By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER and JOSH BOAK WASHINGTON (AP) For the second time in two days, President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he would like to appoint Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to chair the Federal Reserve. Yet Bessent keeps saying he doesn’t want the job, Trump added, in comments to the U. S.-Saudi Investment Forum. “We’re thinking about him for the Fed, but he wants no part of it, he likes being secretary of the Treasury,” Trump said. “I think we’ll leave him so let’s cross your name off right, officially, right?” Trump has been sharply critical of the current Fed chair, Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May, for not cutting interest rates quickly enough. Trump’s pick as a replacement will almost certainly push for rapid interest rate cuts and likely institute wide-ranging changes in how the Fed operates. Bessent earlier this year published extensive criticisms of the Fed’s groundbreaking efforts to shore up financial markets and the economy after the 2008-2009 Great Recession and during the pandemic. Bessent is heading up the Trump administration’s search for a new Fed chair. Yet despite his protestations, he is also widely seen as a leading potential replacement for Powell. “He’s a top-tier candidate right now,” Stephen Moore, a senior economic adviser to Trump in his first term, said. Trump “wants to shake things up, so I think he wants an outsider.” Two of the five candidates Bessent has named are current Fed officials: Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman. The other three would fit the outsider criteria: Kevin Hassett, currently a top White House economic official; Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor who has been highly critical of the Fed; and Rick Rieder, a senior managing director at asset manager BlackRock. Late Tuesday, in an interview By mid-December, “the president will meet the final three candidates and hopefully have an answer before Christmas,” Bessent said. Associated Press Writer Fatima Hussein contributed to this report.
https://www.dailydemocrat.com/2025/11/19/federal-reserve-bessent/
4 Greatest Movies of All Time, According to Pope Leo XIV
Hollywood got a holy spotlight on Saturday, November 15. In an event organized by the Vatican’s culture ministry, Pope Leo XIV gave a special speech on the impact of cinema, both past and present. Pope Leo is the first American-born Pope and was inaugurated on May 18. In attendance at this special event were some of the industry’s leading filmmakers and contributors, including Cate Blanchett, Spike Lee, Adam Scott, Viggo Mortensen, Judd Apatow, and organizers from TIFF and Sundance. Pope Leo had inspiring observations about the performance art of moving pictures, saying, “Entering a cinema is like crossing a threshold. In the darkness and silence, vision becomes sharper, the heart opens up and the mind becomes receptive to things not yet imagined.” He referred to the art form’s advent with pioneers like the Lumière brothers, who invented one of the first motion picture cameras, the Cinématographe. As the cinema celebrates its 130th anniversary, the beautiful blessing and special attention from Pope Leo are the best gifts it could have asked for. If you would like to read his address, it is available online, and you can also watch the footage on YouTube. For this article, we will take a look at the four films Pope Leo specifically mentioned as being his favorites (in no particular order). 4 ‘Ordinary People’ (1980) The only rated R film on the list, Ordinary People, is a drama directed by Robert Redford. The story is deeply profound as it involves the tragic death of the eldest son of a family that struggles to cope afterwards. Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore are phenomenal as the parents, and Timothy Hutton delivers a tour de force performance as the remaining son, Conrad. Judd Hirsch is essential as the psychiatrist Tyrone Berger, and there are many high-stakes scenes within the film. Ordinary People won four Oscars, including the prestigious Best Picture. Redford won for Best Director and Hutton for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Moore was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and her break from comedic performances, which she is most known for, proves she was a versatile and well-rounded actor. Ordinary People is a powerful examination of grief, guilt, and the desperate need for love and affection. As Pope Leo mentioned in his address: “One of cinema’s most valuable contributions is helping audiences consider their own lives, look at the complexity of their experiences with new eyes and examine the world as if for the first time.” 3 ‘The Sound of Music’ (1965) Pope Leo is in good company in choosing The Sound of Music; it was also a favorite of former US President Ronald Reagan. The 1965 Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein musical follows a young woman named Maria (Julie Andrews), who is tasked with caring for the seven children of a widowed naval officer after she struggles to acclimate to life at a convent. Maria had no intention of falling in love with Captain von Trapp (Christopher Plummer). They were almost enemies after she first arrived, with her free-spirited and joyful exuberance clashing with his resolute and disciplined demeanor. As she falls in love with not only Captain von Trapp but also his precious children, they all forge ahead together as a new family, full of love and appreciation for one another. Based on a true story, The Sound of Music is one of the best family movies of the 20th Century. It spent four years in cinemas, breaking records and surpassing the run of Gone with the Wind. It is also one of the only family films ever nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture to have won. There are truly impactful and resonating themes within the story that make it timeless. Good versus evil, right versus wrong, love versus hate, and many more. Not only does The Sound of Music feature an engaging cast, catchy music, and spectacular filming locations, but it also weaves in subplots about faith, courage, and hope. The nuns in the film play a pivotal role as they hide the von Trapp family and help them escape to safety, harkening back to the days when churches were sanctuaries for those seeking physical safety and political asylum. 2 ‘Life is Beautiful’ (1997) Life is Beautiful seems like a misnomer for a movie about one of the worst human atrocities in history. But it is exactly that unwavering hope and ability to look for the silver lining in the worst of situations that is the magic of the movie. Roberto Benigni stars as Guido, a husband and father who is taken with his young son Giosué (Giorgio Cantarini) to a Nazi concentration camp. In a deeply anguished and painfully exquisite stroke of genius, Guido decides to not only protect his son from the physical horrors around them, but the psychological ones as well. He invents a guise that they are playing a military game, and certain actions get them points, like being quiet and staying hidden. Life is Beautiful was nominated for seven Oscars and won for Best Foreign Language Film, Best Music, Original Dramatic Score, and Benigni won for Best Actor in a Leading Role. He was also nominated for Best Director, and the film was nominated for Best Picture in addition to winning for Best Foreign Language Film. Life is Beautiful has some truly amazing and profound acting moments. It conveys a message of hope and perseverance through the tenderest of lenses, and the precious and touching love of Guido for his son is nothing short of inspiring. It exemplifies the qualities that Pope Leo mentioned of the power of cinema to “rediscover a portion of the hope that is essential for humanity to live to the fullest.” 1 ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ (1946) One of the best movies of the Golden Age of Hollywood, It’s a Wonderful Life, proves that you should be careful what you wish for. George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart) wishes he had never been born after reaching the end of his emotional and financial tether. In a unique and specific exercise of power, his guardian angel Clarence (Henry Travers) grants him his wish, and George immediately experiences a world that existed without him. This deliberate exercise teaches George the valuable lesson that he really did have a wonderful life, and how far-reaching a single person is, affecting others’ lives in ways they could never imagine. It’s a Wonderful Life is essential viewing, not just at Christmas, but any time of the year. It is a great example of the enduring quality of cinema. Nearly 80 years later, It’s a Wonderful Life is still as poignant and impactful as ever. Its themes of grace, forgiveness, and redemption are some of the best portrayed on the silver screen. It is also an example that while Hollywood is a lucrative industry, money isn’t everything. It’s a Wonderful Life bombed at the box office, and if you were merely looking at monetary gain, it would have been considered a failure. However, much like the main character, life took an unexpected turn, and success and richness were not measured in dollars, but in emotional influence and truths that resonated so soundly, they still ring true today.
https://collider.com/best-movies-of-all-time-pope-leo-xiv/
Mega Zeraora revealed for Pokemon Legends: Z-A – Mega Dimension
As we get closer to the next big thing in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, its Mega Dimension DLC coming in December 2025, Game Freak and Nintendo have been showing off a few details here and there about what’s coming. That includes new Pokemon and Megas for players to collect on their journeys. We recently got another new reveal in the form of Mega Zeraora, who will be available to find in the contents of Mega Dimension. Nintendo and The Pokemon Company revealed Mega Zeraora in a new trailer for Pokemon Legends: Z-A Mega Dimension. Zeraora is an electric-type Mythical Pokemon from Pokemon Sun and Moon. Its Mega Evolution will unleash its power like never before in Mega Dimension, as shared on the Pokemon website: Mega Zeraora is the latest Mega Evolution reveal for the upcoming DLC. It joins other new Megas in Pokemon Legends: Z-A that have included a free Mega Diancie and the upcoming Mega Raichu X and Y variants that act as the marquee Pokemon of the DLC. More than that, Mega Dimension also offers new adventures for players to explore across Lumiose City and the Kalos region.
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146890/mega-zeraora-pokemon-legends-z-a-mega-dimension
New fire station for Lewiston
Photos by Russ Dillingham/Staff Photographer A lifelong resident of Lewiston, Russ stumbled into photography as a college student working toward a career in psychology. His great-grandfather Louis B. Costello was the publisher of the Lewiston Daily. More by Russ Dillingham.
https://www.sunjournal.com/2025/11/19/new-fire-station-for-lewiston/
Jones Regional Medical Center secures $2 million in federal spending package
Jones Regional Medical Center secures $2 million in federal spending package Publisher Wed, 11/19/2025 22: 17.
http://journal-eureka.com/jones-regional-medical-center-secures-2-million-federal-spending-package
Maria from ‘Sesame Street’ reveals she had flirtatious chemistry with Oscar the Grouch — and loved his wildly inappropriate quips
Sonia Manzano known to multiple generations as Maria on “Sesame Street” confesses that there was flirtatious chemistry between her character and Oscar the Grouch. “That’s absolutely true,” she said with a laugh during an exclusive interview with Page Six. “I really love Oscar. He was my favorite Muppet character. “I always kid around, saying, ‘I left the show because 44 years was long enough for me to wait for him to propose.” Manzano, 75, explained that she loved Oscar because of his sense of humor, as portrayed by late Muppeteer Caroll Spinney. “He would just say things, ‘If you don’t want to be a murderer, don’t be around people who shouldn’t be killed,’” she said, still laughing. “‘I know my mother used to rock me to sleep, she used real rocks.’ “You know, those kinds of quips were endearing to me. I loved it.” Manzano is the subject of a documentary, “Street Smart: Lessons from a TV Icon,” viewable online through the end of November as part of Doc NYC’s Metropolitan Competition. The Bronx native joined the legendary PBS kids series in 1971, two years after it debuted, and eventually began writing scripts for the series. Manzano said Jim Henson the legendary puppeteer who created such characters as Oscar, Big Bird and Cookie Monster and voiced Ernie from 1969 to 1990 was not an easy person to know. “He was a very enigmatic person,” she explained. “You never knew what he was thinking. I can’t say that I knew him well. He didn’t open up and we weren’t on the set at the same time.” One thing she said she did learn from the creative genius who, died suddenly in 1990 at 53, is how to treat people. “He never criticized the performers,” she said. “He always said, ‘I think we can do that better.’ And kind of putting himself in that group that was going to do things better.” The Emmy winner recalled how she shaped Maria by drawing on her own childhood experiences in the South Bronx and acknowledges her character’s importance for young Latino viewers. “Not seeing people who looked like you reflected in society certainly made you feel invisible,” she said. Manzano knew it was time to leave the show, which now plays on both PBS and Netflix, when she was on a panel with other performers and realized that she was the only one there who had personally known Henson, and also began not recognizing the show’s celeb guests. Since leaving the show, Manzano has written children’s books and is the creator of the cartoon series “Alma’s Way,” set in The Bronx and revolving around a 6-year-old Puerto Rican girl.
https://pagesix.com/2025/11/19/entertainment/maria-from-sesame-street-had-flirtation-with-oscar-the-grouch/
‘RHOA’ star Porsha Williams accused of getting physical with fellow passenger during plane ‘incident’
Porsha Williams allegedly got physical with a fellow passenger during the Delta Airlines flight “incident” that led to FBI involvement. As the reality star touched down on Sunday after attending BravoCon 2025 in Las Vegas, she and another female passenger were met by cops in the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. A statement obtained by Page Six from the Atlanta Police Department read, “Preliminary investigation indicated that both parties may have been involved in a verbal dispute that reportedly escalated into a physical dispute during an inbound flight to Atlanta.” “Both parties were separated on the scene and interviewed by officers” the statement continued, as victim and witness statements were “forwarded to the FBI.” Officials tell Page Six that the report has not yet been finalized. Neither Williams nor the other woman involved was taken into custody at any point, according to the U. S. Sun, who was the first to report the news. A source tells Page Six that the accusation “is completely false and defamatory” and that Porsha “was the victim and it was all verbal,” adding that the “FBI should be closing case soon.” Amid the federal investigation, the “Real Housewives of Atlanta” star’s lawyer also maintains that his client was the victim in the dispute. “Ms. Williams was verbally assaulted by an irate and unhinged passenger without provocation,” Williams’ lawyer, Joe Habachy, told Page Six Tuesday. He added, “The passenger then proceeded to make false allegations that were in direct conflict with observations from several eyewitnesses.” “As with any incident occurring aboard an aircraft, federal authorities are required to conduct an investigation involving all parties to determine what, if any, offenses occurred.” Habachy noted that Williams “has every intention of cooperating with law enforcement to whatever extent necessary, and remains confident that the passenger will be charged.” Although it is still unclear what happened, the former “Celebrity Apprentice” star could be seen in a video obtained by TMZ smiling and cooperating with authorities once they met her in the airport. A spokesperson for the FBI Atlanta confirmed a situation had happened as they told the outlet, “FBI Atlanta is aware of incident on a Delta flight on November 16th allegedly involving Porsha Williams and/or at least one other person. “We are looking to see whether any federal charges may or may not apply.”.
https://pagesix.com/2025/11/19/celebrity-news/rhoa-star-porsha-williams-accused-of-getting-physical-with-fellow-plane-passenger/
Michelin Guide doesn’t include any new stars for DC restaurants
The awards for the 2025 D. C. Michelin Guide were announced during a ceremony in Philadelphia on Tuesday night. Michelin demoted what was previously the region’s only three-starred restaurant; The Inn at Little Washington is now a two-star establishment. Besides that demotion, all other restaurants on D. C.’s list maintained their star status designation from last year. D. C. restaurateur and activist José Andrés received the Northeast Cities Mentor Chef Award. Michelin praised Andrés’ focus on sharing his talents with others as well as his ownership over a wide variety of award-winning restaurants, including minibar with two Michelin stars. Two restaurants were added to Michelin’s Bib Gourmand list. PhoXotic and Your Only Friend were given that status, which celebrates restaurants that offer quality food at a reasonable price. PhoXotic serves Vietnamese food, including butcher’s rolls and pho bowls. Your Only Friend is a self-described “sandwich bar” with offerings such as the “Hot Nug” sandwich, loaded with chicken nuggets and Nashville hot sauce. Both eateries were recently highlighted on a list of eight D. C. restaurants recommended by Michelin. None of those recommended restaurants earned Michelin stars Tuesday night. According to Michelin’s website, one-star status goes to restaurants with “top-quality ingredients and prepare dishes with distinct flavors.” Two stars represent restaurants with “expertly crafted dishes, with food that is both refined and inspired.” Restaurants where “the cooking elevates the craft to an art form” are awarded the highest honor of three stars. Green stars are for restaurants that maintain an “exceptional commitment to sustainability.” Last year, two restaurants earned their stars for the first time: Vegetarian Latin American restaurant Mita and Japanese sushi restaurant Omakase at Barracks Row. The full 2025 D. C. Michelin Guide is posted online. Here’s a look at which restaurants made the cut for star or Bib Gourmand. C. Asian Cane Caribbean Daru Indian Dauphine’s Creole Ellē Contemporary Hitching Post Southern Ivy City Smokehouse Seafood Karizma Modern Indian Indian L’Ardente Italian La Tejana Mexican Laos in Town South East Asian Lapis Afghan Maketto Asian Menya Hosaki Japanese Oyamel Mexican PhoXotic Vietnamese Queen’s English Chinese Residents Cafe & Bar Contemporary Sababa Mediterranean Stellina Pizzeria Pizza Taqueria Habanero Japanese The Red Hen Italian Toki Underground Japanese Unconventional Diner American Yellow Middle Eastern Your Only Friend Gastropub Zaytinya Mediterranean Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here. © 2025 WTOP. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
https://wtop.com/business-finance/2025/11/michelin-guide-doesnt-include-any-new-stars-for-dc-restaurants/
Judge Sets Jan. 21 Pretrial in Leigha Mumby Vehicular Homicide Death of Daniel Waterman
In Leigha Mumby’s first pretrial appearance since she was charged with vehicular homicide in the death of her former boyfriend, a judge today set Jan. 21 as the next pretrial, granting the defense’s request for a 60-day extension to go over new discovery in the case. The State Attorney’s Office added the vehicular homicide charge against Mumby in late October, following the death of Daniel Waterman on Oct. 8. He was 22. Mumby, 24, was driving her car with Waterman in the passenger seat on Feb. 9 when the couple got into an argument. According to statements by Waterman before his death, Mumby intentionally drove the car recklessly, crashing into a tree on I-95. Waterman’s safety settings on his iPhone automatically activated through its crash detection technology, calling 911 and electronically providing the 911 dispatcher with the coordinates of the crash scene, between Palm Coast Parkway and Matanzas Woods Parkway. Waterman had no pulse at the scene, according to a paramedic, while Mumby was incapacitated and trapped, but conscious. Both were extricated. Mumby was originally charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, a second-degree felony, and reckless driving causing serious bodily injury, both felonies. The new charge, also a felony, does not carry a mandatory minimum sentence on conviction, but if Mumby is convicted, she is now much more likely to face prison than with the two previous charges alone. Mumby discovered that she was pregnant the morning of the crash. The tension between her and Waterman was related to that discovery. She gave birth to the child on Oct. 11, according to a petition for grandparental rights filed earlier this month by Heather Waterman, Daniel’s mother, and the child’s grandmother. There has been no contact between the Waterman family and Mumby. Mumby, a Flagler Beach resident, is represented by Jacksonville attorney Reid Hart. Assistant State Attorney Melissa Clark is prosecuting the case.
https://flaglerlive.com/mumby-pre-trial/
Francis Rawlings Jr.
Feb. 23, 1947 Nov. 11, 2025 NATCHZ Funeral services for Francis “Pablo” Rawlings Jr., 78, of Ridgeland, MS, formerly of Natchez, who departed this earthly life on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025, in Jackson, will be held Monday, Nov. 24, 2025, at 11 a. m. at West Gate Funeral Home (George F. West Sr. Memorial Chapel) with Pastor Michael Hoggatt officiating. Burial will follow at the Natchez National Cemetery under the direction of West Gate Funeral Home. Visitation will be held on Monday from 10 a. m. until the time of the service at the funeral home. Francis was born on Feb. 23, 1947, in Natchez, the son of Willie Mae Rawlings and Francis Rawlings Sr. He received his bachelor’s degree from Alcorn State University, was a United States Marine Veteran, and was a self-employed painter/contractor. Francis was a member of the Holy Family Catholic Church and enjoyed basketball and reading. Francis leaves to cherish his memory: sons, Damon Rawlings and Darrick Rawlings; daughters, Qwana Carter and Daphaney Stancel; brothers, Thomas Rawlings and Larry Rawlings; sister, Pam Rawlings; and a host of grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, other relatives, and friends. Online condolences may be sent to www. westgatefh. com.
https://www.natchezdemocrat.com/obituaries/francis-rawlings-jr-5fb40fc9