Ahead of football title shot, Hawley ISD students get early Christmas gift to cheer team

Associated Press
DOGE cuts $900 million from agency that tracks American students' academic progress
A federal research office that tracks the progress of America’s students is being hit with almost $900 million in cuts after Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency found no need for much of its work. It’s unclear to what degree the Education Department’s Institute of Education Sciences will continue to exist after Musk’s team slashed scores of contracts. Industry groups said at least 169 contracts were suddenly terminated Monday, accounting for much of the institute's work.
Reuters
UAE proposes Sudan ceasefire; army rejects the call
The United Arab Emirates called on Tuesday for a ceasefire in Sudan during the coming holy month of Ramadan, a UAE official said, a call rejected by the Sudanese army, as the country's civil war approaches the two-year mark. The army considers the UAE to be an aggressor of the war, accusing it of arming the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, accusations U.N. experts and U.S. lawmakers have said are credible. The UAE denies these charges.
CBS News
Gaza ceasefire appears in jeopardy as Trump issues Hamas an ultimatum
Fear over the fate of the Gaza ceasefire spreads across the Mideast as Hamas delays the next release of Israeli hostages, Trump suggests a major change in terms.
AFP
At least $53 billion needed to rebuild Gaza, UN estimates
More than $53 billion will be required to rebuild Gaza and end the "humanitarian catastrophe" that has gripped the war-ravaged territory, including $20 billion in the first three years alone, the United Nations said Tuesday.The United Nations has estimated that the war has generated more than 50 million tons of debris, including human remains, unexploded ordnance, asbestos and other hazardous substances.
AFP
Trump blasts judges, fueling fear of constitutional clash
US President Donald Trump slammed "highly political judges" Tuesday as his new administration veered closer to a constitutional clash with the courts over his plans to radically overhaul the government and amass power in the White House.Now certain activists and highly political judges want us to slow down, or stop," Trump posted.
AFP
Rushdie tells trial of 'lake of blood' after stabbing
Novelist Salman Rushdie described Tuesday the moment a knife-wielding attacker stormed on stage and attempted to kill him in a frenzied attack that left him blind in one eye."It was a stab wound in my eye, intensely painful, after that I was screaming because of the pain," Rushdie said, adding that he was left in a "lake of blood."
Associated Press
Key things to know about how Tesla could benefit from Elon Musk's assault on government
Elon Musk has long railed against the U.S. government, saying a crushing number of federal investigations and safety programs have stymied Tesla, his electric car company, and its efforts to create self-driving automobiles. Now, Musk’s close relationship with President Donald J. Trump means many of those federal headaches could vanish. The Trump administration could quickly nix a host of federal probes and safety programs: crash investigations into Tesla’s partially automated vehicles; a U.S. Department of Justice criminal investigation examining whether Musk and Tesla have overstated their cars’ self-driving capabilities; and a government mandate to report crash data on vehicles using technology like Tesla’s Autopilot.
Associated Press
As egg prices continue to soar, grocers like Trader Joe's limit how many cartons customers can buy
Trader Joe’s and other grocers are limiting the number of eggs customers can buy across the U.S., citing limited supply caused by the ongoing bird flu outbreak. Trader Joe’s is capping purchases to one carton per customer each day, the Monrovia, California-based chain confirmed. “We hope these limits will help to ensure that as many of our customers who need eggs are able to purchase them when they visit Trader Joe’s,” the company said in a statement sent to The Associated Press Tuesday.
USA TODAY
DOGE takes a chainsaw to Education Department research, canceling $900M in contracts
Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency canceled education research contracts worth roughly $1 billion on Monday.
Associated Press
Israel orders beefed up troops around Gaza as ceasefire shows signs of faltering
An Israeli official says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the army to beef up troops in and around the Gaza Strip after Hamas threatened to call off a scheduled hostage release on Saturday. The official said Netanyahu also ordered officials “to prepare for every scenario if Hamas doesn’t release our hostages this Saturday.” The preparation plans come after Netanyahu met with his Security Cabinet for four hours on Tuesday to discuss Hamas’ threat, which has put the fragile ceasefire agreement in danger.
Politico
Trump ally Steve Bannon pleads guilty and avoids jail time in border wall fraud case
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office charged Bannon in state court after a Trump pardon in 2021 wiped away federal charges on the same allegations.
AFP
US foreign aid halt to have major hit on poorest countries: report
A suspension of US foreign aid and possible dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) will have a major impact on some of the world's poorest countries, the Washington-based Center for Global Development (CGD) warned Tuesday.The poorest countries are among the main beneficiaries of aid from the International Development Association under the World Bank, which provides loans and grants to low-income countries.
Associated Press
Criminal case against NYC mayor hangs by a thread after Justice Department orders it dropped
The criminal case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams hung by a thread Tuesday after the Justice Department ordered federal prosecutors to drop the charges, though it remained unclear how quickly that might happen or if the acting U.S. attorney in Manhattan might try to resist the directive. In a two-page memo sent Monday, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove directed federal prosecutors to dismiss the bribery charges “as soon as is practicable,” saying that they were disrupting the mayor's ability to assist in President Donald Trump's crackdown on immigration and crime.
Associated Press
US aid freeze paralyzes NGOs working to help millions of internally displaced people in Somalia
In a desolate makeshift camp on the fringes of Somalia's capital, tens of thousands of internally displaced people sit under the baking sun not sure if they can have access to food rations and medication following U.S. President Donald Trump's decree to freeze most of his country's foreign aid. Trump’s decision, which will remain in force for 90 days following his Jan. 20 executive order, threatens to collapse the humanitarian aid economy that sustains the livelihoods of some of the world’s most vulnerable people. The U.S. provides more foreign aid globally than any other country, budgeting about $60 billion in 2023, or about 1% of the U.S. budget.
Reuters
AI chip startup Positron raises $23.5 million seed round to take on Nvidia
Positron, a startup chip maker that aims to compete with Nvidia, said Tuesday it raised $23.5 million to scale production of its U.S.-made artificial intelligence chips. Valor Equity Partners, known for backing Elon Musk’s companies, Atreides Management, Flume Ventures and Resilience Reserve were among the investors who participated in the round. Reno-based Positron says its chips, which are manufactured in Arizona, use less than a third of the power of Nvidia’s top-of-the-line H100 graphical processing units, while maintaining the same performance.
CNN
Space telescope reveals rare ‘Einstein ring’ phenomenon with startling clarity
The Einstein ring, formed as light from a distant galaxy bends to glow around another object in the foreground, could help solve the universe’s mysteries.
NBC News
Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland launches New Mexico governor campaign
Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland is running for governor of New Mexico, looking to be the first Native American woman to be elected governor of a state.
NBC News
Democrats unveil state legislative map for the next election cycle, with eyes on opposing Trump's agenda and redistricting
The arm of the Democratic Party focused on state legislative races announced its initial target map for the upcoming election cycle Tuesday, identifying 10 states where they will seek to combat President Donald Trump’s agenda and prepare for the next redistricting cycle at the end of the decade.
USA TODAY
Watch live: NYC Mayor Eric Adams holds press conference after DOJ moves to drop charges
New York City Mayor Eric Adams is set to speak at a news conference after the DOJ moved to drop corruption charges. Watch the livestream of his address.
AFP
Ex-Trump aide Bannon pleads guilty in US border wall fraud case
Steve Bannon, a former advisor to US President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to defrauding donors who contributed money to a private scheme to build a wall on the US-Mexico border.Bannon was indicted in 2022 for his role in a project called "We Build the Wall," which involved private fundraising to build the southern border wall.

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