home prices in the Denver metro area. Read the full story on CBS Denver . This story was created automatically using data about news stories on social media from CrowdTangle , then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.


The U.S. Border Patrol says agents have arrested six people working in the Rangeley, Maine, area who are in the country illegally. Agents said Friday two men from the Dominican Republic and one from Guatemala entered the United States illegally through Texas and three Ecuadorians entered illegally through Arizona. Agents said they were based in Massachusetts and were doing work in Rangeley. Jason Owens, Border Patrol chief in Maine, said illegal contract labor deprives employment opportunities for those who are lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. Three others from Ecuador and Spain were detained. Two were cited for not having proper documents; a third violated terms of a visa waiver program and will return home. READ MORE: Border Patrol makes arrests in Rangeley area CHECK OUT WMTW: Stay informed with the latest Portland news and weather from the team at WMTW. Browse the newest Portland, Maine, news stories and stay in the know.


Even without a 1st Round pick in Thursday's NBA Draft , the goal remains the same for the Sacramento Kings ; find someone who can help this team moving forward. That's certainly easier said than done when you're talking about second round picks, a majority of whom will be fringe roster players. And while a potential diamond-in-the-rough selection may take many months before he's ready to be a bench-level player, that's still a worthy target for Thursday. Even in an odd and unique draft scenario, with a ton of odd, unique, and flawed players to consider, the goal should be the same; snag a rotation player. If the Kings can add one future rotation player to this roster, that's a win for this draft, full stop. You can never have enough promising young guys in your system when your franchise players can barely buy alcohol. This draft class will be a big test for the Sacramento scouting department that has added and kept only one 2nd rounder in Vlade Divac's tenure (Frank Mason), but they've certainly done their homework; holding 17 workouts for 101 players is impressive. They'll walk into Thursday with the 40 th , 47 th , and 60 th overall selections, as well as a ton of questions. Will they draft and expect to roster three rookies? Will they use a two-way contract on a player? Will they move up/down/in/out of the draft? Will they trade for a player who can defer his contract and stay overseas? Will Vlade sneak into Boston's warroom and snatch back the 14 th pick so that the Kings could add Brandon Clarke , the near-perfect missing piece in this big man core? Even if you thought this draft was utterly boring without a lottery selection to dream about, Thursday's going to tell us something about this franchise moving forward. Below are the biggest names Sacramento met with over the last month. Each player's name is linked to their Sport Reference stat page. The Kings might not follow their old drafting rule one would hope Vlade won't pass on a preferred second round talent just because they didn't workout for Sacramento  but it's likely at least one of the gentlemen below will be a King by the end of the draft. Points Jordan Bone, 6'3" 179 lbs., Tennessee Bone is a hyper-athletic demon who can bust out smooth moves to create space, and he finished with an impressive 7.1 assists per 40 (30.3% assist rate) and a 2.9/1 assist-to-turnover ratio for one of the better offensive teams in the country. Playing alongside Grant Williams (who initiated a lot for Tennessee) showcased Bones' abilities as an off-ball shooter, and he improved his shooting tremendously as the season went on. I expect it'll take time for Bone to adjust to playing against guys nearly as fast as him physically/faster than him mentally, but snagging Bone to play behind (and sometimes with) DeAaron Fox is one of my favorite draft outcomes. Ky Bowman, 6'1" 189 lbs., Boston College Tough, athletic player stuck in the hard-spot between a PG's size and a SG's skillset. Proven shooter (38.8% career from deep on 221 makes) who scored at all three levels for the Eagles. Would likely be best served as a secondary initiator role at the next level. While he's a tad undersized, his explosiveness shouldn't be ignored . Justin Robinson, 6'2.5" 181 lbs., Virginia Tech Speedster point who helped direct Virginia Tech to three straight NCAA Tournament bids. He can get down the court in a hurry (something we know the Kings value in their floor leaders) and finished the season averaging 5 assists per game with a 34.5% assist rate (albeit with a less than stellar 1.78/1 assist-to-turnover ratio). He's also a dead-eye shooter who finished his career with 151 made threes on 38.5% shooting. Wings Tyus Battle, 6'7" 204 lbs., Syracuse An athletic wing who can get down the court in a hurry and attack the basket at will. Per hoop-math.com , he shot 60% at the rim this season not a spectacular number, but the fact that only 19% of those attempts were assisted shows he can create at the basket. The concern for Battle is his jumpshot, as he made a middling 38% of his two-point jumpers and only 33.5% of his 534 career three-point attempts. Still, dudes who average 17+ points per game in major conferences tend to get NBA looks. Brian Bowen, 6'7.5" 200 lbs., Sydney Kings Former five start recruit who spent the season playing with Andrew Bogut in Australia. It's hard to properly armchair scout Bowen's time in Sydney he played just 15.4 minutes per game while shooting 45% from the field and 34% from distance but with his five-star athleticism, the workings of a real shooting ability, good size and length (6'7.5 with a 6'10 wingspan), and an ignited determination to prove he belongs, Bowen is an alluring prospect with significant upside. Terence Davis, 6'4.5" 192 lbs., Mississippi A do-it-all senior guard who is younger than most in his class (22). He can shoot (37% from deep on 175 attempts this season, and 73rd percentile for all jump shots in the half-court), run as a secondary play-maker (4.5 assists per 40), and play tenacious defense (3% steal rate and 2.1 thefts per 40). His excellent quickness and length (6'9 wingspan) grant him defensive range beyond his size. Aside from a high turnover rate (3.6 per 40, 16.8% rate), there's nothing to dislike in Davis' stat spread. If you're looking for a crash course in the talented Rebel, check out their March 5th game against Kentucky, where he finished with 25 points, 12 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 4 threes in an almost-upset. The Athletic's Sam Vecenie notes in his latest mock draft that Davis "particularly impressed in Sacramento" as part of his meteoric draft rise, so if he lasts till 40, don't be surprised if he's the Kings' first selection. Kyle Guy, 6'2" 168 lbs., Virginia The upside for Guy is obvious; he was the primary scorer for the Champion Cavaliers and has a career 42.5% mark from deep with 254 made threes. He moves well off the ball and burried shots with or without a hand in his face (80th percentile for guarded catch-and-shoot shots, per Synergy). He's not going to kill you with mistakes, and when your NBA skill is shooting, you're always going to get a real look. But he's an undersized two guard and isn't likely to ever be a neutral NBA defender. Worked out with the Kings twice, so don't be surprised if he's snagged at pick 60. Cody Martin, 6'6" 192 lbs., Nevada Martin 's a smart player who can do a ton of things on the court. He can pass, dribble, and shoot at a relatively high collegiate level, and having a wing who can rebound (5.2 boards per 40 minutes), cruise coast-to-coast with the ball , and dish the rock (5.7 dimes per 40 and a 2.6/1 assist-to-turnover ratio) is extremely valuable in the modern game. He shot only 29.4% from distance in his junior season, but that percentage jumped to 35.8% on 95 attempts in his senior year. He might not have a ton of upside, but what he does now is valuable in the NBA, and he's got the competitive edge that you'd want for a 2nd round dice-toss. Zach Norvell, 6'5.5" 206 lbs., Gonzaga Offers combo-guard skills with a proven shooting ability. Provided much needed gravity for a big-led Gonzaga team, and shot 37% on 262 three point attempts. He's somewhat of a streaky player, evidenced by a brutal run to end the season when he averaged 9.6 points on 27% shooting in the Zag's last 5 games. Had a role as a secondary playmaker 4.1 assists per 40 minutes, and a 2.15/1 assist-to-turnover ratio and could be more of a combo guard in the NBA. He fits the mold of the guards Sacramento has been eying; above-average shooter, solid ball-handler, and positional versatility. Miye Oni, 6'6" 210 lbs., Yale While competition level is a real concern, Oni 's length (6'10.75 wingspan), pop (38.5 max vertical leap) and shooting ability (37.1% from deep, 46.3% as a spot-up shooter) will get him real looks in the second round. He was a major disappointment in the NCAA Tournament against LSU, but he had a much more solid contest in December against Duke that showcased the positives of his skillset (scoring ability, passing instincts, tenacity on the glass) and some of the weaknesses (5 turnovers, with a 14.5% turnover rate on the season). Quinndary Weatherspoon, 6'4" 207 lbs., Mississippi State Senior who was productive all four years of his Bulldog career; he's got NBA level fluidity and pop that comes paired with a 6'9 wingspan. He's more of a PnR/attack-the-rim slasher, and 43.3% of his shots came at the rim, per hoop-math. Still, he proved he could be a three-level scorer 39.6% from deep this year on 139 attempts and aside from a 1/1 assist-to-turnover ratio, there's not a ton to dislike from his profile. If he dedicates himself to becoming a 3-and-D type wing, he could be a real steal. Justin Wright-Foreman, 6'1" 185 lbs., Hofstra If the Kings are looking for a bench flamethrower, JWF might be their pick; he averaged 24.4 and 27.1 points in the last two seasons, and shot 42.5% on 110 made threes this season. Synergy Stats has him above the 90th percentile for PPP in pick-and-roll, transition, and on spot-ups. He's another gunner-SG-in-a-PGs-body type player, and averaged just 3.1 assists per 40 (17.4% assist rate with a 33% usage rate). Forwards Jordan Caroline, 6'6" 240 lbs., Nevada Caroline has the size, strength, length (6'9 wingspan) and athleticism of an NBA forward, and snagged 10.9 boards per 40 minutes in his senior year. He might not have a ton of untapped potential, and he's not a real individual creator, but his deep shot took a nice step forward in his final year at Nevada (36.8% on 125 attempts). He's not a great defender, and will get attacked whenever he's on the court until he proves otherwise. Zylan Cheatham, 6'8" 217 lbs., Arizona State Cheatham has a lot of the skills Sacramento has favored in their recent big men picks. He's got a crafty dribble, smooth footwork, and aware passing instincts to be a real grab-and-go threat. He's impressive in transition (91st percentile for PPP when you consider both made baskets and completed assists, and a 2.1/1 assist-to-turnover ratio), a hyper-determined rebounder, and a versatile defensive player with the quickness and length to potentially contain an array of forwards (and some taller guards) that the Kings have struggled with in recent years. Jaylen Hoard, 6'9" 213 lbs., Wake Forest The first one-and-done player in Wake Forest's history. The 6'9" forward is a fluid and bouncy athlete, and posted an impressive 13.1 PPG and 7.4 RPG in his freshman season. But he's a longer-term upside play, as his shot hasn't yet materialized; he shot just 23.8% on all half-court jumpshots this season, per Synergy, and sank just 22.6% of his 53 three point attempts. Dedric Lawson, 6'8.5" 233 lbs., Kansas Lawson's abilities as a low-post scorer (19.4 PPG), glass cleaner (10.3 RPG), and shooter (39.3% on 89 three point attempts) helped the Jayhawks weather an unstable season. He's got length (7'2 wingspan) to cover up for only-ok size for a power forward (6'7 without shoes), but if he doesn't get drafted, it will be because he's a below-average NBA athlete. Without great instincts defensively, there's a big question as to how he'll defend at the NBA level. Jalen McDaniels, 6'10" 192 lbs., San Diego State The Kings should not draft McDaniels. Isaiah Roby, 6'8.5" 215 lbs., Nebraska The bouncy Cornhusker has the length (7'1 wingspan), footspeed, and hops to make him a promising swing forward, even if his inconsistencies as a shooter (33% from deep this season on 84 attempts, and 29.7% on all jump shots in the half-court, per Synergy Sports) might keep him from being a real answer on the wing. The biggest allure for Roby is his abilities on the defensive end, where he was just one of four players this season to snag 40 steals and 60 blocks (the list includes noted defensive titans Brandon Clarke and Matisse Thybulle ). He's active and a quick help defender , and assuming he builds on the 214 pounds he weighed at the combine, he could provide a switchable bench defender... something the Kings desperately need more of. Dean Wade, 6'10" 225 lbs., Kansas State Stretch big with a proven shooting ability; 43.7% on 2-point jumpers, and a 41.8% mark from deep (2.2 attempts per game). Not a rim protector or exceptionally prolific rebounder (8.1 per 40 minutes and a 16.6% defensive rebounding rate), but a smart player who proved he could keep the ball moving and score at a high level. He's a smart defender, but it's unclear what his role could be defensively. Missed nine games this season with a foot injury. Kris Wilkes, 6'8" 209 lbs., UCLA The Bruins best player this season, averaging 17.4 points and 4.8 rebounds a contest. He was primarily used as a spot-up shooter, but his career numbers from deep (34.3% on 364 attempts in his two years at UCLA) aren't spectacular. He was also a mediocre-at best defender on most nights, which was a shared issue across the UCLA roster from the beginning of the season on through Steve Alford's firing. Perhaps Wilkes has real NBA talent masked behind the UCLA chaos of the last two seasons, as he's certainly got the size (nearly 6'8 in shoes), length (6'11 wingspan), and athleticism of an NBA player . Bigs Tacko Fall, 7'7" 289 lbs., UCF With a 10'2" standing reach and a 8'2.25" wingspan, Tacko is the life-size version of our 10-year-old selfs played with a nerf hoop on our bedroom doors. The upside is obvious; rim protection, high-point rebounds, and offensive put-backs. The downsides to Fall are just as stark; he's not an NBA-level athlete and would be left in the dust on both ends of the court, and he had the second slowest 3 ⁄ 4 court sprint time in the last decade. At some level, his length will compensate for this, but teams will absolutely try to get Tacko into space until he proves he's quick and cerebral enough to handle it. Simisola Shittu, 6'10" 227 lbs., Vanderbilt Shittu has the size, frame (if not yet the bulk), and solid fluidity and athleticism all teams would want in a big man project. He can dribble and lead the break, and he's an unselfish player who can move the ball when the right play presents itself. He's got the size and determination to create space in the post, and should be a solid rebounder if he's willing to battle with NBA physicality. He's NOT a shooter, and he's NOT a rim protector indeed, it's not clear what role Shittu will play on either end at the next level, but it's also hard to take too much away from his one year playing for a decimated Vanderbilt team.


The escalating US-China trade war have sent stocks in a tailspin over the past week. But stocks can't fall forever. The US economy is too good, and corporate earnings are too strong. Stocks rose solidly at the open Tuesday. The Dow was some 300 points higher, coming off its worst day since January 3 . The S&P 500, was up 1.2% and the Nasdaq up 1.4%. Stocks extended their earlier gains following comments from President Donald Trump, who called the trade tensions with China a "little squabble", and reassured reporters that a trade deal could still happen. European markets closed sharply higher. Safe haven assets, like gold, are retracing their gains from over the past few weeks. It's not yet clear if this is a bottom or a "dead cat bounce" for stocks -- a temporary rebound in the middle of a steep market downturn that isn't really based on anything. Even if stocks once again retreat later today or this week, they'll probably find a floor eventually. US economic growth remains strong, and, more importantly, stronger than that of its peers. Overall, the US economy is less reliant on global growth than those of Europe or even emerging markets. Although Wall Street didn't like the escalation of tensions between China and the United States over the past days because a trade war would be bad for everyone, it would be least bad for the United States. "The market continues to be dominated by trade-related headlines, but at some point soon, tweets and headlines just aren't going to cut it, and investors are going to demand concrete results," said Paul Hickey of Bespoke Investments. President Donald Trump tweeted earlier this morning that the United States had the upper hand in negotiations because it buys fewer goods from China than vice versa. He also said " when the time is right we will make a deal with China ." The trade war can't last forever. China and the United States' economies are too intertwined . Wall Street believes that both Washington and Beijing are motivated to find an agreement as it would be mutually beneficial. Trump said he would meet with Chinese Premier Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in Japan next month. Analysts are also still waiting to hear whether there will be tariffs on European auto imports. Still, that means the volatility-inducing trade headlines won't go away anytime soon. A trade war that lasts longer than expected could lead markets to revert back to last year's theme: extreme volatility. This recent stock market shock was large, suggesting losses could continue for a while, said Nordea Asset Management senior macro strategist Sebastien Galy in a note. The threat of repercussions of the China-US trade war will likely continue to be the dark cloud over financial markets until Washington and Beijing agree a deal. Continuous and rising tariffs could weigh on the Chinese economy, and in turn they could hurt European and emerging markets, which are highly reliant on exports and therefore global growth. At some point, conditions would be bad enough to also weigh on the US markets, because American businesses require a healthy end markets to grow earnings. For US stocks "to be on a sustainable path, we needed earnings to pick up and hence growth led by a tentative recovery in China, EU and a very decent US. Two of these legs are now expected to disappoint," said Galy. In a prolonged trade war, neither China nor Europe should be expected to grow rapidly. But that was also true just a few weeks ago, when the S&P and the Nasdaq repeatedly hit record highs . So whether the market will rally from here or continue to head south is anyone's guess. But the push and pull of a healthy economy and the trade war will reach equilibrium at some point.


Six people are reported dead after a crash that shut down a stretch of busy interstate in southeastern Minnesota early Friday. The Minnesota State Patrol says a driver was going the wrong way, heading eastbound in the westbound lanes when that car struck another vehicle heading westbound on I-90 near the town of Eyota around 1:30 a.m. Eyota is about 14 miles due east of Rochester. The two vehicles involved were a 2005 Chrysler Sebring and a 2008 Ford Focus. The State Patrol says each vehicle had three people inside. Investigators are still trying to determine which vehicle was going in the wrong direction. One of the vehicles reportedly started on fire. After being closed for a number of hours for accident reconstruction and cleanup, both directions of I-90 are back open. The victims of the crash have not been named, pending notification of their families. Additional details will be available later Friday.


The 2019 college postseason schedule features 40 bowl games between FBS teams, with the finale at the College Football Playoff championship game on Jan. 13 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. This year's semifinal games will be on Dec. 28 at the Peach Bowl and Fiesta Bowl. The big question is whether anybody other than Clemson or Alabama make their way to the Big Easy for the championship game. Georgia, Ohio State, Texas and Oklahoma are among the teams we believe could be in the hunt for the other two Playoff spots as the sixth College Football Playoff chase begins. MORE: College football 2019: Preseason rankings, All-Americans and more Sporting News has projections for all 40 bowl games here, and they will be updated throughout the season as dates for bowls outside the New Year's Day Six are revealed. 2019 college football bowl projections Bowl Teams R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl Marshall vs. Appalachian State AutoNation Cure Bowl Arkansas State vs. Tulane Las Vegas Bowl Fresno State vs. UCLA Gildan New Mexico Bowl FIU vs. Boise State Raycom Media Camellia Bowl Western Michigan vs. Troy Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl North Texas* vs. Memphis DXL Frisco Bowl Toledo vs. South Florida Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl UAB vs. Cincinnati Dec. 28 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Notre Dame vs. UCF Dec. 28 Capital One Orange Bowl Syracuse vs. Florida Jan. 1 Rose Bowl Michigan vs. Oregon Jan. 1 Allstate Sugar Bowl Georgia vs. Oklahoma Dec. 28 PlayStation Fiesta Bowl (semifinal) Clemson vs. Texas Dec. 28 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (semifinal) Alabama vs. Ohio State Bahamas Bowl Northern Illinois vs. Louisiana Tech Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Eastern Michigan vs. Utah State Jared Birmingham Bowl Houston vs. Vanderbilt Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl Arizona State* vs. Boston College* Dollar General Bowl Ohio vs. Louisiana Hawa'ii Bowl BYU vs. Nevada SERVPRO First Responders Bowl Texas Tech vs. Northwestern Quick Lane Bowl Purdue vs. N.C. State Cheez-It Bowl USC vs. Baylor Walk-On's Independence Bowl South Carolina vs. Wake Forest New Era Pinstripe Bowl Michigan State vs. Virginia Tech Redbox Bowl Stanford vs. Minnesota Academy Sports and Outdoors Texas Bowl TCU vs Mississippi State Military Bowl Presented by Northrup Grumman Army* vs. North Carolina Camping World Bowl Oklahoma State vs. Pittsburgh Valero Alamo Bowl Utah vs. Iowa State San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Washington vs. Iowa Belk Bowl Ole Miss vs. Florida State Hyundai Sun Bowl Washington State vs. Miami Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl Kentucky vs. Virginia NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl Georgia Southern vs. San Diego State TaxSlayer Bowl Tennessee vs. Nebraska AutoZone Liberty Bowl West Virginia vs. Texas A&M Outback Bowl Auburn vs. Penn State Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl LSU vs. Wisconsin *No conference tie-in to bowl MORE: Each conference's best Playoff contenders for 2019 College Football Playoff/New Year's Day Six projections Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl UAB vs. Cincinnati Dec. 28 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Notre Dame vs. UCF Dec. 28 Capital One Orange Bowl Syracuse vs. Florida Jan. 1 Rose Bowl Michigan vs. Oregon Jan. 1 Allstate Sugar Bowl Georgia vs. Oklahoma Dec. 28 PlayStation Fiesta Bowl (semifinal) Clemson vs. Texas Dec. 28 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (semifinal) Alabama vs. Ohio State College Football Playoff championship projection Jan. 13 College Football Playoff championship Clemson vs. Alabama Related slideshow: Early Top 25 college football teams for 2019 (Provided by USA Today Sports)


Eagles coach Doug Pederson is gambling on golf again, but this time it appears to only be for charity donations. According to Robby General of the Indianapolis Star , Pederson made a friendly wager with his former offensive coordinator and current Colts coach Frank Reich during this weekend's American Century Celebrity Golf Championship. If Reich wins on the course, Pederson will donate to Ascent 121, an Indiana-based group that helps for teen survivors of sex trafficking. If the Eagles coach wins, his former assistant will donate to the Eagles Autism Challenge. Such golf bets are nothing new to Pederson, who also hustled a donation out of Saints coach Sean Payton at the tournament last year. Pederson also won the right for his team to wear the Eagles' green home jerseys in New Orleans, as a result of a separate bet with Payton during a golf outing at the owners meetings. For the record, Pederson and Reich are even 100-1 odds to win at the tournament.


Who the heck is in charge of these Kardashian memos? First, Kylie Jenner said she didn't get the "email" to wear all black for the Cosmopolitan 50th birthday bash, and now there's this. Jaden Smith met up with Kim Kardashian , Kourtney and the other family members at designer Olivier Rousteing 's birthday party on Friday, but he didn't seem to get on the same page for any of the group selfies. When the Kardashians went for the Blue Steel look from " Zoolander ," Jaden looked like this ... 😘😙😱 A photo posted by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Oct 23, 2015 at 11:36pm PDT At first, you'd think, "Oh, maybe the flash was on or something." That's surprising for anyone. But then it happened again ... 👽 A photo posted by Kourtney Kardashian (@kourtneykardash) on Oct 23, 2015 at 11:14pm PDT And again ... Squad A photo posted by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Oct 24, 2015 at 12:03am PDT And who knows what's going on here? Maybe they all just looked at Jaden's pics: Are we crying or laughing? A photo posted by Kourtney Kardashian (@kourtneykardash) on Oct 23, 2015 at 11:21pm PDT In an interview with GQ, Smith said his eccentric ways are all just part of his fame " experiment ," and no one will know where he is in 10 years. He'll just pop up at places randomly. Before he disappears for good, however, the actor seemed to pull it together for one Blue Steel picture that was really, really good-looking: 😵😖😙😝 A photo posted by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Oct 23, 2015 at 11:40pm PDT We'll miss you when you vanish, Jaden Smith. Also on HuffPost: CollectionContent(562b9e3be4b0ec0a3894ac7b,55a87d2ee4b0c5f0322cfbba,Collection,Slideshow)


Nicki Minaj's boyfriend Meek Hill says they have no plans "to get married yet." The 28-year-old rapper presented the 32-year-old star with a 15-carat heart-shaped white and yellow diamond ring last month, but insists they aren't engaged. Asked about their relationship, the 'Amen' hitmaker said: "It's definitely real. But it ain't really time to get married yet. We're still learning each other, feeling each other out." The 'Anaconda' hitmaker, who split from Safaree Samuels in late 2014 after 12 years of dating, caused a frenzy when she posted a photograph of the ring on her Instagram profile in April, shortly after writing: "I wish every night could feel like last night." Meek told The Fader magazine that his grandmother was also convinced they were preparing to tie the knot because "whatever she sees on TV, she believes." The couple initially denied they were dating when they were first linked in December, but Meek - whose real name is Robert Rahmeek Williams - later confessed he was smitten with Nicki. He said: "Yeah, that's my baby right there. S**t real. Yeah, I tell her that. I'm like, 'I don't really hold hands, but like, I'll hold hands with you.' She know that. "Like, I don't really do things, but certain people make you do certain little stuff and it be like, 'S**t, I don't care.' They can catch me in the pictures doing anything nowadays, holding an umbrella for Nicki, you know what I'm saying? I got the girl that I wanted, not what they wanted, you know what I'm saying? What I wanted."


The Orioles swung a bunch of big deals leading up to the July 31 trade deadline last year that included a lot of young pitchers, most of whom are currently pitching in the minors. As we look to the minor leagues for signs of hope in tough times like these, we're reminded of last year's midseason roster purge. The Orioles got a lot of quantity in a handful of deals, but what about the quality? Some of these players finished last year in the Orioles' farm system and some finished with the big league club. So how are they doing so far this year? Now is as good a time as ever to catch up with the pitchers who were acquired last summer and how they are doing. But before we get started, note that we will only be discussing pitchers   not position players   and the pitchers will be grouped below according to the trade they were involved in. Schoop trade with the Brewers Burly right-handed starter Luis Ortiz is not having the kind of season the Orioles expected after acquiring him from the Brewers last summer. After an unfortunate 2.1 innings with the big league club at the tail end of last year that saw Ortiz post a 15.43 ERA, his poor stretch of pitching has continued in the minors into 2019. He's got a 7.01 ERA in 11 starts (52.2 innings pitched), 23:41 BB/SO, 14 home runs allowed, .293 BAA and 1.63 WHIP. He's already passed last year's number home runs allowed, which was 11 in 99.2 total minor league innings, including stops at Double-A with the Brewers and Triple-A with the O's. Gausman trade with the Braves It's been a good season so far for Baltimore native Bruce Zimmermann, who was originally drafted in the fifth round in 2017 by the Braves. He's got 11 starts under his belt this season with the Baysox, averaging a bit over five innings each time out (59.2 innings total). The left-hander's ERA stands at 2.87 to go along with a 1.22 WHIP, .225 BAA and 22:61 BB/SO. Reliever Evan Phillips has been an active member of the Norfolk shuttle, having been recalled four times so far this season with the most recent being June 8. He currently resides on the 25-man roster. The righty has actually thrown more innings in the majors than the minors this year, 15.2 to 10.2. In Triple-A, his ERA is below one, opponents are hitting .111 against him and he's got a 0.66 WHIP. With the O's, he's got a 7.47 ERA and his WHIP is approaching two (1.98). Also troubling is the number of walks he's allowed compared to strikeouts in the majors: 14 versus 21, good for a 1.5 K/BB. Britton trade with the Yankees Right-handed reliever Cody Carroll has not pitched yet in 2019 because he's still recovering from a back injury he sustained in spring training. Carroll threw 17 innings at the end of last season for the O's after being acquired on July 24, 2018. But he had a 9.00 ERA while striking out 16 batters and walking 13. Dillon Tate , considered by many to be the center piece of this trade (who also happens to be a former first round pick) has spent the majority of his minor league career as a starter. That was his role when the Orioles acquired him last summer from the Yankees and it continued to be at the outset of this season. But he is now being converted from a starter to a reliever. In two starts with Bowie this year, he went 0-2 with a 10.80 ERA and 2.10 WHIP. But he has fared much better as a reliever since then. In five appearances out of the Baysox's bullpen, Tate has a 1.74 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and .189 BAA. On one hand it is somewhat disappointing to see him removed from a starter's role. But on the other hand, if he can pivot and establish himself as a quality reliever in the majors, then at least some value is salvaged from the trade in that regard. Young Josh Rogers is having a forgettable 2018 with the Norfolk Tides. in 11 starts, he is carrying an 8.51 ERA, 1.75 WHIP and .357 BAA. Opponents have managed 86 hits in just 55 innings. He's made one appearance with the Orioles this year, when he allowed five runs in 3.2 innings out of the bullpen. It was expected that Rogers would be one of the first arms up from the minors this season in the event of rotation assistance. But his performance has not made that a desirable option yet. Machado trade with Dodgers Reliever Zach Pop last pitched on April 30, but his season is officially over now. He underwent Tommy John surgery last month. Before having the procedure, the 22-year-old reliever was dominating the Eastern League. In 10.2 innings, he had a 0.84 ERA and 1.03 WHIP. Strikeout artist Dean Kremer's start to the 2019 season was delayed an oblique injury . But he's healthy now and starting to round back into form. First he had a couple starts at Single-A Frederick where he spun 9.2 total scoreless innings. Now he resides at Double-A Bowie, where he has a 4.76 ERA and 1.03 WHIP in four starts. Between those two levels he's averaging a bit over a strikeout an inning (35 SO in 32.1 IP) with a 3.34 ERA in total. He threw a gem his most recent time to the mound, shutting out the New Hampshire Fisher Cats for seven innings, allowing four hits and one walk along with eight strikeouts. It'll be interesting to see if he makes the jump to the majors sometime this year.


Do something different this year. Stray From the Pack Labor Day weekend is fast approaching but it's not too late to plan your getaway far from the end-of-summer crowds. Consider one of these off-the-beaten-path destinations for your final escape of the season. San Juan, Puerto Rico If your idea of a Labor Day getaway is exploring beautiful beaches, touring charming cobblestone streets and dancing the night away with a cocktail in your hand, San Juan is just your place. Getting here only requires a short flight from most major U.S. cities and you won't need a passport since Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory. Knoxville, Tennessee This overlooked destination on the Tennessee River is the perfect place to spend a long weekend to close out summer. Knoxville boasts a bundle of fun activities for adults, kids and even pets. It's quickly emerging as one of the nation's top adventure towns but it's equally as appealing for fans of live music, shopping and nightlife. Plus, families will be just a short drive from Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge as well as Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Huntington Beach, California Surf City, USA is the ultimate summer vacation destination for those seeking one last hang with the sun, sand and sea before returning to school and work. Tour the International Surfing Museum, take Fido to the Huntington Dog Beach or simply watch the sunset from one of the longest public piers on the West Coast. This is definitely a laid-back escape as there is no shortage of ways to relax outside in nature, whether it's a bonfire on the beach or exploring Huntington Beach Central Park. Cap Cana, Dominican Republic Another tantalizing stop in the Caribbean, you don't have to on your honeymoon or celebrating any other major life event to enjoy Cap Cana, located just south of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. In addition to relaxing white-sand beaches and turquoise waters, visitors can play world-class golf courses, test their courage on a zip line or simply sit back and enjoy the perks of their resort such as the adults-only all-inclusive Sanctuary Cap Cana. Moab, Utah Outdoor enthusiasts and adrenaline junkies can't go wrong in Moab. This otherworldly destination known for its dramatic red rock landscapes is a gateway to not one but two of country's most awe-inspiring national parks in Arches and Canyonlands. Beyond the tremendous hiking, mountain biking and ATV opportunities, Moab will win you over with its small-town charm. Head downtown to check out some of the delicious eateries and to grab a pint from the Moab Brewery. Columbus, Ohio This booming Midwest city is winning over visitors with an out-of-this-world culinary scene and rich culture. You can stay at the world's first craft beer hotel in the BrewDog's Doghouse and check out a life-sized T-Rex cast at the brand new American Museum of Natural History Dinosaur Gallery. Meanwhile, Labor Day weekend visitors can also revel in the Columbus Greek Festival and the Upper Arlington Labor Day Arts Festival in Northam Park. Camden, Maine You don't have to wait until fall to enjoy Camden, Maine. This charming town located on Penobscot Bay features one of the country's most scenic harbors in addition to picturesque lighthouses, nearby hiking trails and the must-see High Street Historic District. Todos Santos, Mexico For beautiful beaches and awesome art without the crowds, head to Todos Santos on Mexico's Baja California Peninsula. Cabo is right around the corner and popularity here doesn't peak until the fall when temperatures start to drop north of the border. St. Lucia St. Lucia is an underrated destination year-round but what sets the Caribbean island apart is the variety of experiences it offers. Adventure-seeking travelers will absolutely love exploring the Pitons while travelers seeking a relaxing stay in paradise will find just that at the Marigot Bay Resort & Marina, a five-star destination offering a new experience for every day of the week. Palmetto Bluff, South Carolina While the crowds are flocking to Hilton Head Island and Savannah, consider a Labor Day stay in nearby Palmetto Bluff. The Lowcountry town of Bluffton has got everything you need for a memorable weekend and plenty of Southern charm. Plus, you won't be but an hour drive from Tybee Island. Sandbridge, Virginia Elsewhere on the East Coast, Sandbridge is the perfect end-of-summer destination for travelers hoping to avoid the crowds in nearby Virginia Beach. You can always head north for unbeatable nightlife and entertainment if you're in the mood but this quieter spot will give you a break from the noise. Cork, Ireland Dublin is certainly a bucket-list destination but Cork will surprise you in more ways than one as you'll soon discover inviting green spaces, charming architecture, art galleries and the 18th-century English Market. The nearby Blarney Castle is an added perk and sure to boost your social media game (if you don't mind kissing centuries-old stone). La Paloma, Uruguay Passport holders looking to venture far from the beaten path should look no further than the seaside town of La Paloma, which is often overlooked in favor of Buenos Aires and Montevideo. Surfers will be in heaven but you don't have to chase waves to unwind the right way here. Be sure to check out the stunning El Faro del Cabo Santa Maria lighthouse. Finger Lakes, New York Looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of the big city? New York's Finger Lakes is an easy choice. Wine enthusiasts won't need any convincing but this relaxing destination is also unbeatable for nature and history, home to mesmerizing waterfalls and the Women's Rights National Historical Park, home to the site of the first women's rights convention at Seneca Falls. New Braunfels, Texas Texas is a massive state and while San Antonio and nearby Austin are certainly worth your time, New Braunfels will entertain the entire family. There aren't many better spots for tubing and the kids are guaranteed to have a blast at Schlitterbahn Waterpark. Mystic, Connecticut The Hamptons, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket will be crawling with vacationers this Labor Day weekend so consider Mystic. As its name suggests, this village will suck you in with its historic downtown and legendary Mystic Pizza. It also just happens to be home to the nation's largest maritime museum and oldest steam-powered cider mill (B.F. Clyde's). Roswell, New Mexico Before you storm Area 51, head to Roswell, New Mexico for an unforgettable Labor Day weekend vacation. You don't have to believe or even care about aliens to fall in love with this city, which gained fame following an alleged 1947 UFO crash. Roswell embraces its reputation and is home to the International UFO Museum and Research Center. Black Hills, South Dakota Mount Rushmore is an iconic landmark but you shouldn't limit your trip to South Dakota's Black Hills to the presidential sculpture. If you spend most of your winter indoors this is the perfect place to explore before you say goodbye to summer. Custer State Park and Wind Cave National Park will supply all the scenery you could ask for. Sedona, Arizona Sedona isn't under the radar by any means but not all travelers are excited by the idea of spending so much time outdoors. Have you ever wanted to do yoga amidst Arizona's eye-popping red rocks? You can here. Stay hydrated and pack lots of sunscreen. Amelia Island, Florida Escape to Amelia Island this Labor Day weekend for sun and fun, relaxation, world-class golf, history and so much more. Located northeast of Jacksonville, this barrier island will blow you away with its charm. After all, who doesn't love a seaside park?


A man and woman were both shot in the leg in the parking lot of a southwest side bar Saturday morning. The incident occurred in the 100 block of Whitewood Street at Lily's Kings Lounge around 2:30 a.m. Police said the shooting was the result of an argument. There is no information on a suspect at this time. The victims were taken to a nearby hospital in stable condition. The investigation continues.


In President Trump's first two years in office, factory job growth accelerated, an achievement he has been claiming credit for ahead of the 2020 election, particularly in the industrial Midwest. His administration is "restoring American manufacturing," Mr. Trump told workers at an Ohio factory in March. Some of the 465,000 factory jobs that the country created in 2017 and 2018 are in the most economically beleaguered counties that voted for Mr. Trump in 2016. But the biggest winners have not been the traditional manufacturing hubs where workers have been hammered this century by outsourcing and automation, federal statistics show. Instead, factory job creation has flowed to frontiers of the advanced manufacturing economy   like Nevada, home to a Tesla factory that churns out batteries for electric cars, homes and utilities   and oil-patch epicenters like Tulsa, Okla. The strong growth includes large contributions from the booming craft brewing, wine and spirits industries, which the federal government classifies as manufacturing and added nearly 30,000 jobs in that time. The vast majority of the factory jobs have come in counties that were already adding factory employment before Mr. Trump took office. And a disproportionate share of the expansion was concentrated in prosperous areas like Silicon Valley and Houston. Sign Up For the Morning Briefing Newsletter An analysis of those statistics by the Economic Innovation Group, a Washington think tank that studies regional inequality and pushes for policies to combat it, reveals a mixed political and economic picture for Mr. Trump. His 2016 victory was forged with upsets in manufacturing hubs like Michigan and Pennsylvania, and he has reveled in blue-collar job growth on his watch. A combination of tax cuts and deregulation pushed by the Trump administration appears to have fueled a widespread, though possibly temporary, increase in the pace of job creation in manufacturing. Production jobs increased in many more counties in Mr. Trump's first two years than under President Barack Obama from 2010 to 2016. Those gains have started slowing this year, in part under strain from the president's trade wars with China and other countries. And it appears doubtful that Mr. Trump will achieve his campaign promise of restoring the millions of factory jobs that many states and counties lost over the last two decades. The United States lost nearly six million manufacturing jobs from 2000 to 2010 as companies moved production to China and other low-cost countries, increased use of machines on factory floors and scaled back operations after the 2008 financial crisis. The economy has regained just under 1.5 million, but not always in the places that lost the most. The Mountain West and the energy-rich Great Plains have experienced much faster factory job growth than the Great Lakes states that are crucial to Mr. Trump's hopes of winning a second term. Nearly every state west of the Mississippi added manufacturing jobs faster than the national average in 2017 and 2018, the analysis shows. Ohio, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania were all at or below average. And several Northeastern states, including New York, Massachusetts and Vermont, lost factory jobs. As a result, Nevada, the Dakotas and Utah have regained the manufacturing jobs they lost after 2000   and then some. Pennsylvania still has only two-thirds of the factory jobs it had at the turn of the century, and Michigan is down nearly as much. Rhode Island has recovered the fewest production jobs of any state. Nearly half the counties that had more manufacturing employment in 2018 than in 2010 are in the West. But not all Western counties fared well. Los Angeles County lost more than 11,000 factory jobs and nearby Ventura County nearly 4,000 in Mr. Trump's first two years in office. Administration officials celebrate job growth in manufacturing   and credit Mr. Trump's policies   but acknowledge that it has mostly helped more prosperous parts of the country, at least so far. "If you look, there are a heck of a lot of successful manufacturing parts of the country right now," Kevin Hassett, the departing chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said in an interview. "But look at where they're being created." Mr. Hassett drew a distinction between "creative destruction" parts of the country, where the Great Recession wiped out jobs but others sprung up to replace them, and "destruction-destruction" parts, where jobs have been slow to return. Recent factory job growth, he said, was "not necessarily disproportionately in the destruction-destruction places." Mr. Hassett said many of those left-behind areas would add more factory jobs as a result of the opportunity zone program in the tax overhaul that Mr. Trump signed in 2017, which aims to steer investment to distressed communities. The list of counties that added the most manufacturing jobs in 2017 and 2018 highlights that divide. It is led by Harris County, Tex., which includes Houston and factories that supply the oil and gas industry. It also includes Alameda County, Calif., in the Bay Area, and Storey County, Nev., east of Reno, which are home to Tesla plants that added jobs after Mr. Trump took office. Only two of the top 10 counties are in the industrial Midwest: Macomb County, Mich., near Detroit, and Peoria County in western Illinois. The 10 counties that created the most jobs in 2017 and 2018: ■ Harris County, Tex. 11,592 jobs ■ Storey County, Nev. 10,197 ■ Santa Clara County, Calif. 9,909 ■ Alameda County, Calif. 9,855 ■ Maricopa County, Ariz. 9,674 ■ Peoria County, Ill. 8,429 ■ Tulsa County, Okla. 8,381 ■ Tarrant County, Tex. 6,327 ■ Orange County, Calif. 6,242 ■ Macomb County, Mich. 5,991 Source: Economic Innovation Group and Labor Department Nearly half the job gains were in the most prosperous quintile of counties in America, according to the Economic Innovation Group, even though those counties accounted for just 40 percent of the nation's factory jobs before Mr. Trump took office. And in an indication that many of the gains may be part of long-running economic trends, two-thirds of the new positions were in counties that added jobs from 2010 through 2016. Still, there are some signs of hope for the counties that the group rates as the most economically distressed quintile. Collectively, they lost factory jobs throughout the Obama administration, but they added more than 20,000 during Mr. Trump's first two years, with the biggest gains in the Southeast, including Tennessee, the Carolinas, Arkansas and Georgia. "The manufacturing sector is steadily realigning after the shocks of the early part of this century," said John Lettieri, the president of the Economic Innovation Group, which came up with the idea for the opportunity zone program. "The West is emerging as a new growth engine for the sector, and manufacturing's rebound is finally reaching many distressed areas of the country." He added, "These gains are real but still fragile." The fragility is a result of a global manufacturing slowdown, which many analysts link to Mr. Trump's tariffs on imports from China   among other products   and the escalation of trade tensions with countries around the world. American manufacturers have added just 13,000 jobs since January, according to the Labor Department, down from an average of 19,000 a month during Mr. Trump's first two years in office. "Manufacturing have a trifecta of headwinds in their face: an overhang of inventories, weak global growth and tariffs," said Diane Swonk, chief economist at the auditing firm Grant Thornton. It is hard to quantify the effect precisely, but "there are indications that some of this tariff stuff may be having a slowing effect on hiring in the manufacturing sector," said Jay Bryson, global economist at Wells Fargo in Charlotte, N.C. "One suspects that tariffs may be playing a role there." Administration officials remain optimistic that the slowdown in factory jobs is temporary and that Mr. Trump's policies will drive manufacturing growth in more places. "My own personal view is there is a little mini inventory correction going on," as manufacturers work through stockpiles of goods, Larry Kudlow, the director of Mr. Trump's National Economic Council, said on Thursday. "I can't get too worried about it." Jeanna Smialek and Ana Swanson contributed reporting.


A Chicago nonprofit that provides adoption, foster care and related services for abused and neglected children is fighting allegations it misused taxpayer money after an extensive state audit revealed questionable charges for staff meals, traffic tickets and membership to a private social club, among other issues. In a 64-page draft report obtained by the Tribune, auditors for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services said they had "serious concerns" about spending by vendor Child Link as well as its internal controls. Issues highlighted in the confidential report included a lack of supporting documentation as well as disallowed expenses for food, entertainment and fundraising efforts. The state's child welfare agency has demanded that Child Link repay about $100,000 in "disallowed costs" that were incurred over a three-year period ending last summer. DCFS had pressed to be reimbursed nearly double that figure in January after completing the initial audit, but Child Link reduced the amount by providing more receipts and other supporting documentation. This is the first time in about six years that DCFS has conducted such an extensive audit of one of its private partners at the urging of its inspector general. It also is the first time DCFS has demanded reimbursement from Child Link in a partnership of nearly 15 years, officials at the nonprofit said. Child Link CEO Malia Arnett said her organization continues to challenge DCFS' audit findings and has requested further review through the department's closed-door administrative hearing process. In an interview with the Tribune, Arnett and four of her board members defended their program. At times tearful, Arnett said she turned around a small, cash-strapped organization after taking the helm in 2004 and has made it her life's work to ensure that children in the state's foster care system have access to the resources and support they need to succeed. As new DCFS report highlights failures, Cook County guardian says 'inept' child welfare agency is 'not doing its job ... at every level' » Arnett said taxpayer money was properly spent to manage DCFS programs and related administrative costs. She conceded that some money, such as specific fundraising costs or a few staff traffic tickets flagged by auditors, "was not allocated as intended, but we have since corrected that situation." Arnett said none of the money was used for "personal gain." As far as staff meals and entertainment, including a $1,000 outing to a White Sox game and a Christmas party costing nearly $6,000, nonprofit officials said DCFS has not questioned such expenses in past routine audits. They said such employee incentives are needed to stave off turnover in an industry with low wages and high stress, noting the long-stagnant rates the state pays private providers for services. "I do not believe these expenditures were misspent," Arnett said. DCFS spokesman Jassen Strokosch agreed that Child Link has passed previous audits without issue. But he said the regular contract monitoring process is more of a random sampling of expenses than a comprehensive check of "every single specific transaction" for inspector general-driven reviews. He said rules clearly dictate that state dollars cannot be spent to support vendors' staff holiday parties, fundraising, traffic fines or other expenses Child Link described as staff development and training. As for the many other contested charges that nonprofit officials say went to their programming, Strokosch said a lack of supporting documentation was the problem. "As long as it's program-related, it's often allowed," he said, "but you have to follow basic accounting principles. We're not going to just take their word for it." The audit battle comes as the beleaguered state agency again struggles with a clogged child abuse hotline, high investigator caseloads, troubling child deaths, long-persisting instability with its budget and leadership, and the dubious distinction of being the worst-ranked system in the country for the length of time children languish in foster care without a permanent home. Is DCFS allowing too many abused or neglected kids to stay with their parents? A new report is critical of services aimed at keeping families together » Though the money in dispute may not be a lot for an agency with an annual budget of $1.2 billion, Strokosch said administrators have zero tolerance for misuse of public funds meant for children. "Every dollar used to keep kids safe matters," he said. "We take every action available to us to ensure the department is reimbursed." Founded in 2004 and based in the city's Pilsen neighborhood, Child Link has five DCFS contracts totaling more than $5 million this year. The organization provides myriad child welfare services to Chicago-area kids and teens, as well as operating two transitional living facilities that serve older female clients, up to age 21. Those facilities provide the young women with an apartment, life-skills training and other support services as they leave foster care and transition to adulthood. Arnett has been with the nonprofit since its inception, building it from a small program formerly called Cabrini-Green Youth and Family Services to one that employs nearly 60 staffers and serves about 350 children each year. The agency's achievements include a more than 90% high school graduation rate for its clients, with the majority of teens continuing on to college, she said. Arnett said she was in substitute care as a child and is committed "to do better for foster kids." "We help our kids feel safe, secure and equitable to their peers despite their overwhelmingly traumatic situation," said Arnett, whose annual salary was about $125,000 in 2018, records show. "We do everything in our power to help them feel less stigmatized by a lack of (family) support and resources." Nearly all of Child Link's funding comes from DCFS. The nonprofit has received about $50 million from the child welfare agency since 2005, according to state comptroller officials. It also receives private donations and hosts annual fundraising events, such as a whiskey tasting, a wine festival, holiday toy and school supply drives, and a women's luncheon. Pritzker vows DCFS overhaul, says agency, children in its care 'neglected for years' » The review of Child Link's spending began last year with a complaint to the DCFS inspector general's office. After a review of the organization's financial records, Inspector General Meryl Paniak alerted DCFS auditors late last year to "numerous potentially disallowable transactions" and urged a three-year audit, sparking DCFS' extensive review. According to DCFS administrative rules, public funds may not be used for private agency expenses related to fundraising efforts, sales taxes, fines, penalties, entertainment, membership dues and several other nonprogram activities. The majority of the ongoing audit dispute concerns more than $60,000 categorized as "meals and entertainment" billed to the state over three years, according to DCFS. They include several hotel events and dozens of restaurant meals, from coffee shops and cafes to upscale eateries, audit records showed. Child Link used DCFS money for a staff Christmas party in December 2016 at a Pilsen craft brewery that cost nearly $6,000, auditors found. The report also showed a staff outing to a White Sox game in 2017 with a $1,044 price tag. Various purchases that agency officials attributed to staff development were made at venues such as Hotel Allegro in downtown's theater district and the Cherry Circle Room in the historic Chicago Athletic Association Hotel near Millennium Park. Arnett described those expenses as necessary employment incentives for caseworkers paid an average of $33,000 to $40,000 annually. Andrea Durbin heads Illinois Collaboration on Youth, which represents private providers of child welfare services, and has long advocated for rate increases. Durbin said she was unaware of the audit involving Child Link, which is not a member of her group. But she agreed with Arnett that staff turnover because of low wages and high stress is a problem for providers. "I think we forget how challenging these jobs are," Durbin said. "Providers are trying to do creative things to make sure they are able to recruit, train and keep a stable workforce." Other expenses flagged by auditors include $1,600 in sales tax, $300 in traffic tickets and several other payments to the city of Chicago that DCFS officials said were unexplained. The audit also cited several payments totaling about $5,000 to the Union League Club of Chicago in 2015. Cook County Public Guardian Charles Golbert said, "That's DCFS money intended for kids." "You cannot spend public dollars on private club memberships," he said. "It's our tax dollars and was intended for programs to take care of children." Arnett said Child Link had a four-month membership at a reduced rate for various events as part of the agency's fundraising efforts. She said the membership was not for personal use and she was surprised to learn her agency had mistakenly billed the state for charges related to fundraising activities. Child Link officials said some accounting mistakes were made, including charging taxpayers for traffic tickets and fundraising efforts, but they defended the bulk of the contested $100,000 in expenses as legitimate. Arnett said DCFS erroneously flagged numerous expenditures for things like snacks for children during sibling visits, holiday parties for foster children and their families, back-to-school picnics, staff training and necessary staff travel to monitor DCFS children living in southern Illinois and out of state while at college or in foster care placements. "We have requested that if a teenager has a piece of pizza, we have to have them sign for that," Arnett said, lamenting a frustrating process. "(Every cent) has to be accounted for." Board chairman Dan Palmer said Child Link was "operating within the rules as we understood them" and that the nonprofit has spent millions of dollars from the state over the years without issue. He said Child Link has repeatedly spent more on programs for kids in recent years than DCFS provided, depleting the organization's coffers. "I just want to make sure there's some perspective when you talk about that number," Palmer said of the $100,000 in question. "That represents a tiny fraction of the total amount of money we spent on behalf of the kids in the organization." Board treasurer Anthony Spears said: "We're operating as usual, which is to provide the best benefits we can to the kids and to utilize the funds as most expeditiously as we could." Child Link is seeking an administrative hearing, which is a closed-door proceeding, to contest the reimbursement demand. The administrative law judge's finding is public. The hearing was set for May 24 but has been continued to July. "We would like our day in court, so to speak," Spears said. Chicago Tribune's Ray Long contributed. cmgutowski@chicagotribune.com Twitter @christygutowsk1


LOS ANGELES (CBSLA)   MLB players, sports teams, and fans took to Twitter Monday afternoon after news broke of the death of Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs. Skaggs, 27, was found unresponsive in a Dallas-area hotel room Monday morning according to a statement released by the team. According to reports from the Los Angeles Times, the Southlake Police Department indicated neither foul play nor suicide was suspected. Players, teams, and fans took to Twitter reacting to the news of his passing. Words cannot express the deep sadness we feel right now. Our thoughts and prayers are with Carli and their families. Remembering him as a great teammate, friend, and person who will forever remain in our hearts… we love you, 45. pic.twitter.com/zCO8Ne01Gy   Mike Trout (@MikeTrout) July 2, 2019 We are deeply saddened by the tragic news that Tyler Skaggs, 27, passed away this morning. https://t.co/q150hyH01J pic.twitter.com/y1X5ctlWDl   MLB (@MLB) July 1, 2019 The Atlanta Braves join our MLB community and mourn the passing of Tyler Skaggs. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and the entire Los Angeles Angels organization. https://t.co/Y2HTT7PPAW   Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 1, 2019 We are deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Tyler Skaggs. Our hearts are with the Skaggs family and the entire @Angels organization during this unimaginably difficult time.   Los Angeles Chargers (@Chargers) July 1, 2019 Major League Baseball Players Association Executive Director Tony Clark today issued the following statement regarding the passing of Tyler Skaggs: pic.twitter.com/GUC5WqwK6M   MLBPA Communications (@MLBPA_News) July 1, 2019 The Los Angeles Dodgers are deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs. Our thoughts are with Skaggs' family, friends and the @Angels organization.   Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 1, 2019 Our deepest sympathies are with the family of Tyler Skaggs & the entire @Angels organization. pic.twitter.com/Xi1qNEmbRa   Texas Rangers (@Rangers) July 1, 2019 #RIP my friend Tyler Skaggs pic.twitter.com/J7R5aADCaK   JOSE MOLINA (@Joeycatch8) July 1, 2019 Sad to hear that another one of our brothers has left us. RIP Tyler Skaggs. Gone too soon. pic.twitter.com/Zrb68VPdqf   Nelson Cruz (@ncboomstick23) July 1, 2019 The entire Oakland A's organization is deeply saddened by the passing of Tyler Skaggs. We appreciated his determination and demeanor on the field and will miss him as a competitor and friend. Our condolences to Tyler's family and the Angels organization.   Oakland A's (@Athletics) July 1, 2019 We join the MLB family in sending our thoughts and love to Tyler Skaggs' family and friends, as well as the entire @Angels organization. https://t.co/cxWVnM0TQc   Red Sox (@RedSox) July 1, 2019 Fans began arriving at Angel Stadium of Anaheim to start a memorial shortly after news broke of the pitcher's death. Fans are in shock @angels #tylerskaggs death @cbsla #cbsla #baseball  @MLB  pic.twitter.com/sbezsz9Bxa   michele gile (@CBSmichelegile) July 1, 2019 "Tyler has, and always will be, an important part of the Angels family," the Angels said in a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Carli and his entire family during this devastating time." The Angels were in Dallas for a three-game series against the Rangers. However, Monday night's game was been postponed, the Rangers announced. Skaggs had recently gotten married during the off-season and was seen on social media hours before being found.


Several 2020 Democratic candidates have been critical of former Vice President Joe Biden 's stance in favor of the Hyde Amendment, which does not allow for federal funds to be spent on abortion but with exceptions for rape, incest, and when the mother's life is at risk. Some were more condemnatory than others, but all of them made it clear they do not agree with Biden: No woman's access to reproductive health care should be based on how much money she has. We must repeal the Hyde Amendment.   Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) June 5, 2019 I voted against the Hyde Amendment in 1993. It was wrong then and it is wrong now. Reproductive health care is health care. Period.   Jay Inslee (@JayInslee) June 5, 2019 Repealing the Hyde Amendment is critical so that low-income women in particular can have access to the reproductive care they need and deserve. Reproductive rights are human rights, period. They should be nonnegotiable for all Democrats.   Kirsten Gillibrand (@SenGillibrand) June 5, 2019 No matter your income or where you live, every woman should have access to health care including abortion. https://t.co/UqTwmmMFDD   Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) June 5, 2019 I asked @ewarren just now about Biden's support of Hyde. She said she "will lead the fight to have it overturned." Pressed on if D nominee can hold that position: "it's not about the politics, its about whats right. The Hyde amendment should not be American law." pic.twitter.com/zeghcybARk   Ali Vitali (@alivitali) June 5, 2019 There is #NoMiddleGround on women's rights. Abortion is a constitutional right. Under my Medicare for All plan, we will repeal the Hyde Amendment.   Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) June 5, 2019 All women should have access to reproductive care, regardless of their income or the state they live in. Abortion care is health care it's time to repeal the #HydeAmendment .   Julián Castro (@JulianCastro) June 5, 2019 We can't live in the past when it comes to women's health. The next president must appoint judges who #ProtectRoe BUT also MUST fight to #RepealHyde . @PPact @NARAL @ilyseh   Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) June 5, 2019 Bill de Blasio tried a pun that, when you think about it for five seconds, doesn't quite work: The Hyde Amendment only hurts low income women, especially women of color. If you don't support repeal, you shouldn't be the Democratic nominee. https://t.co/wt46V3p16z   Bill de Blasio (@BilldeBlasio) June 5, 2019 And when it comes to supporting American women on issues like repealing the Hyde Amendment, @JoeBiden is Dr. Jekyll.   Bill de Blasio (@BilldeBlasio) June 5, 2019 Because as people pointed out… Jekyll is the good one https://t.co/1bY7sek1zt   Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) June 5, 2019 dr. jekyll was the good one, big brain boy. https://t.co/8zss1OoHSi   T. Becket Adams (@BecketAdams) June 5, 2019 does he… does he think Jekyll was the bad guy https://t.co/lKnDdD5AkT   Alex Griswold (@HashtagGriswold) June 5, 2019 Dr. Jekyll was the good side of him, though https://t.co/ERYFPnNcvq   Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) June 5, 2019 [ image via screengrab ]


Fifty-five inmates have died in gang-related riots at four prisons in western Brazil, according to authorities. Fifteen prisoners were found dead Sunday and 40 more Monday in the city of Manaus, the capital of the state of Amazonas, the region's Governor Wilson Lima said. Lima said authorities believe the deaths are a result of violent clashes among rival factions within the same drug gang, known as the Family of the North. Nine gang leaders are being transferred to maximum security prisons. A prison official said on local radio that some of the inmates killed at the Anisio Jobim penitentiary on Sunday were choked, while others were stabbed with sharpened toothbrushes. Meanwhile, the prisoners who died on Monday were killed by asphyxiation, according to Lima, who added that they were strangled by their cellmates. Folha de S. Paulo newspaper reported that sheets were used to strangle the prisoners. The total death toll has been revised down from 57, as previously reported by Agencia Brasil news agency citing Amazonas officials. Human rights groups have accused the government of doing too little to prevent the violence at prisons that have become recruitment centers for gangs -- and even facilitating clashes by allowing the cells to become overcrowded. According to Conectas human rights group, the Anisio Jobim penitentiary has capacity for 454 prisoners but was housing more than double that when the violence started on Sunday. The clashes pose a challenge to the new far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, but could also end up giving his approval rating a boost as he is seen as tough on crime and has previously vowed to crack down on criminal gangs and prison violence. Brazil's justice ministry is sending in a task force to take over control of the prisons in Amazonas. Lima said that 200 inmates who could potentially be targeted have been separated and are under protection. "I just spoke to Justice Minister Sergio Moro and he is already sending a prison intervention team to the state of Amazonas to help us in the critical moment with a problem that is national: the problem with the prisons," Lima said. Brazil was rocked by a spate of prison riots in early 2017 in which almost 100 inmates died. Those riots prompted calls for the federal government to tackle what analysts described as systemic failures in the country's prison system.


Lara Cohn's goal is to increase the amount she allocates into her 401k by 1% each year to ensure that reaches her retirement goals. As a Gen X-er, Cohn, a 44-year-old New York public relations executive, has always heeded the advice of her family to save for the future. Following this sentiment means that she will have a solid nest egg by the time she retires, giving her the freedom to travel. Along with a portfolio of IRAs and an emergency fund, Cohn balances her retirement needs with her love of traveling. "It makes me feel safe knowing I can take care of myself," she said. "After the recession hit in 2008, I definitely lost a chunk of my retirement savings like many of my other fellow Gen X-ers, so it's become very important for me now. I make it a priority to have paid off all my debt and save more than before." Cohn's attitude toward saving for retirement mirrors that of her counterparts. More Gen X-ers, or those between the ages of 35 and 49, are saving more for their retirement than baby boomers, those between the ages of 50 and 68, according to a recent survey by their PNC Financial Services Group, the Pittsburgh-based financial institution. The survey found that 51% of Gen X-ers are increasing their savings while only 37% of Boomers are following the same trend. The Great Recession spurred added concern about being adequately prepared for retirement, and Gen X has been more versatile in adjusting its behavior. "One of the most challenging tasks is changing habits, particularly in managing spending and debt and increasing savings and seeking advice," said Celandra Deane-Bess, senior wealth planner for PNC Wealth Management. "I think Gen X is clearly more concerned about retirement, but they are also changing their behavior adequately to ensure better outcomes in the future." Gen X-ers are more worried about saving enough money for their future and are taking more responsibility with ramping up their savings with 65% who agreed that they are responsible for their retirement and are not counting on relying upon an employer pension or Social Security. Only 45% of Boomers agreed with this belief. For the past several years, Matt Caldwell, a 34-year old national account manager for Siemens who lives in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., has been investing steadfastly in his 401(k) and IRA. Saving for retirement has remained a priority, because not only does it provide financial independence, it means he and his wife, Alicia, will be able to pay for their daughter's college tuition. Part of the commitment means that both of them allocate a generous portion of our salaries to their retirement accounts. "The sooner we are able to establish a nest egg, the larger it will grow over time and can provide a comfortable retirement and security for the uncertainties of life," he said. "It means I can afford to take my wife to Greece and retire in my 50s." The economic environment over the past few years forced more Gen X-ers to be prepared, said Brandon Moss, a vice president at United Capital, a Newport Beach, Calif. financial management firm. "It has almost forced us to be better savers and pay more attention to the long-term," he said. "Gen X-ers don't have pensions and no one I know is counting on Social Security, so we are in it for ourselves. It's been more of a forced preparation but at this point, many Gen X-ers are more prepared." After the Great Recession occurred, Matt DeMargel, 41, a public relations executive in Kingwood, Texas, said he started conducting research for options for his retirement portfolio and "came to the sobering conclusion that no one cares if we get to enjoy our retirement or not." DeMargel and his wife invest more than one third of their take home pay in his Roth 401k and their Roth IRAs." "If we aren't nurturing our own nest egg, we're going to be in trouble," he said.


These properties have stables, arenas and riding trails. 8 handsome estates for horse lovers If riding horses on your own property sounds like a dream , you can make it a reality   if you have a few million to spare. But paying up could really be worth it if you've already got or plan to get horses to put on that property. And after you see these gorgeous homes, you'll realize that the appeal goes far beyond being able to keep your horses there. Take a look at the stunning equestrian estates and one-of-a-kind ranches for sale that GOBankingRates rounded up for those who love to ride and have money to blow. Updated Farmhouse in Ridgefield, Connecticut Price: $6 million Square footage: 7,500 Lot size: 13 acres A six-bedroom, updated 1937 farmhouse sits on the 13-acre Orchard Hill Farm, which also houses a stone guest cottage, organic gardens, a saltwater pool and spa, an outdoor kitchen, a six-car heated garage, a horse barn, a putting green and an apple orchard. Inside the home, you'll find five full bathrooms, two partial bathrooms, a remodeled kitchen, a play area and a mudroom. Don't Miss: Get a Glimpse of 14 Homes Worth More Than $10 Million Updated Farmhouse's Equestrian Offerings Number of stalls: 9 A nine-stall barn sits on the property, and it also houses a hayloft, wash stall, heated lounge and tack room. In addition, Orchard Hill Farm has five paddocks and its own Lawton Adams riding ring. Bluegrass Estate in Simpsonville, Kentucky Price: $6.7 million Square footage: 8,294 Lot size: 111 acres The owner's residence at Covered Bridge Farm is a five-bedroom, 6 1/2-bathroom Georgian manor with a 200-year-old log cabin room, pool and pool house with a guest apartment, and a log cabin guest house that can sleep up to 14 guests. The estate also has a party space for entertaining, and a covered bridge on the property that gives the farm its name. See: What a $5 Million Home Looks Like Around the US Bluegrass Estate's Equestrian Offerings Number of stalls: N/A The property's main barn includes horse stalls, and tack and feed rooms, plus a professional riding arena and a 60-by-80-foot equipment shed. Mountain View Estate in Mapleton, Utah Price: $7.9 million Square footage: 7,300 Lot size: 40 acres Located at the base of Maple Mountain, this three-bedroom, 3 1/2-bathroom gated estate and equestrian facility is located at the end of a private tree-lined lane. There's plenty of outdoor space to ride horses, ATVs and mountain bikes. Inside, you can relax at the gourmet kitchen, formal dining area or game room. There are three bedroom suites total, as well as an exercise facility   so there's no need for a gym membership when you live here. Check Out: Indoor Pools, Bowling Alleys and 25 Over-the-Top Home Upgrades Mountain View Estate's Equestrian Offerings Number of stalls: 22 Serious equestrians will love the full ranch on the property, which includes 22 heated stalls, a tack room/office, an 18,600-square-foot indoor area, a 20,000-square-foot outdoor arena, a round pen, 11 outdoor corrals, hay storage, a shavings garage and multiple irrigated pastures with extensive water rights. Secluded Country Estate in Boulder, Colorado Price: $8 million Square footage: 4,617 Lot size: 12.6 acres This peaceful three-bedroom, 3 1/2-bathroom, two-story contemporary home features a gourmet chef's kitchen, a wraparound porch, a heated pool and spa, and a separate guesthouse. The home is surrounded by more than 12 acres of land with a horse barn   and panoramic views of the Flatirons and foothills. Compare: 17 Impossibly Gorgeous $10 Million Homes Around the World Secluded Country Estate's Equestrian Offerings Number of stalls: 8 The estate has its own Gardner barn with eight stalls total, including six loafing stalls. It also features hay storage, a tack room, an outdoor arena and two fenced pastures where your horses can roam free. 1800s Farm in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan Price: $10.25 million Square footage: 9,260 Lot size: 12.1 acres The Stables at Turtle Lake was a working farm in the 1800s and can still function as one today, with a horse stable, cow pen, dairy barn and silo on-site. The estate also features a 648-square-foot multiuse building with one bedroom and 2 1/2 bathrooms. What you're really paying for is the view   The Stables has over 1,100 feet of lakefront property and expansive pastures. Fancy Living: 14 Castles You Can Buy in America Right Now 1800s Farm's Equestrian Offerings Number of stalls: N/A The horse stable is one of the original 1920s buildings on the property. The stable and cow-pen area is a whopping 9,260 square feet. Ranch on the River in Steamboat Springs, Colorado Price: $12 million Square footage: 5,800 Lot size: 490 acres Wildlife lovers will want to make this ranch home. You're likely to see elk, fawn, c ranes, geese, ducks, herons and other animals roaming the sprawling meadows and hillsides that surround the main house, which is decorated with weathered barn wood, historic beams and reclaimed wooden floors. In addition to the main house, the property has a barn with its own apartment and office, as well as two garages. The Steamboat River Ranch also has its own stream so you can even fish on-site. It's the perfect place to start your own horse or cattle ranch. Find Out: How Much It Costs To Own These Fairy-Tale Homes Ranch on the River's Equestrian Offerings Number of stalls: N/A The ranch's barn has multiple stalls with turnouts to the many corrals. The barn can remain enclosed, or you can open it up during the warmer months to soak up the sun. [ x ] Rustic Yet Modern Ranch in Austin, Texas Price: $16 million Square footage: 12,569 Lot size: 134.9 acres A main residence and two guest houses sit on this manicured estate just outside downtown Austin. The property also has an office, a climate-controlled five-car garage, a separate workout space and a horse barn. The main home has four beds and 3 1/2 bathrooms, an infinity-edge pool and multiple fireplaces. See: You Might Actually Be Able To Afford a Mansion in These 20 States Rustic Yet Modern Ranch's Equestrian Offerings Number of stalls: 6 The horse barn on this property has six stalls, and there is also a riding arena. You and your family or friends can easily enjoy a nice ride altogether. Private Luxury Horse Ranch in Silverthorne, Colorado Price: $23 million Square footage: 13,562 Lot size: 254.6 acres Triple Creek Ranch, located in the Rocky Mountains, is a natural oasis surrounded by woodland, natural ponds and streams, open meadows and mountains. The property features two log homes, the larger of which has four bedrooms, 4 1/2 bathrooms, a two-bedroom, two-bathroom guest apartment and a four-car garage. The other home has four bedrooms, 4 1/2 bathrooms, a two-bedroom, two-bathroom guest apartment and a three-car garage. The smaller home has a horse stable attached to the home through the garage for easy, direct access. More High-Altitude Getaways: These Mountain Retreats Are the Perfect Escape From the Rat Race Private Luxury Horse Ranch's Equestrian Offerings Number of stalls: 10 Triple Creek Ranch has its own professional-grade indoor riding arena, a 10-horse stable and multiple maintenance facilities, including a barn with a workshop and apartment for the horse manager, an additional cabin for on-site staff and a ranch manager's home. Keep reading to see what a $5 million home looks like around the U.S. More on Homes This Real 'Game of Thrones' Castle Costs Less Than a California Home How Much Is a Down Payment on a House? Homes Are Getting Cheaper in These 15 Cities, Study Finds Here Are the Best and Worst States To Build Your Home, Study Finds


The plaza and main entrance of the new Los Angeles football stadium has a naming rights sponsor. Via Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg , American Airlines will pay $90 million over 10 years to sponsor a 2.5-acre space that will serve as the main entrance to the $5 billion home of the Rams and Chargers. American Airlines Plaza is 10 stories tall and carries a capacity of 15,000. The stadium itself is still without a naming rights partner for the time being. The plaza had previously been referred to as Champions Plaza. American Airlines also has naming rights deals for the arenas of the Miami Heat (American Airlines Arena) and Dallas Mavericks (American Airlines Center).


The Blues could barely do anything right in the first period   except score. Sometimes that's enough. On Wednesday night, it was enough to bring the Blues their first Stanley Cup, and right here on Causeway St., the place Bobby Orr's famous "Flying Bobby" goal sank their chances in 1970. The Blues landed only four shots on net in the first, and two of them went in the net   the first on a Ryan O'Reilly deflection, the second one compliments of a brain cramp by Brad Marchand that allowed Alex Pietrangelo to skate down Broadway and pot a doorstep backhand lift. Bad time for a mental boo-boo. Marchand chose the wrong time for his line change, and Pietrangelo took advantage of the ill-timed gaffe. Jayden Schwartz chipped the puck behind Marchand, who butchered his attempted line change with Marcus Johansson, and a rushing Pietrangelo picked up the mail and made the deposit past a defenseless Tuukka Rask. When it was over at 10:41 p.m., to fit in the scope of New England disappointment, it felt a lot like Super Bowl XX: Bears 46, Patriots 10. Stand down, Duck Boats, stand down. ■ O'Reilly, the ex-Sabre who continued to get better throughout the series, picked up his fifth goal of the series with the night's opening strike. It was also the third time in four games that ROR struck for the game-opening goal. The Blues won all three games in which the rugged, broad-shouldered pivot put up the first goal. O'Reilly was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the postseason MVP. ■ While the Blues were making the most of their popgun offense, with only one shot on net in the opening 16:39, goalie Jordan Binnington had the Bruins in fits in the first period. He turned back all 12 of their shots, including three good chances during a power play awarded the Bruins at 7:57 when Colton Parayko was whistled off for delay of game (puck in the stands). ■ Shot attempts, first period: Bruins 22; Blues 8. And it felt more lopsided than that. It was the Bruins version of leaving eight runners in scoring position, and perhaps five of them on third base. #InsideBaseball. ■ The vocal "Tuukka's Fault" crowd again will hammer on the veteran Bruins tender. Particularly because the Blues scored on two of their first four shots, and four of 18. Could Rask have stopped all of them? Sure. Could he have been expected to stop any of the four? No. But that's not how the narrative will go, especially on talk radio. Until he wins the Cup, if he ever wins the Cup, he'll be the scapegoat for all the failed runs up the hill. Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy labeled Rask the club's best player in the playoffs, and said "there really shouldn't be" any criticism of the veteran tender. "They outplayed us at certain moments of the game at all positions and that's why they won," he said. "They finished some plays when they had to, and we didn't." "I don't think anyone is leaving the building tonight, in our locker room, saying they put their best foot forward, unfortunately," added Cassidy. "That's the whole group. We didn't get it done. That's every position   coaching staff, everyone   they ended up being better than us." ■ Matt Grzelcyk was back on the job for the first time since Game 2 of the series   when was concussed on a hit by a hard-driving Oskar Sundqvist. The move bumped Connor Clifton to the sidelines, and forced Grzelcyk, a lefthanded shot, to shift over to the right side in a pairing with lefthander John Moore. Grzelcyk scored the only Bruins goal of the night, zipping home a wrister with 2:10 left in regulation for the 4-1 final. ■ In Feb. 2017, the Bruins were 26-23-6, going nowhere, and ditched bench boss Claude Julien in favor of Bruce Cassidy. They were on the verge of a third straight playoff DNQ and the narrative around town was that they had few legit prospects in the pipeline. Twenty-eight months later, they began the night 60 minutes from winning the franchise's seventh Stanley Cup. ■ Only 1:52 after Curt Schilling and wife Shonda made their appearance on the center-ice vid board, Marchand messed up and Pietrangelo potted the 2-0 lead. Normally, Schill has to be in Rhode Island for things to go upside down that quickly. ■ The Bruins in the second period still looked in shock over not potting one of their 12 shots attempts in the first period. They landed another 11 shots on net (for a total of 23), but still couldn't solve Binnington. Of greater concern, their chances weren't of the Grade A caliber they landed in the first period. ■ The officiating crew was perfectly invisible. In other words, just perfect. The league opted to go with the same crew as in Game 6: Gord Dwyer and Chris Rooney as referees and Scott Cherrey and Derek Amel on the lines. It was a tough postseason for the guys in stripes as a group, they made some brutal decisions and non-decisions, but the Game 6-7 guys turned in a Mount Rushmore performance. It doesn't have to be so hard. ■ The trademark St. Louis forecheck, at times too much for the Bruins to defuse during the series, was not evident in Game 7. Territorially, the Bruins owned the first period, only to be stymied by Binnington. The two goals late in the first allowed them the luxury of not having to push the tempo in the second. That sometimes can be costly, but the Bruins didn't take advantage of the Blues' relaxed approach. ■ There has never been a hat trick scored in all the Games 7 of the Stanley Cup final. A total 17 games. Not a surprise, considering the high stakes of a winner-take-all. ■ Game after game in the first three rounds, the Bruins owned the advantage in lead time. Not in the Final. The Blues held the advantage Wednesday night for a total of 43:13 and finished with a total 138:56 lead time over the seven games. The Bruins owned the clock for 125:23. ■ The unsuccessful first period, according to Cassidy, gave the Blues "more life." And a Bruins team that had been resilient all season was unable to provide sufficient pushback. "The hockey gods really aren't on your side," said Cassidy, summing up the first period. "They did what they had to do to put the puck in the net and we didn't, at the end of the day, in the first period. I think it gave [the Blues] a lot of life . . . we knew it was an uphill battle, but the game wasn't over." Technically, 40 minutes remained on the clock, but the Bruins never got back on the clock or in the game. "We knew we had to play a certain way," said Cassidy, acknowledging the effort needed to stage a comeback, "and I guess we didn't in the second period. "I don't think we played the proper way to generate offense, considering the way their goaltender played in the first period. You're going to have to get some screens and second chances and I don't think we did enough of that in the second period to give us some life." Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at kevin.dupont@globe.com . Follow him on Twitter @GlobeKPD .


A big question in the days following President Trump's controversial tweets about four minority congresswomen has been: Why aren't more Republicans unequivocally denouncing them as racist? One big reason GOP lawmakers haven't all labeled Trump's telling the four representatives   Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (Minn.), Ayanna Pressley (Mass.) and Rashida Tlaib (Mich.)   to "go back" to the countries they came from as racist is because they know how loyal Trump's base is. Given this, if they publicly offend him, the president could encourage his supporters to back a more Trump-loyal candidate in the next Republican primary. He did so to several in 2018 . Some Republicans clearly agreed with the sentiments Trump expressed and embraced them. Others did verbal gymnastics to not address the question   House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) pivoted to frame the debate as about "socialism vs. freedom" rather than race. Some, like Rep. Mike Kelly (Pa.) contorted themselves to the point of redefining other phrases to avoid having to place any blame on Trump. Subscribe to the Post Most newsletter: Today's most popular stories on The Washington Post "You know, they talk about people of color. I'm a person of color. I'm white. I'm an Anglo Saxon. People say things all the time, but I don't get offended," Kelly told VICE News. "'With a name like Mike Kelly you can't be from any place else but Ireland.'" But this week also showed how many Republicans vary in how they define or are willing to apply the word "racism." That's something Trump's candidacy and presidency have forced to Republicans explore, publicly. They haven't always been shy about using the R-word, even when criticizing Trump. In December 2015, after hearing Trump's support for banning Muslims from traveling to the United States, Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), who was running against Trump for the GOP presidential nomination, told Americans: "He's a race-baiting, xenophobic religious bigot." Months later, Trump accused a judge presiding over a lawsuit involving his business of having a bias against him because of the judge's Mexican heritage. Many Republicans remained silent, but then-House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) criticized the remarks claiming that the judge would be unfair to Trump because he is white as "the textbook definition of a racist comment." Now, as president, Trump has had nearly solid Republican support, no matter what he has said, even from some of his most harsh former critics in the GOP. "A Somali refugee embracing Trump would not have been asked to go back," said Graham this week, apparently referencing Omar, who fled civil war in Somalia as a child before immigrating to the U.S. "If you're a racist, you want everybody from Somalia to go back cause they're black or they're Muslim." And when the House voted this past week to condemn the president's statements as racist, some Republicans challenged whether the House could even use that label. In the end, only four GOP House members voted to support the resolution. Before the vote, Rep. Will Hurd (R.-Tex.), the only black Republican in the House, told CNN's Christiane Amanpour that Trump's tweets were "racist." "I think those tweets are racist, and xenophobic," he said. "They're also inaccurate." He was joined by Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Susan Brooks (Ind.) and Fred Upton (Mich.) in backing the resolution. Rep. Justin Amash (Mich.), who quit the GOP this month and became an independent, also voted in favor. Part of the issue is that what constitutes racist language has changed over time. But to many academics who study the issue, the purpose of racism has been consistent. Ibram Kendi, director of American University's Antiracist Center, writes in his forthcoming book "How to Be an Antiracist" that racism is "a powerful collection of racist policies that lead to racial inequity and are substantiated by racist ideas." And scholars Karen E. Fields and Barbara J. Fields wrote about racism in "Racecraft: The Soul of Inequality in American Life" that "Racism refers to the theory and the practice of applying a social civic or legal double standard based on ancestry and to the ideology surrounding such a double standard," they said. "Racism is not an emotion or state of mind, such as intolerance, bigotry, hatred or malevolence." "Racism is first and foremost a social practice, which means that it is an action and a rationale for action, or both at once," they added. There is of course, a strict dictionary definition of racism ("hatred or intolerance of another race or other races"). Most people in a position of power know that; it's a matter of where they draw the line on what qualifies as racist, and whether they adjust that line when it's politically convenient to do so. While the president did not use any directly derogatory terms in his tweets, he tapped into tropes used in the past to raise anger against minorities. Leaving room for plausible deniability is a good way to give yourself, and your political allies, room to maneuver when you make statements that are racist. As The Fix's Aaron Blake has written, Trump recognizes the benefit of plausible deniability, and frequently utilizes it. Republicans seem to be on completely different pages about what constitutes racism. Some even blame the left, saying it is liberals who are increasingly invoking racism and showing intolerance. That argument on its face is not illegitimate. Liberals, especially those of color, would argue that they are more vocal in calling out racism because racism is indeed far-reaching in our society. Either way, hearing that racism is so prevalent has allowed some Republicans to use claims of its omnipresence as an excuse to neither address it nor even acknowledge it at all. But even more important than how Republican lawmakers define racism is Trump's view that whether his tweets are racist or not may be irrelevant. The day after the president's original tweets, he was asked his thoughts about the fact that his comments had widely been interpreted as racist. And he replied: "It doesn't concern me because many people agree with me. A lot of people love it, by the way." He's right. A lot of people in his base did love it, so much so that at his campaign rally a few days later, Trump supporters began to chant "Send her back!" to display just how much they agreed with his original sentiments. While the president eventually disavowed the chant that his original comments inspired, he has not apologized for his initial tweets and continues to question the patriotism and loyalty of the congresswomen, vowing Friday to punish them for their language .