Editor's note: The opinions in this article are the author's, as published by our content partner, and do not necessarily represent the views of MSN or Microsoft. This op-ed is co-signed by 149 African Americans who served in the Obama administration. This post has been updated. We've heard this before. Go back where you came from. Go back to Africa. And now, "send her back." Black and brown people in America don't hear these chants in a vacuum; for many of us, we've felt their full force being shouted in our faces, whispered behind our backs, scrawled across lockers, or hurled at us online. They are part of a pattern in our country designed to denigrate us as well as keep us separate and afraid. As 149 African Americans who served in the last administration, we witnessed firsthand the relentless attacks on the legitimacy of President Barack Obama and his family from our front-row seats to America's first black presidency. Witnessing racism surge in our country, both during and after Obama's service and ours, has been a shattering reality, to say the least. But it has also provided jet-fuel for our activism, especially in moments such as these. Subscribe to the Post Most newsletter: Today's most popular stories on The Washington Post We stand with congresswomen Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib, as well as all those currently under attack by President Trump, along with his supporters and his enablers, who feel deputized to decide who belongs here   and who does not. There is truly nothing more un-American than calling on fellow citizens to leave our country   by citing their immigrant roots, or ancestry, or their unwillingness to sit in quiet obedience while democracy is being undermined. We are proud descendants of immigrants, refugees and the enslaved Africans who built this country while enduring the horrors of its original sin. We stand on the soil they tilled, and march in the streets they helped to pave. We are red-blooded Americans, we are patriots, and we have plenty to say about the direction this country is headed. We decry voter suppression. We demand equitable access to health care, housing, quality schools and employment. We welcome new Americans with dignity and open arms. And we will never stop fighting for the overhaul of a criminal-justice system with racist foundations. We come from Minnesota and Michigan. The Bronx and Baton Rouge. Florida and Philadelphia. Cleveland and the Carolinas. Atlanta and Nevada. Oak-town and the Chi. We understand our role in this democracy, and respect the promise of a nation built by, for and of immigrants. We are part of that tradition, and have the strength to both respect our ancestors from faraway lands and the country we all call home. Our love of country lives in these demands, and our commitment to use our voices and our energy to build a more perfect union. We refuse to sit idly by as racism, sexism, homophobia and xenophobia are wielded by the president and any elected official complicit in the poisoning of our democracy. We call on local, state and congressional officials, as well as presidential candidates to articulate their policies and strategies for moving us forward as a strong democracy, through a racial-equity lens that prioritizes people over profit. We will continue to support candidates for local, state and federal office who add more diverse representation to the dialogue and those who understand the importance of such diversity when policymaking here in our country and around the world. We ask all Americans to be a good neighbor by demonstrating anti-racist, environmentally friendly, and inclusive behavior toward everyone in your everyday interactions. The statesman Frederick Douglass warned, "The life of a nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful and virtuous." This nation has neither grappled with nor healed from the horrors of its origins. It is time to advance that healing process now through our justice, economic, health and political systems. Expect to hear more from us. We plan to leave this country better than we found it. This is our home. Saba Abebe , former special assistant, Office of Economic Impact and Diversity, Energy Department Tsehaynesh Abebe , former adviser, U.S. Agency for International Development David Adeleye , former policy specialist, White House Bunmi Akinnusotu , former special assistant, Office of Land and Emergency Management, Environmental Protection Agency Trista Allen , former senior adviser to the regional administrator, General Services Administration Maria Anderson , former operations assistant, White House Karen Andre , former White House liaison, Department of Housing and Urban Development Caya Lewis Atkins , former counselor for science and public health, Department of Health and Human Services Roy L. Austin Jr. , former deputy assistant to the president, White House Domestic Policy Council Kevin Bailey , former special assistant, White House; senior policy adviser, Treasury Department Jumoke Balogun , former adviser to the secretary, Labor Department Diana Banks , former deputy assistant secretary, Defense Department Desiree N. Barnes , former adviser to the press secretary, White House Kevin F. Beckford , former special adviser, Department of Housing and Urban Development Alaina Beverly , former associate director, Office of Urban Affairs, White House Saba Bireda , former senior counsel, Office for Civil Rights, Education Department Vincent H. Bish Jr. , former special assistant to the assistant secretary of strategic program management, Department of Health and Human Services Michael Blake , former director for African American, minority and women business enterprises and county and statewide elected officials, White House Tenicka Boyd , former special assistant, Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Education Department Tanya Bradsher , former assistant secretary for public affairs, Department of Homeland Security Stacey Brayboy , former chief of staff, Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Agriculture Department Allyn Brooks-LaSure , former deputy associate administrator for external affairs, Environmental Protection Agency Chiquita Brooks-LaSure , former director of coverage policy, Office of Health Reform, Department of Health and Human Services Quincy K. Brown , former senior policy adviser, Office of Science and Technology Policy, White House Taylor Campbell , former director of correspondence systems innovation, White House Crystal Carson , former chief of staff to the director of communications, White House Genger Charles , former general deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Housing, Federal Housing Administration, Department of Housing and Urban Development Glorie Chiza , former associate director, Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, White House Sarah Haile Coombs , special assistant, Department of Health and Human Services Michael Cox , former special assistant to the assistant secretary for intergovernmental affairs, Commerce Department Adria Crutchfield , former director of external affairs, Federal Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force, Department of Housing and Urban Development Joiselle Cunningham , former special adviser, Office of the Secretary, Education Department Charlotte Flemmings Curtis , former special adviser for White House initiatives, Corporation for National and Community Service Kareem Dale , former special assistant to the president for disability policy, White House Ashlee Davis , former White House liaison, Agriculture Department Marco A. Davis , former deputy director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics Russella L. Davis-Rogers , former chief of staff, Office of Strategic Partnerships, Department of Education Tequia Hicks Delgado , former senior adviser for congressional engagement and legislative relations, Office of Legislative Affairs, White House Kalisha Dessources Figures , former policy adviser, White House Council on Women and Girls Leek Deng , former special assistant, Bureau for Global Health, U.S. Agency for International Development Tene Dolphin , former chief of staff, Economic Development Administration, Commerce Department Monique Dorsainvil , former deputy chief of staff, Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, White House Joshua DuBois , former executive director, Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships; former special assistant to the president, White House Dru Ealons , former director, Office of Public Engagement, Environmental Protection Agency Rosemary Enobakhare , former deputy associate administrator for public engagement and environmental education, Environmental Protection Agency Karen Evans , former assistant director and policy adviser, Office of Cabinet Affairs, White House Clarence J. Fluker , former deputy associate director for national parks and youth engagement, White House Council on Environmental Quality Heather Foster , former public engagement adviser and director of African American affairs, White House Kalina Francis , former special adviser, Office of Public Affairs, Treasury Department Matthew "Van" Buren Freeman , former senior adviser, Minority Business Development Agency, Commerce Department Cameron French , former deputy assistant secretary for public affairs, Department of Housing and Urban Development Jocelyn Frye , former deputy assistant to the president and director of policy and special projects for the first lady, White House Bernard Fulton , former deputy assistant secretary for congressional relations, Department of Housing and Urban Development Stephanie Gaither , former confidential assistant to the deputy director, Office of Management and Budget, White House Demetria A. Gallagher , former senior adviser for policy and inclusive innovation, Commerce Department Lateisha Garrett , former White House liaison, National Endowment for the Humanities W. Cyrus Garrett , former special adviser to the director of counternarcotics enforcement, Department of Homeland Security Bishop M. Garrison , former science and technology directorate adviser, Department of Homeland Security Lisa Gelobter , former chief digital service officer, Education Department A'shanti F. Gholar , former special assistant to the secretary, Labor Department Jay R. Gilliam , former special assistant, U.S. Agency for International Development Artealia Gilliard , former deputy assistant secretary for transportation policy, Transportation Department Brenda Girton-Mitchell , former director, Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Education Department Jason Green , former associate counsel and special assistant to the president, White House Corey Arnez Griffin , former associate director, Peace Corps Kyla F. Griffith , former special adviser to the secretary, Commerce Department Simone L. Hardeman-Jones , former deputy assistant secretary, Office of Legislative and Congressional Affairs, Education Department Thamar Harrigan , former senior intergovernmental relations adviser, Department of Housing and Urban Development Dalen Harris , former director, Office of Intergovernmental and Public Liaison, Office of National Drug Control Policy, White House Khalilah M. Harris , former deputy director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans; former senior adviser, Office of Personnel Management Adam Hodge , former deputy assistant secretary for public affairs, Treasury Department Valerie Jarrett , former senior adviser, White House Will Yemi Jawando , former associate director, Office of Public Engagement, White House Karine Jean-Pierre , former northeast political director, Office of Political Affairs, White House A. Jenkins , former director, Center for Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Commerce Department Adora Jenkins , former press secretary, Justice Department; former deputy associate administrator for external affairs, Environmental Protection Agency W. Nate Jenkins , former chief of staff and senior adviser to the budget director, Office of Management and Budget, White House David J. Johns , former executive director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans Brent Johnson , former special adviser to the secretary, Commerce Department Broderick Johnson , former White House assistant to the president and Cabinet secretary for My Brother's Keeper Task Force Carmen Daniels Jones , former director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Agriculture Department Gregory K. Joseph II , former special assistant, Office of the Executive Secretariat, Energy Department Jamia Jowers , former special assistant, National Security Council Charmion N. Kinder , former associate, Press Office of the First Lady, White House; former assistant press secretary, Department of Housing and Urban Development Elise Nelson Leary , former international affairs adviser, National Aeronautics and Space Administration Kimberlyn Leary , former adviser, White House Council on Women and Girls Daniella Gibbs Léger , former special assistant to the president and director of message events, White House Georgette Lewis , former policy adviser, Department of Health and Human Services Kevin Lewis , former director of African American media, White House; former principal deputy director of public affairs, Justice Department Catherine E. Lhamon , former assistant secretary for civil rights, Education Department Tiffani Long , former special adviser, Economic Development Administration Latifa Lyles , former director, Women's Bureau, Labor Department Brenda Mallory , former general counsel, White House Council on Environmental Quality Dominique Mann , former media affairs manager, White House Shelly Marc , former policy adviser, Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, White House Tyra A. Mariani , former chief of staff to the deputy secretary, Education Department Lawrence Mason III , former domestic policy analyst, Office of Presidential Correspondence, White House Dexter L. McCoy , former special assistant, Office of the Secretary, Education Department Matthew McGuire , former U.S. executive director, The World Bank Group Tyrik McKeiver , former senior adviser, State Department Tjada D'Oyen McKenna , former assistant to the administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development Solianna Meaza , former special assistant to associate administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development Mahlet Mesfin , former assistant director for international science and technology, Office of Science and Technology Policy, White House Ricardo Michel , former director, Center for Transformational Partnerships, U.S. Agency for International Development Global Development Lab Paul Monteiro , former associate director, Office of Public Engagement, White House Jesse Moore , former associate director, Office of Public Engagement, White House Shannon Myricks , former specialist, Office of Management and Administration Information Services, White House Melanie Newman , former director of public affairs, Justice Department Fatima Noor , former policy assistant, Domestic Policy Council Bianca Oden , former deputy chief of staff, Agriculture Department Funmi Olorunnipa , former ethics counsel, White House Counsel's Office Elizabeth Ogunwo , former White House liaison, Peace Corps Stephanie Sprow Owens , former deputy director, Reach Higher, Education Department Denise L. Pease , former regional administrator of the northeast and Caribbean region, General Services Administration Danielle Perry , former special adviser to the assistant secretary, Agriculture Department Allison C. Pulliam , former special assistant, Office of Presidential Personnel, White House Colby Redmond , former advance specialist, Office of the Secretary, Commerce Department Derrick Robinson , former researcher, Office of Communications, White House Lynn M. Ross , former deputy assistant secretary for policy development, Department of Housing and Urban Development Sarah Rutherford , former press and media operations assistant, White House Alexander Sewell , former special assistant, Export-Import Bank Michael Smith , former special assistant to the president and senior director of Cabinet affairs for My Brother's Keeper, White House Russell F. Smith , former deputy assistant secretary for international fisheries, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Commerce Department Jackeline Stewart , former press secretary, General Services Administration Angela Tennison , former leadership development director, Education Department Kenny Thompson Jr. , former special assistant to the president and director of message events to the vice president, White House Ivory A. Toldson , former executive director, White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities Fred Tombar , former senior adviser to the secretary for disaster recovery, Department of Housing and Urban Development Christopher R. Upperman , former assistant administrator for public engagement, Small Business Administration Malik Walker , former senior adviser for congressional and legislative affairs, Office of Personnel Management Jason R.L. Wallace , former director of scheduling and advance, Department of Housing and Urban Development Myesha Ward , former assistant U.S. trade representative for intergovernmental affairs and public engagement Clarence Wardell III , former presidential innovation fellow Benjamin E. Webb , former executive director of policy and planning, Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security C'Reda J. Weeden , former executive secretary, Department of Health and Human Services Tonia Wellons , former associate director, Office of Strategic Partnerships, Peace Corps Antonio White , former senior adviser, Treasury Department Monae White , former special projects manager, Education Department Aketa Marie Williams , former director of strategic communications, Office of the Undersecretary, Education Department Jonta Williams , former adviser to the assistant administrator for Africa, U.S. Agency for International Development Jessica Wilson , former special assistant, Office of Policy, Department of Homeland Security Taj Wilson , former deputy associate counsel, White House Candace Wint , former director of advance, Department of Housing and Urban Development Brent C. Woolfork , former managing director, Overseas Private Investment Corporation Tarrah Cooper Wright , former special assistant to the secretary, Department of Homeland Security Ursula Wright , former associate assistant deputy secretary, Education Department Carl Young , former adviser and assistant, Office of Management and Budget, White House Stephanie Young , former senior adviser, Office of Public Engagement, White House David N. Zikusoka , former senior adviser for weapons of mass destruction and nonproliferation, Office of the Vice President, White House Read more: Greg Sargent: New GOP panic about Trump's racism reveals an ugly truth Karen Tumulty: We need someone who can lift us up again. Enter President Obama. George Conway: George Conway: Trump is a racist president Alexandra Petri: I have no racist bones, but this exoskeleton has propped me up for decades


NASCAR will investigate Kyle Larson 's last-lap crash Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway after the No. 42 Chevrolet went airborne after a spin and rolled over several times. After being hit on the right side by William Byron 's No. 24 Chevy, Larson's car slid sideways toward the inside SAFER barrier on the backstretch. About 50 feet from the wall, his right-rear tire began lifting off the pavement. Larson's car was virtually perpendicular to the pavement when it impacted the barrier head on and then flipped multiple times. NASCAR often has reacted with safety enhancement after cars have gotten airborne by spinning. After multiple cars went airborne in the May 1, 2016 race , NASCAR also launched an investigation. Larson's incident was similar to Matt Kenseth's in the race three years ago as their cars seemed to lift off without contact in both instances. "Initially I thought I was going to hit the inside wall and right before I got there, it started to lift," said the Chip Ganassi Racing driver, who finished 24th. "That was probably the longest flip I've ever had. I just didn't know if it would ever stop. "I knew I was flipping and was just hoping I wouldn't get any closer to the catchfence. It was a little bit scary, but I'm all right. Thanks to the fab shop at Chip Ganassi Racing for building safe race cars. Like I said, it was scary, but I'm just thankful I'm OK." NASCAR spokesman Tom Bryant told NBCSports.com's Dustin Long that the crash would be analyzed to "determine all the factors that led to it." The four-car wreck began when David Ragan bumped into Byron, starting the chain reaction that collected Jeffrey Earnhardt and Larson. It was the second incident on the final lap. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. had crashed hard into the outside wall shortly after winner Chase Elliott took the white flag, but NASCAR (which was monitoring Stenhouse's wreck) held the yellow until just as the final wreck began. NASCAR said the last yellow was because of debris from Stenhouse's No. 17 Ford. In the race report, it listed the reason for the last caution as "17, 24, 42, 38, 81, incident backstretch", even though Stenhouse's crash happened on the frontstretch. Bob-we waited to see if the 17 rolled off-similar to the 20 earlier-we then looked back at track. Debris clearly on track and once 17 was stopped and did not re-fire we threw the caution. Judgement call and 100 percent confident in it being the right call https://t.co/yHxZOy1XOO   Steve O'Donnell (@odsteve) April 29, 2019 Fine for fans to debate it-always happens. Race weekend was awesome and drivers gave us great racing all weekend. That is the real story. Great crowds, great atmosphere and great talent displayed on the track. https://t.co/w83nUlDYnS   Steve O'Donnell (@odsteve) April 29, 2019 There were three multicar crashes in the race, but Larson's Camaro was the only car to get airborne after concerns about escalating speeds with a new rules package. Ryan Newman told Long after practice Friday that NASCAR had prepared poorly for the spike in increased closing rates . "I think we kept most of the race cars on the race track which was probably a lot of luck," Newman said Sunday after finishing seventh. "I don't know that (the racing) was much different. You got bigger runs, but the end result was basically the same. We are still at the mercy of other people's mistakes which will always be a part of racing here. In the end I am glad all the race cars stayed on the racetrack."


If you come at the king, you best not miss. LeBron James taught that lesson to 14-year-old Gabe Cupps over the weekend. As LeBron's son, LeBron "Bronny" James Jr., was in the middle of an LA Classic Tournament game with his EYBL team Strive For Greatness, Cupps, who plays with Bronny on the North Coast Blue Chips, challenged the elder James to a 3-point shootout. LeBron - who wasn't about to back down from a 14-year-old's challenge - went into game mode to take on Cupps. Both players made their first three attempts, but when Cupps missed his fourth try, LeBron calmly knocked down the winning shot. View this post on Instagram I got called out by my guy and in my opinion the best shooters(he can do more too) for the Class of 2023 @gcupps23 today. Told him about a certain switch I can hit when needed and he didn't believe me. Well he found out the hard way! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. Still my guy Cupps nevertheless 😁. #repost @ballislife A post shared by LeBron James (@kingjames) on May 26, 2019 at 5:20pm PDT Check out that look at the end. LeBron couldn't hold back his smile. Despite beating Cupps, LeBron did have high praise for the eighth grader's game. He wrote on Instagram: I got called out by my guy and in my opinion the best shooters(he can do more too) for the Class of 2023 @gcupps23 today. Told him about a certain switch I can hit when needed and he didn't believe me. Well he found out the hard way! . Still my guy Cupps nevertheless . LeBron really is the best basketball parent. MORE: Kevin Na gives caddie awesome present right after PGA Tour win: 'That's your car!' Ahead of Finals, Stephen Curry defends Kevin Durant against critics Damon Harrison tired of repeated contract talks NFL world responds to passing of Packers legend Bart Starr This is how the Milwaukee Bucks head into the offseason Related slideshow: Best of 2019 NBA playoffs (provided by imagn)


Cody Zeller didn't sit through all those business classes at Indiana University just to let them go to waste once he got to the NBA. With free agency just around the corner, he may need them more than ever. Not so much for himself, but for his superstar teammate on the Charlotte Hornets. Kemba Walker may end up as the most important point guard not named Kyrie Irving to hit the open market. The 29-year-old has already stated that staying in Charlotte is his first priority , but what if that isn't enough? That's where Zeller comes in. Only one month until free agency starts in the NBA! Fundraising has already begun though! pic.twitter.com/W0R6KFnXT2   Cody Zeller (@CodyZeller) June 1, 2019 Lemonade stands are foolproof investments. Every child knows this. There's hardly any overhead, you don't need too much seed money to get started and resources generally stay at a fixed, low cost. Not to mention, the city of Charlotte will regularly reach temperatures of 75-90 degrees in the summer. The citizens of that city are going to need something to keep them cool. Thanks to Zeller, Hornets fans can stay hydrated and support their team. It's a win-win. A supply chain that meets multiple demands. It's a good thing Zeller is starting his enterprise a few weeks before free agents can begin signing deals on July 6 because at his low price of 25 cents per glass, the big man will need to sell about, oh, 884 million cups of lemonade to reach his goal. Considering the population of the state of North Carolina tops out around 10 million people, Zeller will need them start craving lemonade like crazy in order to average the 26 million cups sold each day from now until free agency opens he needs to pay Kemba's salary. A heat wave sure would help. All Zeller's customers would get in return is a three-time NBA All-Star who averaged 25.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists this season, one of the nastiest step-back's the game has ever seen plus a nice, refreshing glass of lemonade. Talk about a bargain. Of course, Hornet's owner Michael Jordan is also worth nearly $2 billion, so maybe he can buy a good amount of lemonade himself. Or he can skip the beverages and pass the money straight to Walker. Think of all the hours of labor it would save Zeller. That's time he can reinvest into preparing himself for next season, which benefits Jordan and the Hornets even more. Someone is going to end up paying Kemba a lot of money to come play basketball for them. If it isn't through Jordan's generosity or Charlotte's collective thirst, it'll be another city. And there's not enough lemonade in the world to get rid of the awful taste Hornets fans would be left with if that happens. Go buy some of Cody Zeller's lemonade, Charlotte fans. It's your civic duty.             Blake Schuster is a writer for Yahoo Sports . Have a tip? Email him at blakeschuster@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! More from Yahoo Sports: World No. 1 Naomi Osaka joins list of French Open upsets Cubs troll Cardinals fans by 'booing' Kris Bryant What SEC lifting alcohol ban at stadiums means Three pressing questions Warriors must answer in Game 2


Minneapolis is due to turn warm over the next few days, according to the seven-day forecast from drone-powered weather service Saildrone . The weather today will bring a high temperature of 82 degrees, with a high of 84 expected on Friday. Rain could arrive in a couple of days. Saturday's forecast shows the highest chance of rain at 85%, with rain possible through Tuesday. Skies will be cloudy today and mostly cloudy on Friday. Winds will continue to be light throughout the week, with the highest speeds on Monday at just 11 mph. This story was created automatically using Saildrone's local weather forecast data, then reviewed by an editor. We also incorporate historic weather data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.


Heads will turn and mouths will drop. Stop whatever you are doing, because you're not going to want to miss your chance to own this 1931 Ford Model A Roadster Pickup . Merely calling this a rare find is an understatement, as vintage Fords from this era are hard to come by   let alone one in such great condition! That is why Streetside Classics is excited to offer up this 1931 Model A for sale at $29,995. That is definitely a reasonable price tag for this beautifully restored soft-top convertible pickup. This example has been thoroughly refurbished both inside and out, and is definitely one of high show quality. This vehicle in its particular configuration and condition is a needle in a haystack and a classic collectible at that. This beloved antique has been revitalized with serious attention to detail and admirable tender loving care. The deep green paint and tan stripes complement the smooth body panels that effortlessly blend together from the cabin to bed area   no small feat for a car that was produced nearly 90 years ago. The chrome counterparts (particularly on the front bumper and headlight rings) are bright and add an accented look to the exterior. Even when parked in a garage, the exterior paint emits a luster that will put a smile on your face that forces you to look back at it each and every time. The full-size spare tires mounted on each side of the vented hood were originally put there as a precautionary measure for drivers taking on unpaved roads, but also gives the roadster pickup a nice touch. The canvas manual convertible top with clear rear window rests at the back of the cabin and functions just as it should. The refurbished interior on this 1931 Model A is another noteworthy feature, with its dark tan vinyl-clad bench seat, functional gauges, and detailed door and kick panels. There are no unusual signs of wear and tear to be found, and suggests that very little time has been spent in the cockpit since its restoration. The bed of the pickup sports freshly-prepped wooden slats with color-matched steel tie-downs for a remarkable appearance. This example is powered by a period-correct drivetrain that fires up immediately and runs well. The heart and soul of this Model A roadster pickup is a 201 cubic-inch flathead 4-cylinder engine mated to a three-speed manual transmission that shifts with no problem. The whole build sits on newly refurbished 19-inch wheels wrapped in new 4.75/5.00-19 rubber. Even the undercarriage has been thoroughly detailed and painted. As aforementioned, this 1931 Ford Model A Roadster Pickup is an exceptionally well refurbished classic with a seldom-seen configuration that makes it a truly rare find. Call today to make this beauty yours! Follow MSN Autos on Facebook and Twitter


At 9 a.m. on Feb. 7, head coach Chris Saltmarsh learned in a meeting with Florida Tech athletic director Bill Jurgens that the women's golf program would be cut after the spring season. At 12:30 p.m., they gathered the team in between classes so that Jurgens could deliver the news before a press release went out that afternoon. "I remember him saying 'Do you have any questions?' " senior Lucy Eaton recalled. "We all just had our mouths open in shock. No one could say anything. We were just all heartbroken." Later that day on the team's group chat, Eaton wrote: "New target acquired. Let's go win nationals." At the time, no one actually believed that might happen. But Hollywood scripts are made from moments like these. The Florida Tech team channeled their anger and frustration into the kind of storybook run that transcends sports, winning the program's first NCAA Division II title on its last day of existence. "I have broken down a number of times without anybody knowing it," said Saltmarsh. "You can hide a lot behind glasses." Florida Tech actually cut three varsity programs in all, with men's and women's tennis facing the same fate. Among the factors Jurgens listed in determining which sports were cut was the "potential to be competitive." Rollins coach Julie Garner said she would've had T-shirts printed up with that phrase. Nothing about the fall pointed toward anything special for Florida Tech. They were ranked 19th coming into the 2018-19 season and then Saltmarsh benched one of his top players for lack of effort and told senior Paolo Ortiz to take some time off to work through personal issues. The Panthers didn't even look like a top-30 team when spring rolled around. Members of the Florida Tech women's golf team after winning the NCAA Division II National Championship on May 18, 2019. (Florida Tech Athletics) Then the announcement hit. Saltmarsh told his players he'd do whatever he could to help them land on their feet. He didn't change their daily routine. Everyone still showed up for 6 a.m. workouts, committed to get better. Saltmarsh added an extra tournament to the schedule to give younger players another opportunity to showcase their skills to other programs. Eaton, the No. 5 player, won her first college tournament at the Battle at Hilton Head and led the Panthers to their first team title since 2016. The team's No. 4 player, Lauren Watson, finished second. "I think that's when it hit the rest of them that there's something we can do here," said Saltmarsh. Florida Tech won twice more in the spring and finished second at Barry's event. "It was all about trying to keep winning, keep making history," Saltmarsh said. After a disappointing sixth-place finish at the Sunshine State Conference Championship, Saltmarsh felt the team had grown a little complacent thinking it was going to be easy. There's nothing easy about advancing out of the South Region in Division II, a field that's annually stacked with highly-ranked teams. "You come out of the South Region battered and bloodied because it's just so deep," said Garner, who has led the Tars to six national titles. Florida Tech finished fourth at regionals to advance to the NCAA Championship for the first time in school history. NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!!!! pic.twitter.com/dQjFXU3FHJ - Florida Tech Sports (@GoFITPanthers) May 18, 2019 This year's event was held on PGA National's Champion Course, site of the Honda Classic, in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. The Panthers won the 54-hole stroke play competition to advance to match play as the No. 1 seed. Division II uses a "Medal Match" format at NCAAs, which is scored by the cumulative number of strokes by rather than the number of holes won. Florida Tech defeated Findlay in the quarterfinals, 3-2, and then dispatched Southwestern Oklahoma State in the semifinals by the same score. Eaton and Watson were rooming together in Palm Beach and said they couldn't eat or sleep the night before the championship match because nerves were running so high. Eaton went off in the lead match and found herself 6 down through 12 holes. Volunteer assistant coach Mitch Greenberg approached Eaton in one of the fairways and convinced her to get into a tree pose to work on some deep breathing. Eaton resisted at first, thinking she might look a bit silly going yoga mid-round, but committed to it and calmed down. The Englishwoman, who broke her elbow last fall after jumping on the hood of a car, rallied like there was no tomorrow to put the first point on the board for the Panthers. Saltmarsh said he always knew she had it in her. Ortiz put up the second point and sophomore Megan Dennis hung on to clinch it on the 18th. Players on the men's team call Saltmarsh the "Stone-face Killer" because they can never tell what he's thinking or feeling. He likes it that way. He couldn't stop the tears on Saturday though. "Sheer joy," he said. University of Indianapolis coach Brent Nicoson wanted his team to win, of course, the Greyhounds have won two of the last four NCAA DII titles, but found it easy to root for Florida Tech. Nicoson said he and his team could imagine themselves in that situation and how they might react. AND THAT DOES IT!!!! @megan_dennisxo knocks in to secure the @NCAADII National Championship for Florida Tech!!!! pic.twitter.com/CMi4D2KrpK - Florida Tech Women's Golf (@FloridaTechWG) May 18, 2019 "They took the high road and did the right thing and proved not only to their school, but to the nation what they're made of," Nicoson said. This is Saltmarsh's ninth season as head men's and women's golf course at Florida Tech. Three years ago, he found out that they were cutting the scholarships for both programs, though current players were grandfathered in. As of now, he plans to remain at Florida Tech coaching a men's team that won the conference title last year. "We're going to try and remain competitive even without scholarships," he said. "I firmly believe it's in the realm of possibility. It will take some work. I'm not a quitter. I don't know how to lose to be honest." Something like this has happened once before in college golf. Minnesota won the men's NCAA Division I title in 2002 just months after learning the program might be eliminated. Supporters rallied and managed to reverse the decision. That won't be happening at Florida Tech. "I think the ship has sailed," Saltmarsh said. Dennis, a sophomore, will head to Pepperdine in the fall and classmate Beijer signed with Missouri. Watson has only one year left of eligibility and plans to compete on the men's team at Florida Tech next year. The team gathered on Wednesday evening at The Woods in Jupiter for a Last Supper of sorts. "It seemed fitting," said Saltmarsh of dining at Tiger's place. It also happened to be Eaton's 23rd birthday. She ordered a big burger to celebrate and her smile radiated through the phone. "I wouldn't want to be here with anybody else," she said. And then the curtain fell. MORE: Clint Bowyer furiously punched Ryan Newman after NASCAR's All-Star Race NBA Free Agency 2019: The top players Did the Raiders steal the best fullback in the 2019 NFL draft? Steve Kerr: Kevin Durant's injury is 'a little more serious than we thought' Video: Bodexpress Jockey Falls Off Horse At Beginning of Preakness


Actress Felicity Huffman is one of two people expected to formally plead guilty in Boston on Monday for participating in the college admissions cheating scandal. Huffman, along with 50 other people , was charged back in March as part of " Operation Varsity Blues ," which found that wealthy parents had allegedly cut fat checks to get their children falsely certified as athletic recruits at elite colleges and universities, or to facilitate cheating on their kids' SAT and ACT scores. Huffman agreed to plead guilty in March. Massachusetts US Attorney Andrew Lelling's office has said in court papers it will recommend a short prison term, a fine of $20,000, and a year of supervised release. Also set to appear before US District Court Judge Indira Talwani is Devin Sloane, a Los Angeles businessman who paid $250,000 to have his son designated as a member of the USC water polo team in 2018. Sloane paid mastermind William "Rick" Singer $200,000 and former USC athletic official Donna Heinel $50,000, according to court records. Singer has pleaded guilty for his role and is awaiting sentencing. Heinel has pleaded not guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy. Talwani is not bound to follow the recommendations from prosecutors. Huffman is accused of paying $15,000 to improve her daughter's SAT scores, according to court documents released last month. "My daughter knew absolutely nothing about my actions, and in my misguided and profoundly wrong way, I have betrayed her," Huffman said in a statement in April . "This transgression toward her and the public I will carry for the rest of my life." Huffman is among more than a dozen parents who signed plea agreements with prosecutors, who will seek prison sentences ranging from a few months to a few years, according to previous court filings. Lori Loughlin, another high-profile actress involved in the scandal, is among a group of 19 parents under indictment who have pleaded not guilty through their attorneys as they fight the criminal charges. Prior to his plea, Singer cooperated with law enforcement. Singer's interactions with Huffman and her husband, actor William H. Macy, were obtained by law enforcement. Huffman and Macy   who is not facing charges   hired Singer to improve the results of one of their daughters on standardized testing scheduled for December 2017, ultimately paying $15,000 to a bogus charity Singer operated as part of the scam. Before the December 2017 SAT, Huffman and her spouse agreed to a plan that would arrange for their daughter to take the standardized test at a location where Singer's ally, Mark Riddell, would proctor the test and could "secretly correct her answers afterwards." At the instruction of Singer, Huffman obtained permission from the College Board to allow her daughter a 100 percent increase in the test-taking time. Huffman alerted her daughter's high school guidance counselor about the change, leading the counselor to unwittingly disrupt the plans, according to an FBI affidavit. The counselor noted that Huffman's daughter would have to take the test at her high school and the guidance counselor would be the proctor. "Ruh Ro!'' Huffman wrote to Singer, according to the court filing. "Looks like [my daughter's school] wants to provide their own proctor." At the instruction of Singer, Huffman notified the school that her daughter would be taking the test at the West Hollywood Test Center on the weekend so she would not miss any school. According to the court filing, a Singer ally proctored the exam attended by Huffman's daughter on Dec. 2, 2017, and secretly changed her answers. "Ultimately, Huffman's daughter received a score of 1420 on the SAT, an improvement of 400 points over her PSAT" when she took it without help one year earlier, the court filing said. The man identified as Riddell was allegedly paid $35,000 by Singer for falsifying the test results for Huffman's daughter and several other Singer clients. Singer also allegedly paid a bribe to the administrator of the test center. Huffman and her spouse later talked with Singer about scamming the test results for their younger daughter, whom Huffman described as "academically driven." They agreed to pay $15,000 to get her SAT scores near the 1600 range so her daughter would qualify for "places like" Georgetown University, the court filing said. However, the couple did not follow through on that plan. Shelley Murphy can be reached at shmurphy@globe.com . Follow her on Twitter @shelleymurph . Maria Cramer can be reached at mcramer@globe.com . Follow her on Twitter @globemcramer .


President Donald Trump plans to watch the first of the Democratic debates on Wednesday night while on a plane headed for the G-20 summit in Japan   but he's not looking forward to it. "It just seems very boring, but I'm going to watch it because I have to," he said Wednesday morning during a nearly 50-minute live phone interview on Fox Business Network. "This is part of my life." He continued to downplay the Democrats during the phone call, casting the candidates as a "very unexciting group of people." He stopped short of saying he planned to live-tweet during the debate. The debates, which will broadcast Wednesday and Thursday from Miami on NBC, MSNBC and Telemundo, is the first of the 2020 campaign cycle for top Democrats vying for their party's nomination. Each night will feature 10 different candidates. The only challenger Trump mentioned by name was former Vice President Joe Biden, the front-runner for his party's 2020 nomination. Slideshow by Business Insider "Biden is a lost soul," Trump said. "He doesn't know where he is. He's changing his views rapidly." Biden has weathered criticism in recent weeks for appearing to change his stance on abortion. For decades, Biden, a devout Roman Catholic, had supported the Hyde Amendment, which bans federal funding for abortion, except if the life of the mother is in danger or she was the victim of rape or incest. But last month, Biden said, he would roll back the amendment.


A strong showing in the AAF with the San Antonio Commanders led the Denver Broncos to sign cornerback De'Vante Bausby earlier this offseason after the short-lived league went defunct. Broncos head coach Vic Fangio has familiarity with Bausby as well as he played under Fangio for parts of two seasons in 2015 and 2016 while Fangio was the Bears defensive coordinator. But that familiarity didn't keep Fangio from delivering a verbal kick-to-the-backside to Bausby on Monday. Via Nick Jhabvala of TheAthletic.com, Fangio said he wants to see more out of Bausby on the field . "I think there's been a time or two in Phase 2 where he's let the back-to-back season, albeit shortened, give him a reason to think he's tired, too, where he shouldn't do that," head coach Vic Fangio said, per The Athletic's Nicki Jhabvala. "He's got to overcome that. He's got to overcome being his own worst enemy and show the player that he can be." Bausby had a league-high four interceptions in eight games played for the Commanders before the league collapsed. And even though current workouts are expressly "voluntary," they are less so for players at the back-end of offseason rosters trying to make an impression. Even if Bausby is a bit worn down from the two months of football he played earlier this spring, Fangio doesn't appear to have much patience for it as he tries to make his own mark on the Broncos. Bausby has spent time with the Bears, Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles since entering the league as an undrafted free agent signing with the Chiefs out of Pittsburg State in 2015. He played four games with the Bears in 2016 and six with the Eagles in 2018. He made one start last season. Bausby has 26 career tackles.


Toyota team boss Rob Leupen says he is not surprised by the FIA World Endurance Championship's reduced LMP1 car count for 2019/20, criticising SMP Racing for leaving the series after only one season. Despite appearing on the initial entry list for the new season, SMP withdrew its pair of BR Engineering BR1s following a third-place finish at last month's Le Mans 24 Hours. Fellow privateer outfit Rebellion, which tested both of its cars at this week's Prologue test in Barcelona, is set to commence the season with only one car , leaving five LMP1 cars for the start of the 2019/20 campaign, including two Team LNT-run Ginettas. More from the Prologue: WEC Prologue: Toyota maintains slim lead over Rebellion Sarrazin convinced about Ginetta LMP1 car's potential Porsche dismisses 'new car' BoP fears with RSR-19 SMP was a vocal critic of the Equivalence of Technology rules that were in place for the 2018/19 WEC superseason and Le Mans, where its best car finished six laps down on the Toyotas despite enjoying an almost flawless run. "It's not really a surprise," Leupen told Motorsport.com at the Prologue when asked for his opinion on SMP's withdrawal. "I didn't expect it to be SMP, I was more expecting Rebellion [to quit] because there it's the same complaints. "On the one hand I think it's a shame that they are not here anymore, but what were their expectations? They were promised the chance of a quick win but you can't just show up and start winning. You pay your dues, like we did. We paid a lot, actually. "SMP lost six laps on us at Le Mans, but plenty of that was down to them because their pitstops weren't quick enough. You can complain, but those laps lost as a team you will never get back through EoT or whatever in the regulations." #8 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota TS050: Sebastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima, Fernando Alonso Photo by: Paul Foster For the new season, Toyota has agreed to a new system of success handicaps to further close the performance gap between its TS050 Hybrids and the privateers. It has also sacrificed its one-lap advantage in stint length and agreed to slower refuelling stops. Leupen believes that SMP "actually got what they wanted" with the new rules and is expecting Rebellion to compete for wins on merit this season. "I think they [Rebellion] can start winning races if they put together a good race," he continued. "We don't get an extra lap, we will refuel more slowly and lose all the advantages of the hybrid, apart from the ones on the track. "We accept it, but Rebellion or Ginetta will have to perform to a high level, as we do, to win. That's how it should be; there shouldn't be cheap wins. "It's good for our team, because they managed to play it safe last year. Now they will feel the pressure again. The drivers will also make a difference." #8 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota TS050 - Hybrid: Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima, Brendon Hartley Photo by: Toyota Racing Leupen doesn't feel Toyota is responsible for SMP leaving the WEC, but believes it is also in the Japanese marque's interest to keep the LMP1 class attractive. "It's partly our responsibility to have a good championship with good racing and not race by ourselves with two cars," he admitted. "We can dominate and lead by six laps but for us it's nicer to have more actual races. "We're accepting this for the championship, not for any individual privateer team. It is a solution for everyone and shouldn't be seen as us doing a favour to one or two teams." SMP hits out at "non-equivalence" After being contacted by Motorsport.com for comment, a spokesperson for SMP said it was the team's belief that Toyota was only interested in its own "spectacle" and not in genuine competition with the non-hybrids. The spokesperson said: "We were never promised a win, but we were thinking that within one category each car should be allowed by the regulations to win, but this was not the case at all. "One team was officially granted an advantage, it was written in the regulations that a hybrid car must have a laptime gap, and that their race stints must be longer. This non-equivalence was upheld through the whole season. "Our team did a great job and we had great on-track competition with Rebellion, while Toyota was doing its own spectacle, which has nothing to do with the essence of racing." #17 SMP Racing BR Engineering BR1: Stéphane Sarrazin, Egor Orudzhev, Sergey Sirotkin Photo by: Marc Fleury


The latest batch of NFL power polls is coming out. With the preseason kicking off this week, it's a good time to check on how the Browns are viewed nationally. From The Athletic , there is both respect and worry. The pollsters there rank the Browns at No. 10 overall. The strong finish to the 2018 season brings excitement, but the weight of decades of struggle before that is heavily evident in their explanation, too. Our panel is clearly excited about the Browns, though we're not quite all-in yet. But if you would have told us a year ago that the Browns would open this training camp No. 10 in the power rankings with Freddie Kitchens as the head coach, we definitely would have called you crazy. Now it's time for the Browns to prove that the progress we saw in the second half of last season was just a start of what's to come. The good news is, the Browns are up from where they finished last season at No. 16. And they are one notch ahead of the division rival Steelers, who are next in the AFC North at 11. New England is at the top, as the defending champs should be until proven otherwise. Kansas City, Indianapolis and the Los Angeles Chargers are the other AFC teams above the Browns. MORE: Cleveland Indians completely roasted Colin Cowherd after Baker Mayfield chugged a beer 2020 aggregate mock draft 1.0: Here are the top NBA prospects to know Matt LaFleur on Packers FB Danny Vitale: 'He's been awesome' How Andre Iguodala could still be attainable for Houston Roundup: Taylor Swift Secret Listening Party, Entenmann's Recall, Jason Mamoa Without Beard and Long Hair


Indianapolis Colts star linebacker Darius Leonard may have missed the entirety of the spring workouts, but the second-year pro insists he will return Thursday when training camp officially begins. The reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year battled an ankle injury throughout the majority of his rookie season-though you'd never know it. It required offseason surgery that forced him to miss the spring. Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Leonard was confident he'll be ready to go when the team hits the field Thursday afternoon. He sat out the on-field portion of OTAs and minicamp (ankle), but he said he'll be out there on the field tomorrow when practice starts. - Jake Arthur (@JakeArthurNFL) July 24, 2019 Leonard was a bright spot on a defense that made some major strides during the second half of the regular season. His league-leading 163 tackles (111 solo) helped him earn a First-Team All-Pro selection, despite being snubbed a Pro Bowl nod. The Colts defense underwent even more changes this offseason as general manager Chris Ballard emphasized adding depth and talent to that side of the ball. It included adding veteran pass rusher Justin Houston in free agency and two primary linebackers in draft picks Bobby Okereke and E.J. Speed. Leonard has made his goals known for 2019. Though he came away with some hardware from his rookie campaign, he's ready to make a jump into the Defensive Player of the Year and even MVP conversations. The Colts defense has seen the emergence of several building blocks over the past few seasons, but none have had an impact like Leonard. He's set to make his return to the field Thursday at Grand Park in Westfield. MORE: Mike Trout's perfect 98.6 MPH throw to home plate had everyone in awe What might Kostas Antetokounmpo bring to the Lakers on offense? How will the Packers replace DL Mike Daniels? Hurns release opens path forward for several young Cowboys WRs The 21 dumbest ideas in NFL history


NEW YORK   Walmart is extending its debt-free college benefits to high schoolers as a way to attract and retain workers in a tight labor market. The nation's largest private employer said Tuesday it will offer free college SAT and ACT prep for its workers in high school while offering two to three free general education college classes through an education startup. Walmart estimates about 25,000 people under age 18 work at its stores, a fraction of its 1.3 million person U.S. workforce. It is an expansion of a program Walmart launched last year offering affordable access to a college degree for full-time and part-time workers who have been with the company at least 90 days. The company is working with a Denver-startup called Guild Education that offers a program costing a dollar a day to Walmart workers at several nonprofit universities with online programs that have had success working with adult learners. It also said it's expanding the number of degrees beyond business and supply management to an additional 14 that will include cybersecurity and computer science. Walmart says these programs will help provide workers with skills it needs in the future. About 7,500 adult workers are already enrolled in the program. Walmart expects 68,000 of its employees to be enrolled in the next several years. Walmart is competing with other major employers to find and retain higher quality, entry level employees in a historically strong labor market. The unemployment rate dropping to a five-decade low of 3.6% in the most recent jobs report issued by the Labor Department, and the average hourly pay rose 3.2% compared with a year ago. The economic expansion, which has fueled 103 straight months of hiring, is set to become the longest in history next month. High schoolers represent an increasing challenging group. Fewer and fewer teens are entering the workforce, more likely to enroll in summer school or do volunteer work to help get them into college. And teens who do want to work face competition from older workers, young college graduates or foreign workers. In fact, only 26.4% of teens are expected to have a job by 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That's down from 34% in 2014. In July 1986, 57% of Americans ages 16 to 19 were employed. The proportion remained over 50% until 2002 when it began declining steadily.


Video by GeoBeats Rudy Giuliani on Friday appeared to defend sharing a doctored video of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi slurring her words, tweeting that the California Democrat should take back an insult she hurled at President Donald Trump the day before. "Nancy Pelosi wants an apology for a caricature exaggerating her already halting speech pattern," Giuliani, Trump's personal attorney, wrote online . "First she should withdraw her charge which hurts our entire nation when she says the President needs an 'intervention.' People who live in a glass house shouldn't throw stones.'" The former New York mayor on Thursday evening amplified on Twitter a manipulated version of Pelosi's remarks at a conference earlier in the week. The clip, which has disseminated across social media amid an escalating personal feud between the speaker and the president, subtly slows Pelosi's speech in a manner that suggests she is physically impaired. "What is wrong with Nancy Pelosi? Her speech pattern is bizarre," Giuliani tweeted Thursday when he posted the footage. He later deleted the message. Earlier Friday morning, Giuliani appeared to offer Pelosi an apology, tweeting a GIF of professional basketball players and a message that read: "ivesssapology for a video which is allegedly is a caricature of an otherwise halting speech pattern, she should first stop, and apologize for, saying the President needs an 'intervention. Are." Drew Hammill, Pelosi's deputy chief of staff, mocked Giuliani's incoherent tweet, reposting it and writing online : "No further comment needed." The proliferation of the altered videos comes as Trump and Pelosi have exchanged increasingly bitter barbs in recent days   with Pelosi telling reporters Thursday that she wishes the president's family and aides would stage "an intervention for the good of the country," and Trump later declaring the speaker "a mess" who has "lost it" at an official White House event. On Thursday evening, the president also sought to perpetuate ridicule of Pelosi, tweeting a video of the speaker's halting speech pattern during a news conference in the Capitol. "PELOSI STAMMERS THROUGH NEWS CONFERENCE," Trump captioned the clip.


Red Bull is to run with a James Bond-inspired livery at the British Grand Prix to celebrate title sponsor Aston Martin's involvement with the famous film franchise. The iconic 007 logo has been added to the side of the cockpit and the front of the rear wing for the Silverstone weekend. The back of the rear wings of the two Red Bull cars will also feature the number plates from famous Aston Martins. Verstappen will run with the number plate of the Aston Martin from 1964 film Goldfinger, while Gasly will feature the one from 1987's The Living Daylights. Red Bull's garage will also feature wall graphics that have been inspired by the MI6 lap of Q. Aston Martin Group CEO Andy Palmer said: "Aston Martin is proud of its association with James Bond. This weekend, we look forward to celebrating this longstanding partnership at Formula One's 1,007th Grand Prix." Red Bull Racing RB15 James Bond-inspired livery Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool


ROCKVILLE, Md. (AP)   Maryland Police responding to a burglary at a Rockville gun shop say one person is dead and four others are at large and "armed and dangerous" after a clash with authorities. News outlets report five men used a stolen vehicle to smash into the gun shop early Thursday morning. Investigators responded to the scene, and say the suspects fled. WUSA reports the suspects then rammed a separate SUV into a police car, and officers opened fire. Four people fled the car and police found the fifth suspect dead inside. It is unclear whether the suspect died from the crash or wounds sustained in the shooting. News outlets report several guns were stolen. WTTG reports the same shop has been the target of burglaries in the past, including one in February.


These Disney park secrets keep the magic going for guests at Disneyland and Disney World, and we bet you don't know these fun facts! Park secrets Disney doesn't want you to know It's not surprising that a lot goes into running a theme park, and nowhere is that more true than Disney. From Disneyland 's classic rides and sights like The Haunted Mansion and Sleeping Beauty Castle to flashy, new attractions at Walt Disney World like Flight of Passage in Animal Kingdom, it takes a massive effort just to turn the lights on and get guests through the gates at Disney's six American theme parks and two waterparks. That's no secret. However, there are a lot of things going on behind the scenes that Disney would rather its guests and fans didn't know. Of course they don't want you to know what Mickey Mouse looks like without his head on or what exactly it looks like backstage, but there are less obvious things that make the park run smoothly every day that you may not even think about. Did you ever wonder why the flags on Main Street don't lower to half-mast, why it smells vaguely of saltwater when you walk by Pirates of the Caribbean or why the raccoon at Splash Mountain looks so familiar from your childhood? Well, wonder no more   check out these 25 park secrets that Disney doesn't want you to know. Most of the American flags at the parks aren't regulation Main Street U.S.A. may be one of the most all-American destinations you can visit , but look really closely at the "American" flags throughout the Disney parks. They're all missing a stripe or star, so they're not really American flags. Is it a mistake? Nope! Because each flag is fake, Disney doesn't have to follow American flag regulations, such as flying flags at half-mast during certain situations or shining lights on them during the night. There is one real flag at the front of Main Street at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, and the parks hold a flag retreat daily. Animal Kingdom's sign has a dragon for a reason Did you ever wonder why there's a mythical dragon on the logo for Disney's Animal Kingdom ? Originally, the plans for the park consisted of three themed areas: animals that exist, animals that are extinct, and animals that never existed. While live animals and dinosaurs made it to Animal Kingdom, the third themed area, Beastly Kingdom, never came to fruition. The area was supposed to feature unicorns, dragons, and a dark ride based on the Disney film "Fantasia." Imaginary animals are now represented at Animal Kingdom through the yeti on Expedition: Everest and the "Avatar"-themed land Pandora. Animatronic designs are often reused Ride through the Pirates of the Caribbean and really look at the different animatronics. If you pay attention, you'll see the same five or six pirates over and over again, just with different hair, skin color, makeup and outfits. Other animatronic designs have been used over again. The father and daughter from Carousel of Progress make an appearance in Spaceship Earth, and their faithful pup Rover also appears in Pirates. Several presidents from the Hall of Presidents also have taken on various roles in Spaceship Earth. Look closer at that monk. He looks an awful lot like John Adams, don't you think? Cats roam around Disneyland at night You may find yourself crossing paths with a feline friend at Disneyland , and no, it's not Minnie's beloved cat Figaro. When Walt Disney decided that there should be a walkthrough attraction inside Sleeping Beauty Castle, he and the Disney Imagineers found the building full of flea-ridden feral cats. At first, they decided to adopt them all out to Disney cast members, until they realized the cats could help keep any rodent problems in the sprawling park in check. Stay around the park around dusk, and you just may spot these cats. Cinderella Castle has a secret suite You may dream of spending a night in Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom , but it's not so easy to book this very exclusive hotel room. The Cinderella Castle Suite, which opened in 2006, is used just for contest winners and high-profile celebrity guests. Tom Cruise, Mariah Carey and Kevin Jonas are reported to have stayed there. And while no dollar amount can get you a night in the suite, a $12,000 VIP tour called World of Dreams includes a stop in this elaborate penthouse. A complicated tunnel system runs under the Magic Kingdom The Magic Kingdom may seem like it's at ground level, but when you're strolling down Main Street, U.S.A., you're actually on the second story of the theme park. Legend has it that Walt Disney once saw a cowboy from Frontierland walking through the futuristic Tomorrowland at the original Disneyland Park, and he vowed to never have that happen again. Thus, when the Magic Kingdom in Orlando was built, it included a utilidor system to be used by cast members to get from one of the park's six lands to another without being seen. Epcot was meant to be a real city Ever wonder what Epcot stands for? It's the Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow. Before he passed away in 1966, Walt Disney's original plan for the East Coast expansion called "The Florida Project" was to create a utopian city for about 20,000 residents. Epcot would have been a testing bed for city planning, technology and community. However, after Walt died, the idea of the Disney Company founding a city without his guidance was too much. Thus, the permanent World's Fair concept of Epcot as we know it today was born with Future World and the World Showcase, with some of the best restaurants at Disney . You can still see Walt's plans for his community of tomorrow on the Magic Kingdom's PeopleMover, where the original model is on display. Forced perspective makes buildings appear larger than they are Those castles and buildings on Main Street sure look larger than life, don't they? Well, they're actually quite petite. Disney Imagineers are big fans of forced perspective, which is a way of tricking your eyes into seeing something as bigger and taller than it actually is. This technique is used all throughout Disney parks, from the windows on Main Street to the centerpiece castles to the Tower of Terror. 'Go Away Green' is a special shade used in Disney parks There are over 20,000 different paint colors used throughout the Disney parks, but only one color is so dull that your eyes will gloss right over it. It's called "Go Away Green," and it's a nondescript shade that can be best described as light gray mixed with hunter green. It's used on small construction sites and tall buildings in the background. It doesn't make something invisible, but it sure makes an item easy to ignore. The Haunted Mansion is illusion after illusion If you still want to be fully immersed in the spooks and splendors of The Haunted Mansion, then click away! Not afraid of spoilers? Good. The Haunted Mansion may seem like it's full of eyes that follow you through a room and ghosts that dance and disappear, but it's all just an illusion. For instance, the famous ballroom dining scene with dozens of ghosts dining and dancing isn't a projection. It's actually a large-scale version of an old funhouse technique called "Pepper's ghost." The sight trick requires two rooms: one that people can see into and a second that is hidden. A sheet of Plexiglass is set in the main room at an angle that reflects the view of the hidden room towards the audience, showing real animatronic figures in a ghostly light. This same effect is also used on Pinocchio's Daring Journey at Disneyland to make the Blue Fairy glimmer and glisten. The horses on Main Street really are louder than the average horse Nothing says classic small town America quite like the sound of a clip-clopping horse, and Disney knows that. The horses that walk down Main Street have special horseshoes with a polyurethane coating. Not only does it give them better traction as they walk, but it also makes them sound louder. Liberty Square has no bathrooms Colonial America may have had a lot of charms to it, but one particular charm was missing: plumbing. To make Liberty Square in the Magic Kingdom as authentic as possible, designers didn't install any bathrooms in the land except in the restaurants like Columbia Harbour House and Liberty Tree Tavern (where it's legally required). The nearest bathrooms to The Haunted Mansion and Hall of Presidents are the Rapunzel-themed restrooms in New Fantasyland. The Matterhorn has a secret basketball court One of the most iconic Disneyland legends is that deep in the "attic" of the Matterhorn, there's a secret basketball court for cast members. While a lot of Disney legends are fake, this one is actually true. However, calling this breakroom a basketball court is a bit of an overstatement. It's really just a basketball hoop, backboard and floor markings. But it's nowhere near regulation size. One of Disney's most notorious attractions of all time remains largely intact Superstar Limo at Disney's California Adventure is almost universally considered to be among the worst Disney park attractions of all time , if not the worst. So you'd think it would have been totally scrapped, right? Wrong. Superstar Limo closed in 2002, but it largely lives on in Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue. The track layout and cars are the same, and the CDA agents in the ride are just repainted celebrity figures from the now-defunct dark ride. Ride mechanics are reused and redressed Mike & Sulley to the Rescue is more the rule than the exception at Disney. Audio animatronics and other ride props are constantly reused at Disney theme parks. Do the animals on the boat at the end of Splash Mountain at Disneyland look familiar? They're old friends from America Sings. Star Tours also features birds from this old attraction, stripped of their feathers and beaks. The Three Caballeros from Gran Fiesta Tour are also reused animatronics from the old fan-favorite show the Mickey Mouse Revue. Ride tracks are also duplicated The ride experiences at Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland and Dinosaur at Animal Kingdom may seem totally different. One is about a renegade explorer and the other takes you back tens of thousands of years. But think about the ride vehicles again. And the twists and turns. The rides are actually duplicates with different theming. Mater's Junkyard Jamboree at Disney California Adventure and Alien Swirling Saucers at Hollywood Studios also have the same tracks but different themes. And the duplicates at these parks don't even account for the best versions of Space Mountain, It's a Small World and more on each coast . Real skeletons have decorated Pirates of the Caribbean in Disneyland The Haunted Mansion may be full of ghosts, but there is rumored to be at least one real skeleton in Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland. When the attraction was being built, none of the bones Imagineers developed looked realistic enough. So they hit up the UCLA Medical Center for some, shall we say, authentic bones. Over the years, most of the skeletons have been replaced with fakes and given a proper burial, but according to urban legend, a few real bones remain in the attraction to this day. They constantly pump scents throughout the parks When you walk down Main Street and smell freshly baked cookies or catch the scent of seawater by Pirates of the Caribbean, it's not your imagination. Disney has "Smellitizers" all around the resort to enhance the guest experience. It's not just limited to the parks, either. The resort hotel lobbies are also pumped full of scents to bring you back home. The rides use dramatic effects to make them seem more intense Walk past the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at Disney's Hollywood Studios, and you're likely to hear a bunch of blood-curdling screams. And while some of those screams are from real guests on this terrifying drop ride, others are canned screams playing through speakers surrounding the attraction. Similarly, it seems like those boats on Splash Mountain really make a big impact when they reach the bottom of the hill, but Disney built in some cannons at the end of the drop to make the splash in this ride seem, well, splashier. The walkways are vibrant colors for a reason The colored concrete at the Magic Kingdom may seem like a fun way to distinguish one land from another, but the walkways actually correlate to the areas around them because a study run by Kodak and Disney showed that colored concrete led to more vibrant photographs. Not every shot in the park can be as Instagrammable as the Purple Wall , but they're darn close. Walt Disney would've hated the iconic 'partners' statue A picture in front of the Partners Statue at Disneyland and Magic Kingdom is a must-have photo for any guest. It shows Walt Disney holding hands with Mickey Mouse, with his hand raised as if to tell his creation "Look at what we've done." While fans of Disney love this statue, Walt himself probably would have hated it. According to Disney historian Jim Korkis , the Disney family was very much against a recreation of Walt in the park. He told sculptor Blaine Gibson that "statues are for dead people." Even after his death, it took a lot of convincing to get Lillian Disney and the rest of the family on board for this tribute. Walt Disney World is its own city You may think Walt Disney World is in Orlando , but the resort actually has its own small government, the Reedy Creek Improvement District. After a slew of businesses sprung up around Disneyland when that park opened, Walt Disney wanted to avoid a similar problem with his second American park, so he petitioned the Florida government to have control over the land surrounding what is now Walt Disney World. The area has only a few dozen residents, all Disney employees, and Disney contracts fire, law and traffic protection for its city. Wait times are often overestimated No Disney vacation is complete without a ride on Space Mountain or Peter Pan's Flight, but are you really willing to wait 80 minutes to ride? Well, you may not actually have to. Disney will often inflate estimated wait times to increase guest satisfaction. You see, 50 minutes really cruise by when you expected to wait an hour. This happens more frequently and more dramatically as the parks are getting ready to close, so get in line for that marquee attraction as late as possible. This is just one of the many Disney hacks frequent visitors know . More from The Daily Meal: 37 Ways to Save Money at Walt Disney World I Go to Disney World Every Year, Here Are My Top Tips Disney's Most Iconic Park Snacks, Ranked 20 Things Not to Do on a Disney Vacation The Ultimate Disney Rides Bucket List


HARRISON, N.J.   Pity the U.S. opponents. Imagine their sigh of relief, watching Alex Morgan head for the sidelines after trying to corral her for 60-plus minutes, only to realize the player coming in is Carli Lloyd. Or feeling as if you'll finally get a break from trying to chase down Crystal Dunn, and seeing Mallory Pugh waiting to take her place. Or being grateful to watch Tobin Heath exit   until Christen Press sprints onto the field. "That's not fun, that's for sure," defender Kelley O'Hara said last week, a wicked grin on her face. "That's one of the best parts about this team. You know the other teams are like, `OK, they're bringing on a sub,' and then they look over at who's subbing in and they're just like, 'Crap.' "People that are subbing into games are game changers, just as good as some of the starters potentially." More: Abby Wambach to be inducted into National Soccer Hall of Fame More: World Cup ticket debacle shows FIFA lacks a conscience and common sense Teams only get three substitutes in the World Cup, which begins June 7 in France. But few, if any, countries will bring as much quality off the bench as the Americans will in their quest for a fourth title. The U.S. begins play against Thailand on June 11 in Reims, France. That depth was on full display Sunday, when the Americans wrapped up their sendoff tour with a 3-0 victory over Mexico. The Americans had peppered Mexico goalkeeper Cecilia Santiago relentlessly in the first half, but only had Heath's 11th-minute goal to show for it. Jill Ellis did her best imitation of a hockey coach at halftime, making six substitutions, and the impact was immediately apparent. Lloyd, Pugh and Press shredded Mexico's weary back line every time the United States had the ball, and it eventually proved too much for the young and overworked El Tri team. In the 76th, Lloyd dribbled her way up the left side, sidestepping a Mexico defender before sending a pass to the front of the goal, where both Pugh and O'Hara were waiting. Pugh got control of the ball and, with the lightest of touches, scored. In the 88th, Press brought down a pass from Julie Ertz just outside the 18-yard box, juked a Mexico defender and then rocketed a left-footed shot into the back of the net. "The depth, as far as the technical ability, is probably the strongest we've had," Lloyd said. Considering this is Lloyd's fourth World Cup, and the 2015 squad won the whole thing while the 2011 edition reached the finals, that's saying something. Now, you can make the argument that maybe one of those subs should be starting   and Lloyd will when asked. But that misses the point. The players who will come off the U.S. bench would be starting for any other team, and that means there is no drop-off whatsoever when they enter the game. Other teams might be able to say that about one, maybe two, of their subs. But all three? No matter the position being subbed? Even past U.S. teams couldn't have said that. "We have two starting 11s, honestly," Morgan said. And it's not just the numbers. At one point in the first half, Dunn, who starts at left back, was up with the forwards. Early in the second half, Ellis had Heath playing at left back while Ertz, who now plays in the midfield, dropped into her old spot on the backline. That ability to mix and match will be exhausting for opponents, who won't be able to predict who or what they'll be seeing from the United States. Now, this doesn't mean the streets of Manhattan should be cleared for the ticker-tape parade. The Americans' struggles to finish, particularly early, have been notable during this sendoff series. While the competition hasn't been good enough for that to be an issue, that won't be the case the deeper the United States goes in France. Especially given that the United States could see either France or Germany in the quarterfinals. But the White Walker-like depth is a difference-maker that, rightly, gives Ellis and the Americans a great deal of confidence as they head to France. "There was a lot left on the table," Ellis acknowledged of the missed chances in the first half. "But this group creates a lot, and they're very potent. And in time, we break teams down." Substitute or starter. For the Americans, it will be hard to tell the difference. Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on Twitter @nrarmour. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Opinion: U.S. soccer team bench a lot like White Walkers, and that should scare World Cup foes


Are you one of the 10 percent of Americans that take fish oil regularly? Maybe you diagnosed yourself and decided that you needed more fatty acids, a.k.a. omega-3s, in your life. Well, if new research is to be believed, taking fish oil may or may not be useless. Americans spend more than $1.2 billion on fish oil pills and associated products, making it the third most widely used supplement behind vitamins and minerals. So where is the disagreement on how effective fish oil products are? According to an analysis of 24 studies based on randomized trials that was published in JAMA Internal Medicine in 2014, there is an "accrual of high-level evidence that the supplements lack efficacy across a range of health outcomes for which their use is advocated." Basically, that means there is a lot of evidence indicating that fish oil products aren't as effective as you think. As The Washington Post reported , the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is a little wishy-washy on whether or not they are for or against the use of fish oils. On one page of their website, they advocate for fish oils, stating that they could be beneficial to heart health because of the omega-3 fatty acids contained within. However, on a separate page on their site, it is suggested that fish oil pills are useless, stating, "Omega-3s in supplement form have not been shown to protect against heart disease." So which one is it, NIH? Well, The Washington Post asked and this is what Paul R. Thomas, a scientific consultant in NIH's Office of Dietary Supplements wrote: "I can see how you might think there is some inconsistency." That's it. Though the idea of fish oil being beneficial to your health has been around since the 1970s, there hasn't been any concrete evidence supporting its actual benefits. The New York Times reported that, from 2005 to 2012, there were at least two dozen studies done on fish oil that saw publication in major medical journals. All but two of those studies determined that fish oils had the same effect as a placebo. "I think that the era of fish oil as medication could be considered over now," said Dr. Gianni Tognoni of the Institute for Pharmacological Research in Milan. It'll be interesting to see how much these kinds of studies affect the way that people take supplements. If it's any indication, however, people will believe what they want to believe. That means they'll continue to take fish oils, even if not everyone is sold on the benefits.


Lake County deputies are investigating a deadly shooting in Mascotte. Deputies along with Mascotte Police officers responded to shots fired in the area of North Sunset Road in the City of Mascotte early Saturday morning. When they arrived, they discovered two Hispanic men on the ground with gunshot wounds. 35-year-old Juan Cruz was pronounced dead at the scene. The other victim was flown to an Orlando area hospital with a non-life threatening injury. A witness on scene was able to provide a vehicle description and direction of travel, allowing Sumter County deputies to find a vehicle fitting that description. Sumter County deputies stopped the vehicle and took two persons of interest into custody. Lake County deputies tell WESH 2 News they will provide additional information as they continue their investigation. READ MORE: Lake County deputies investigate deadly shooting in Mascotte CHECK OUT WESH: Stay in the know with the latest Orlando news, weather and sports. Get the top stories and all the scores from the team at WESH.


Football is not in session. We've reached some of the rarest weeks of the year where there is no NFL football being played or practices and virtually no transactions taking place and the coaches, execs and players in this sport are on vacation. But that won't prevent my mind from spinning about the season to come. Even while putting together a checklist for the myriad sundries we will need to schlep three kids to the beach for a week, I can't stop thinking about the 2019 season. As always, there is much to be excited about, and with this being the NFL's 100th season, I'm sure you are all well aware by now of the marketing blitz that is forthcoming. In my job, the scope of the game is always somewhat different, as much of what dictates content or intriguing storylines occurs far away from the sidelines. So as I was walking the dog the other day and daydreaming about 2019, I wasn't just noodling on what I can't wait to see develop on Sundays, but also in board rooms and at the NFL offices on Park Avenue and when owners get together informally. The business of football has a way of impacting the on-field product in one way or another, and you would be naïve to have not figured out by now that the owners and team presidents have a far greater influence on the game at a macro level than any player or coach ever will. With that in mind, here are the dozen storylines/developing stories/subplots to the 2019 season that I kept coming back to when thinking ahead. They represent several reasons why this could be an incredibly compelling campaign, and, in a few instances, reasons for a bit of concern as well. Overall, I think it's a solid mix of team-specific issues and ones that cut across the entire league, and it definitely got me fired up for September, and beyond. 1. Patriots ' Place The dynasty that just won't stop now moves forward without Gronk, and with no guarantees as to when Tom Brady , Bill Belichick or Robert Kraft might follow. How severely will the NFL come down on Kraft for the massage parlor incident? Would another title finally sate Brady? Can someone else int the AFC East finally step up and make this a contested division? Will Foxboro remain a January fortress? With Jack Easterby and Brian Flores gone, does Josh McDaniels finally follow after the season? They are always a story, and remain the franchise to beat in the NFL, defending yet another Lombardi. 2. 50/50 Club Could Patrick Mahomes become the first quarterback in NFL history with two 50-touchdown seasons … and do it in just his first two years as a starter? It seems hard to imagine him topping his 2018 output, with Kareem Hunt gone for good and Tyreek Hill possibly gone for quite some time via suspension, but would you really bet against him? The behind-the-back and no-look passes will get us out of our seats and his potential seems limitless. 3. OBJ in Orange and Brown We tend to forget that when he is healthy and getting half decent throws from a quarterback, Odell Beckham , Jr. is a top-five talent in this league. He is polarizing, to be sure, but as productive as any receiver in the history of the game and now free from Eli and with a top playmaking QB in Baker Mayfield , this could be the most exciting offense in the game. The Browns are now primetime darlings and loaded with talent. Juggling personalities could be a chore, but I can't imagine OBJ not quickly emerging as the straw that stirs this drink. 4. Y-E-S to a new CBA? The NFL and NFLPA are uniquely motivated to get a new labor deal done far sooner that most would have anticipated even six months ago, at least in part for some reasons explained in the item below. Talks will continue through this season and based on what I have heard to this point, I expect plenty of gains to be made. Some in union and league circles would not be surprised if a deal is already done by this time next year, but it would take averting any pitfalls and maintaining a productive dialogue through the rest of this year to get there. 5. Jackpot The wave of legalized gambling continues to spread around state legislatures this spring and it will only continue to grow. The NFL is tracking it ever-so-closely and many owners are beyond ready to dive in with both hands and embrace all of the revenue streams that could come with it. Is a barrage of casino/sports book advertising forthcoming? When does the league sign on with his first nationwide sports book official sponsor? Will you see point spreads on telecasts and team websites? Betting parlors in stadiums? Some of it might be years away, but make no mistake, it's being viewed as a multi-billion dollar game-changer that could spike the cap and salaries in the new CBA. 6. Starless Steelers Okay, they have plenty of household names still on the roster, but the Steelers enter this season without Antonio Brown and Le'Veon Bell , who you could count on for about 3,000 yards and 25 TDs in any given season. Big Ben is saying all the right things after playing a pivotal role on AB's fallout with the team, but will it last? Can JuJu Smith-Schuster be a Batman and not a Robin? Will Mike Tomlin sign an extension or could there be turmoil in the air for the most cohesive franchise in the NFL? Steelers fans seem to be growing restless, and change has been in the air more than almost ever before. 7. Cowboys Keepers There isn't a question of whether Jerry Jones could keep all his skill players who want new deals   Dax Prescott, Zeke Elliott and Amari Cooper . The question is, will he? And at what price? After years of being near the bottom of the NFL in player payroll, Dallas must keep stepping up as it did for Demarcus Lawrence (oh, and Bryon Jones is in the last year of his deal, too). Paying Cooper $18M a year and Prescott, gulp, $30M a year might quickly come back to bite the Cowboys, and one would expect a player or two to soften Jones' stance once the risk of injury comes around again this summer. 8. Inverse of Diverse The number of African American head coaches and GMs is trending in the wrong direction, and some of those with the longest tenures and most influence have either stepped aside (Ozzie Newsome) or been let go (Marvin Lewis). The NFL is holding events like the QB Summit in Atlanta this week (I'll be reporting from there), but what else can and should be done to make management demographics more closely aligned with labor? It's a big topic on Park Avenue with just four non-white head coaches and only two general managers. What initiatives are to come, and will the Rooney Rule be altered? 9. Who'll Be the QB in NYC? During the spring, at least sometimes, the Giants brass seemed to be finally recognizing the football mortality of Eli Manning (albeit three years too late). Daniel Jones vs. Manning, in the Big Apple, will be one of the most closely watched QB battles   assuming it is allowed to truly become one with the sixth-overall pick being granted sufficient reps with the first team to make things interesting. Will Dave Gettleman opine again that maybe Jones could sit for three years? There should be plenty of daily and weekly fodder out of Big Blue as it sorts out its new huddle leader. 10. Will PI be Pee-Yew? There has been plenty of handwringing and consternation from the moment the NFL owners voted to make pass interference reviewable, and with the league taking over matters itself in the final two minutes, when Hail Marys are fairly common. No one knows what this is going to look like and how it will be called, but I guarantee you it will be a heavy topic of conversation at least through the first half of the season. How consistently will it be called? Will this end up being a one-year trial run? What some are referring to as The Sean Payton Rule will be a big deal in 2019, for better or for worse. 11. Kid Coaches The trend is all the rage, but the hunt for the next Sean McVay could come with a few casualties. It didn't take long at all for Aaron Rodgers to let Matt LaFleur know, in typically passive-aggressive ways, who is really the boss in Green Bay. Kliff Kingsbury will be under a national microscope trying to win with first-overall pick Kyler Murray in Arizona in the aftermath of a one-and-done with Steve Wilks, and Zac Taylor steps in after Lewis' long run in Cincy. Some will sink and some will swim. 12. Class Dismissed? The 2015 draft class should be cementing its place in the league by now, entering the fifth season when massive contracts should be the norm. It may be now or never for what looks like one of the more suspect first rounds in a long time. The top two picks   Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota   are still playing for their next contracts. Todd Gurley got paid (he is the only 2015 first-rounder to sign a multi-year extension with the team that drafted him   crazy) but his knee is a major concern and much of the rest of the class has already changed teams or busted out of the league. Will others emerge before it's too late? The second and third rounds have vastly out-performed this 2015 first-round to date.


DES MOINES  When Sen. Kamala D. Harris arrived in Iowa for the first time since her attention-grabbing debate performance, she did so with a revamped stump speech and almost double her previous forces in Iowa and New Hampshire, all part of a retooled approach her campaign hopes will ensure her breakout moment fosters lasting momentum. Harris's campaign team says many of these changes were planned far earlier. But they are coming at a pivotal moment   just after the first Democratic debate and as the candidates are separating into more-distinct tiers. Harris's push to sharpen her message and expand her operation is shifting the overall dynamic of the contest for the Democratic presidential nominee. In returning to Iowa this week, Harris jettisoned a stump speech that centered on the vague notion of "speaking truth" and offered little clear reason for her candidacy. Instead, she is promoting the idea of a changing country   "our America"   in contrast with what she characterizes as President Trump's effort to take the nation back into the past. Subscribe to the Post Most newsletter: Today's most popular stories on The Washington Post She has also begun embracing her controversial history as a prosecutor instead of shying away from it, telling voters that her record of taking on predators (she includes in that "big banks, big pharmaceutical companies, transnational gangs, and more") equips her to prosecute the "predator living in the White House." And after months of criticism from Democrats in Iowa and New Hampshire who said they felt she had not made them a priority, Harris has hired 35 additional staffers in Iowa in recent days, raising her total in the state to about 65   one of the largest teams on the ground here, according to people familiar with Iowa campaign operations. And she hired 25 additional staffers in New Hampshire. "I think, early on, she didn't have much ground game in Iowa in general," said Scott Putney, the chairman of the Pottawattamie County Democrats, who spoke before Harris at a campaign picnic in Council Bluffs. But now, he said, "they've got tons of organizers on the ground. You feel it." Harris has also made a less-tangible shift. In challenging former vice president Joe Biden on segregation and busing during the debate, the senator from California identified herself more clearly with the liberal activist wing of the party, a move that has boosted her in the primary polling but could carry risks with centrist voters. At her appearance at a brewery in West Des Moines, the questions were not about race or her conflict with Biden, but about the importance of defeating Trump. Several voters said her assertive performance at the debate had convinced them that she could take on the president. "That's what we have to do   beat Trump," said Don Palmquist, 79, a retired carpenter from the rural town of Stanton, Iowa. "She came across as somebody that's very confident, and that's going to be one of the requirements to do the job this time." Harris's stepped-up presence in Iowa is a major change. Since her campaign began, Democratic activists here had complained that she hardly visited and did not have much of an organization in the state. Some had concluded that her strategy was to avoid expending resources in largely white Iowa and New Hampshire and instead hope to catch fire in states with more African American voters. One of the first questions Harris fielded as she spoke to the news media Wednesday came from an Iowa journalist who asked how she would convince Iowans that she cares about the state. She said that she would continue to show up. Her aides say her strategy was always to make a more concerted push in Iowa and New Hampshire over the summer. The Iowa buildup, for example, had been planned since March, they say. And she spent much of the past few months focusing on fundraising so that she could fund the current staff expansion, her aides say. More time spent on fundraising meant less time for trips to Iowa. Now, she will have made two trips to Iowa in 12 days and could make a third before the month is up. But circumstances on the ground have changed as well. Biden's lead among African American voters since he joined the race has proved more durable than many strategists expected, increasing the pressure on Harris to perform well in Iowa and New Hampshire to give her momentum as she heads into South Carolina and other Southern states. In 2008, Barack Obama struggled to win over African American voters in the South   until he won in the Iowa caucuses, which showed black voters that he could capture majority-white states. Until now, political strategists in Iowa have said Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) had the biggest operations in the state. Many now say Harris has joined their ranks. Slideshow by Tribune News Service The Harris campaign hosted a barbecue Thursday beside the Missouri River, drawing a robust 500 people in a conservative part of the state. Many said they did not hold the infrequency of Harris's visits to the state against her. "It takes a long time to build a campaign up, and it's a marathon, not a sprint," said Derick Barnes, 30, an area resident who attended the barbecue. "But I think she's going to be giving Iowa its due." At the same time, lingering questions from the debate, and from the early part of her campaign, have followed Harris through the state in recent days. In the aftermath of her criticism of Biden for his opposition to court-ordered busing in the 1970s, she has fielded days of questions about her own stance on the issue. After several days of varying answers, she was forced to clarify again Thursday, ultimately saying she would support federally mandated busing if a particular school district was resisting integration   but that, "thankfully," the forces opposing desegregation in the 1960s are not at work today. Her apparent shifts prompted Democratic strategist David Axelrod to tweet that Harris's position, supporting voluntary but not mandatory busing in most cases, seemed to resemble Biden's: "So what was that whole thing at the debate all about?" Harris's struggles on the question of busing also fit a criticism that emerged in the first months of her campaign, when some Democrats said she had trouble providing a clear vision of what she stood for. After high-profile moments, she has sometimes had to clarify her positions, including her stance on whether private health insurance should be eliminated. When reporters asked in Iowa whether she was worried about a reputation for backtracking, Harris said that she had been "consistent" on the issues. But most voters who attended Harris's events did not raise those concerns. And though the Iowa trip did not make life easy on Harris   who encountered sweltering heat that caused an older woman to faint at a house party, as well as rain-induced schedule changes   some of the problems were encouraging. The church that her campaign had booked to host her town hall meeting Friday in Sioux City   an arrangement made before her debate performance   was supposed to hold about 150 people. Instead, the event drew 300, leaving an overflow crowd on the lawn to listen to Harris's revamped message over portable speakers.