House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) accused the Supreme Court of corruption on Tuesday in a scathing attack on the court’s conservative justices, which led to CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer asking for clarification.

Blitzer began the exchange by asking Jeffries to respond to Sen. Angus King’s (I-ME) justification for voting to reopen the government and end the shutdown, a move that has angered many in the Democratic Party’s base.

“Well, the suffering that has been visited upon the American people over the last several weeks is very consistent with, unfortunately, the suffering Donald Trump and Republicans have visited upon the people since day one of his presidency, where we’ve seen these Republicans unleash extreme levels of aggressive behavior that does not make life better for these Americans. It makes life worse,” Jeffries replied, adding:

And we’ve seen it: an all-out assault on the economy, an all-out assault on health care, an all-out assault on nutritional assistance, an all-out assault by these Republicans on veterans and farmers and law-abiding immigrant families and the American way of life and, of course, democracy itself.

And so our fight obviously is going to continue through whatever happens this week because as House Democrats we’re committed to driving down the high cost of living, to fixing our broken health care system, and at the same period of time cleaning up the corruption that exists in Washington, D.C. — in the Congress, at the Supreme Court, and of course with the Trump administration, the most corrupt administration in American history — so we can actually deliver a country of the people, by the people, and for the people.

“I just want to be precise. You say the Supreme Court has been corrupt. Is that what you’re saying?” Blitzer followed up.

“Yeah, what I’m saying is that the outrageous behavior by individual justices like Clarence Thomas and Justice [Samuel] Alito, and the failure to have an ethical code of conduct, is corrupt. These are the only people in the country who can operate above the law,” Jeffries alleged, adding:

And so what I am suggesting is that as we focus on delivering a country that actually works for working-class Americans, we’ve got to make sure that every single branch of government is working in a manner consistent with lifting up the quality of life of everyday Americans and holding themselves to the same standards that working-class Americans are expected to live by: work hard and play by the rules.

Watch the clip above via CNN.

The post Hakeem Jeffries Accuses the Supreme Court of Corruption in Scathing Attack on Conservative Justices first appeared on Mediaite.

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Your home is under constant threat from the elements—but especially from water. From roof leaks to burst pipes—water damage is the second-most claimed loss on home insurance policies, just below “wind and hail.” In fact, there are way more losses due to water damage than fire.

And the most troubling aspect of water damage is how silent it can be. You can have a leak for a long time before the damage becomes bad enough to notice. And even if you know you have a water leak somewhere, locating it can often be difficult because water can travel a long way from the source before making its presence known. That’s why you need these five kinds of leak detectors on hand, so you’ll know when a damaging water leak erupts, and be able to find it quickly to minimize the damage.

Moisture alarms

Step one is to have water detectors with alarms set up around the house in places where leaks are probable. These alarms are typically wifi-connected and simply detect moisture beyond a normal level, ringing out an audible alarm and sending a message to your devices warning you of a leak. Having them placed in bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, basements, attics, and anywhere else where the home comes into contact with water means leaks will be noticed right away instead of slowly destroying your property over weeks, months, or even years.

These alarms can often be combined with networked shutoff valves that will automatically turn off the water supply when a leak is detected. That way, even if you’re not home, the damage from a leak will be minimized.

Moisture meter

As useful as leak alarms are, they can only help if present where a water leak occurs—and they only tell you that there’s water, not where the water is coming from. Sometimes the source will be obvious, of course—if the alarm placed near your toilet goes off, chances are good that it’s your toilet doing the leaking. But if the leak begins with a pipe in your wall, one tiny spot on a large roof system, or underground, you’ll need some help locating it.

A moisture meter is a must-have for finding leaks. It’s a simple device that measures the amount of moisture trapped in a material, like drywall or flooring. By taking multiple readings throughout an area, you can pinpoint where the water is concentrated before you start tearing things open to effect a repair, saving you time and money.

Endoscopes

Sometimes you need to see inside the spaces and voids of your home to find a water leak. If you suspect a pipe is leaking in the walls, for example, and you’re getting some confusing moisture meter readings, it might be time to reach for one of the most useful tools you’ll ever own: an endoscopic camera (aka, a borescope). This is a small, flexible camera that can be inserted into a small space and fished around, allowing you to see what’s behind a wall, under a floor, or inside a soffit in your home without ripping everything open. If there’s no obvious way to insert the camera, you can usually drill a small access hole that can be easily repaired later, and the video feed will let you inspect all those pipes to see where the water’s coming from.

Pipe locator

A pipe locator is exactly what it sounds like: It locates the hidden pipes feeding water into and taking water out of your house, which are often inside walls, under floors, or buried underground. If you’re trying to figure out where a leaking pipe might be located, this tool can be invaluable, especially if other options haven’t worked.

They’re not cheap—this one from Rigid is one of the more affordable options, and it’s about $1,800 at the time of this writing. But you can easily spend $1,000 or more if a plumber comes out to locate and fix your leaking pipe, so if you’re comfortable fixing the leak yourself, a tool like this will pay for itself eventually because you’ll be able to isolate the leak, turn off water to just that area, and effect the repair.

Pro-Trump media outlet LindellTV pulled no punches on Monday in criticizing House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) for not taking questions from the press after making a statement on the possible end of the shutdown.

Johnson made a statement on Capitol Hill following the U.S. Senate’s vote to advance legislation to fund the government and praised the seven Democrats and one Independent senator who broke ranks with the Democrats to vote for the compromise.

“There’ll be long days and long nights here for the foreseeable future to make up for all this lost time that was imposed upon us. I want to close in with something that’s important. It’s important to say that this is genuine. I mean this sincerely: we applaud the seven Senate Democrats and one independent senator who did the right thing,” Johnson said before wrapping his remarks.

LindellTV, election denier Mike Lindell’s media company, posted to its X account and noted, “Press Stunned as Speaker Johnson Walks Out Without Taking Questions.”

“In a rare move, @SpeakerJohnson exited his Monday morning remarks without taking a single question – leaving reporters stunned and scrambling down the hallway after him,” continued the post, adding:

According to gallery rules, the Speaker is expected to take at least one question. Johnson has never skipped Q&A before.

After weeks of daily shutdown updates and follow up questions, the silence spoke volumes.

CNN’s Manu Raju also commented on Johnson’s rare move, “Speaker Johnson refused to take questions after advising a press conference in House radio-tv gallery where he talked shutdown. When holding pressers in the gallery, members are required to take at least one question.”

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The post Pro-Trump Outlet Shreds Mike Johnson for Not Taking Questions: ‘Silence Spoke Volumes’ first appeared on Mediaite.

AI has been the tech buzzword over the last few years, but it's stolen attention from other technological advancements that are possibly more impactful in your everyday life. Take satellite connectivity for example: For most of the time cellphones and smartphones have existed, losing cell signal meant your mobile device was largely useless. With satellite connectivity, however, as long as you're within range of a satellite, you can continue to make calls and send texts. It's remarkable, for both the convenience of communication, as well as your safety.

Right now, there are only a few companies leading the satellite connectivity charge, at least as far as consumer technology goes. T-Mobile is the only carrier pushing it, having partnered with Starlink to offer satellite communications to its customers. But you don't need T-Mobile for satellite connectivity if you have an iPhone: Since 2022, Apple has been building the iPhone's ability to connect to satellites, starting with Emergency SOS via Satellite (the ability to reach out to emergency services over satellite), before rolling out general satellite messaging with iOS 18. Whether you have T-Mobile, an iPhone, or both, it's possible to send your friend a text in the middle of nowhere, assuming you have a clear line of site to a satellite overhead. Amazing.

And according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple has some major plans to expand the iPhone's satellite connectivity capabilities.

"Natural usage" improvements

Perhaps most importantly, Apple wants you to be able to connect to satellites without the need for an unobstructed view of the sky. Right now, that's arguably one of the technology's biggest hurdles: It's great when you have a clear path between your iPhone and a satellite, but if there's something in the way—say, a bunch of trees, or if you're inside a building—the signal might not reach. The company is working on what is called "natural usage" improvements, which would support satellite connectivity across a wider variety of situations. Maybe your iPhone is in your pocket, or you're in your car, but it's as if you're outside in a wide open clearing.

Apple Maps via satellite

Once you're able to connect to satellites in more places, the other new features become even more useful. That includes a new version of Apple Maps that supports satellites, which would let you use the app without needing wifi or cellular. This is probably the feature I'd be most be excited for: It can be so stressful trying to pull up directions in an area with low to no signal, so to know you almost always have a way to connect Maps—even if it's slower than usual—would be a relief.

Sending photos via satellite

Messaging is another area that will reportedly see some improvement: While you can currently text over cellular, Gurman says Apple is working on supporting sending photos over satellite as well.

Third-party support

It won't just be Apple's own apps and services that are benefitting, either. Gurman says Apple is working on an API to let third-party developers add satellite support to their apps as well. Apple's own software may have the best experience, but it does open the door for expanded support. Other navigation apps, like Google Maps, could potentially connect to satellite this way. If you prefer it over Apple Maps, you wouldn't have to stick with your iPhone's built-in maps app when you don't have cell service.

More coverage for future iPhones

While it wouldn't impact current iPhone owners, the iPhone 18 will likely support 5G NTN, which lets cell towers themselves connect to satellites to boost coverage.

When these features will launch

Apple can't add all of these improvements on their own, unfortunately. According to Gurman, the company will need Globalstar, the company that builds this satellite infrastructure, to make hardware improvements on their end. Assuming that happens, the idea of "dead zones" may be a relic of the first quarter of the 21st century.

(Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images)

A deal is reportedly “within reach” to end the 40-day long government shutdown — according to a new report from Axios.

The Axios report — citing sources from both parties — said that Senate Democrats are prepared to advance a package of bills to bring an end to the standoff. The procedural motion which would set up votes on these bills is expected to be supported by at least 10 Senate Democrats, per Axios — which adds that the deal would include a vote on extending Obamacare tax credits in December.

The ramifications of the shutdown have begun to ramp up in recent days. The disruption to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) has impacted 42 million Americans who receive SNAP benefits. And airport delays have begun to pile up — as there is a shortage of air traffic controllers due to the fact they have not been paid.

This story is developing.

The post BREAKING: Deal Reportedly ‘Within Reach’ to End Government Shutdown first appeared on Mediaite.

(AP Photo/Chris Watkins)

And you thought Shaq was tall.

Florida redshirt freshman Olivier Rioux — standing a massive 7-foot-9 — made history on Saturday by becoming the tallest player ever to take the court in a college basketball game.

With just over two minutes remaining in Florida’s blowout victory over North Florida, Rioux entered the contest to raucous cheers from the crowd inside the Stephen O’Connell Center in Gainesville.

Rioux did not score during his cameo on Saturday. But the visuals from his brief appearance were something to behold. Trey Cady, the unlucky Norther Florida player who drew the assignment guarding Rioux, looked positively miniature standing next to the Florida center — despite being 6-foot-8 himself!

https://ift.tt/BUp450c

And even seven-footers were made to seem downright diminutive next to Rioux. A photo from the postgame news conference showed Rioux towering over a 7-foot-1 teammate.

The gigantic freshman set has jaws agape among basketball fans on social media. Numerous videos of him barely jumping to dunk a basketball have gone viral across social media.

But after a redshirt season in which he did not appear in any games, Rioux is now an official college basketball player.
Here’s a small sampling of the stunned reaction to Rioux’s debut:

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The post ‘An Actual Giant!’ Record-Breaking 7-Foot-9 College Basketball Player Drops Jaws On Social Media first appeared on Mediaite.

Superstar actress Sydney Sweeney was gingerly grilled by Gentleman’s Quarterly’s Katherine Stoeffel over the support she received from President Donald Trump over an American Eagle ad that offended some with notions of White “genetic superiority.”

Sweeney earned praise from Trump after conservatives amplified complaints about an ad in which Sweeney’s “good genes” are the fodder for dungaree wordplay.

In an interview that has blown up online, Stoeffel prodded Sweeney to open up about Trump and the criticism of the ad — that “maybe specifically in this political climate, white people shouldn’t joke about genetic superiority.”

Sweeney firmly shut down those lines of questioning:

KATHERINE STOEFFEL: We’re sort of talking around this American Eagle ad right now, and maybe we should just talk about it. Were you surprised by the reaction?

SYDNEY SWEENEY: I did a jean ad. I mean, the reaction definitely was a surprise, but I love jeans. All I wear are jeans. I’m literally in jeans and a T-shirt every day of my life.

KATHERINE STOEFFEL: The president and the vice president spoke about the jeans ad. What was that like?

SYDNEY SWEENEY: It was surreal.

KATHERINE STOEFFEL: I think it would be totally human to feel—I would probably feel—thankful that somebody had my back in public, and conveniently some very powerful people. I wondered if you felt that way.

SYDNEY SWEENEY: I don’t think…. It’s not that I didn’t have that feeling, but I wasn’t thinking of it like that, of any of it. I kind of just put my phone away. I was filming every day. I’m filming Euphoria, so I’m working 16-hour days and I don’t really bring my phone on set, so I work and then I go home and I go to sleep. So I didn’t really see a lot of it.

KATHERINE STOEFFEL: You’ve made a really good case for keeping your thoughts and your life separate from that work. The risk is that there’s a chance that somebody will get some idea about what you think about certain issues and feel like, Oh, I don’t want to see Christy because of that. Do you worry about that?

SYDNEY SWEENEY: No. No, I think that if somebody is closed off because of something they read online to a powerful story like Christy, then I hope that something else can open their eyes to being open to art and being open to learning, and I’m not going to be affected by that.

KATHERINE STOEFFEL: Is there something that you want to say about the ad itself? The criticism of the content was basically that, maybe specifically in this political climate, white people shouldn’t joke about genetic superiority.

SYDNEY SWEENEY: I think that when I have an issue that I want to speak about, people will hear.

KATHERINE STOEFFEL: By some reports, American Eagle’s stock price went up 38 percent. Does that make it less painful to be at the center of that much conversation, if you know that it really worked for the business that you’re partnering with?

SYDNEY SWEENEY: I was aware of the numbers as it was going. So when I saw all the headlines of in-store visits were down a certain percentage, none of it was true. It was all made up, but nobody could say anything because [the company was] in their quiet period. So it was all just a lot of talk. And because I knew at the end of the day what that ad was for, and it was great jeans, it didn’t affect me one way or the other.

Watch above via GQ.

The post Sydney Sweeney Confronted On Trump Support And White People Claiming ‘Genetic Superiority’ In Awkward Chunk first appeared on Mediaite.