We are at rock bottom. That’s why I am backing Trump’s plan for Chicago’s streets
The South Side of Chicago is a war zone. In 2023, the city recorded 617 homicides and more than 2,000 shootings, with neighborhoods like Englewood and Woodlawn hit the hardest.
Just a few weeks ago, I stood over the body of a man who had been shot dead. Hundreds of young souls will be killed by year’s end.
So I was not surprised when President Donald Trump said, “Chicago’s a mess. You have an incompetent mayor, grossly incompetent. And we’ll straighten that one out probably next.” After all, the government’s first responsibility is to protect its citizens. When endless violence continues to plague the lives of people around me, action is needed.
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How did Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson — both Democrats — respond to Trump’s words?
“As Donald Trump attempts to create chaos that distracts from his problems, we’ll call it out for what it is,” Pritzker said, pushing back against Trump’s comments. “Crime rates are improving. Homicides are down by more than 30% in Chicago in the last year alone.” He added that Trump’s approach was a distraction from real issues: “We won’t be distracted by his authoritarian push.”
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson responded that Trump’s approach was “uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound” and that “unlawfully deploying” the National Guard to Chicago could “inflame tensions between residents and law enforcement.” He later added, “It’s not democratic. It’s unconstitutional.”
Just last week, on Aug. 25, Trump signed an executive order to prevent federal funds from going to Illinois because of its cashless bail policy.
TRUMP SIGNS EXECUTIVE ORDERS TO ELIMINATE NO-CASH BAIL FOR SUSPECTS IN DC AND NATIONWIDE
You would think that reducing crime, especially on the South Side, would be a bipartisan effort. After all, didn’t Black Lives Matter — a group which Pritzker and Johnson have supported — say that far too many Black lives are being lost? Why don’t the people in my neighborhood, especially the children walking to school, deserve the fullest protection that is their inherent right as American citizens?
I see the deployment of troops onto Chicago’s streets as a necessary shock-and-awe measure. The Chicago Police Department has done a good job in recent months bringing down murders and crime, but they are led by “defund the police” leadership. Imagine how much better the force would be with a law-and-order mayor.
Right now, under the current leadership in our city, gangs still control our streets, human trafficking goes unchecked and drugs flow through here like the Mississippi River. We need a reset. We need a reordering of society where our kids come first and the gangsters last.
Let’s not kid ourselves: Much of the violence we see today stems from post-1960s liberalism. We divorced far too many people from the American Dream with policies of dependency. We favored teachers’ unions over educating our children. Only 4% of the kids at the school down the street from my church can read at grade level. Far too many kids have been shot, and we need to guarantee their safe passage to and from school. We have families driving down the street who have been shot at. I’ve presided over far too many funerals and I don’t want to do any more of them.
Enough.
We don’t have any further to slide downward. We are at rock bottom. Our left-wing mayor and governor, who value virtue-signaling and diversity over real solutions, are not going to help. So I don’t have a problem with Trump sending in the troops.
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At the same time, I must say that I see the National Guard as only a temporary fix. I see it as the equivalent of getting a heroin addict into rehab. The soldiers can patrol the streets and arrest criminals. But they cannot rebuild broken families. They cannot mentor a fatherless teenager who is about to be recruited into a gang. They cannot create jobs, teach life skills or restore hope. When the soldiers leave, the same old conditions remain, and the cycle of violence resumes.
The real answer lies not in military boots but in community roots. For more than a decade, my nonprofit, Project H.O.O.D., has been working to improve our community.
We’ve trained young men in trades like construction and masonry, putting them to work on the very center we’re building.
We’ve mentored boys and girls who would otherwise be pulled into the streets. We’ve provided entrepreneurship programs, job readiness training and faith-based guidance that changes lives from the inside out.
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We’ve seen results. We’ve steered countless young people onto the path of opportunity where they become responsible citizens capable of caring for their families. These are not abstract ideas — these are tangible victories, won block by block, life by life.
The National Guard may calm the streets. But it’s organizations like Project H.O.O.D. that will change the streets. That’s where Trump and America must focus if we want to win this country back, one block at a time.
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Squad member’s fortune explodes despite claiming she wasn’t wealthy
Rep. Ilhan Omar’s net worth has swelled to as much as $30 million in just one year, her congressional financial disclosures reveal.
The 2025 disclosure, first reported by the Washington Free Beacon, shows that Omar and her husband, Tim Mynett, have a net worth ranging from $6 million to $30 million, despite claims earlier this year that she was “not a millionaire.” The vast majority of the wealth comes from Mynett’s two companies, a winery in California and a venture capital firm.
Disclosures from the end of 2023 showed that those ownership stakes were valued at just $51,000, and they grew little in 2024.
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The Monday disclosure comes after years of Omar attempting to downplay or outright deny her personal wealth in comments to the press.
“Since getting elected, there has been a coordinated right-wing disinformation campaign claiming all sorts of wild things, including the ridiculous claim I am worth millions of dollars which is categorically false,” Omar told Business Insider earlier this year.
“I am not a millionaire,” she added shortly afterward.
She hit back on claims about her personal wealth in February, encouraging critics to “try checking my public financial statements.”
Omar’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
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Mynett’s firm, Rose Lake Capital, is valued between $5 million and $25 million according to the 2025 disclosure, while the winery, eStCru Wines, is valued between $1 million and $5 million.
News of the disclosure comes as Omar has renewed a push for gun control following last week’s school shooting in Minneapolis.
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, when she called for “getting rid of assault weapons” in the wake of the deadly shooting at Anunciation Catholic School.
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“It is important for us to make sure that we are offering a slew of solutions,” Omar told CNN anchor Brianna Keilar. “One is to make sure that we are getting rid of assault weapons in our community.”
Read Omar’s full 2025 financial disclosure below (App users click here)
Trump admin weighs national housing emergency, Treasury’s Bessent says
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday said that the Trump administration is mulling the declaration of a national housing emergency in an effort to address high housing prices and limited inventory.
“We may declare a national housing emergency in the fall,” Bessent told the Washington Examiner in a Labor Day interview.
Bessent reiterated that interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve would be helpful for bringing housing prices lower, but also acknowledged in the interview that the Trump administration could take other steps aimed at expanding the supply of housing as well as alleviating certain costs.
“We’re trying to figure out what we can do, and we don’t want to step into the business of states, counties and municipal governments,” Bessent said. “I think everything is on the table.”
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Bessent opted against listing the executive actions that President Donald Trump could take if the White House declares a national housing emergency, but told the Examiner that officials are evaluating ways to standardize local building and zoning codes as well as decrease closing costs.
The treasury secretary also told the outlet that the Trump administration may consider some tariff exemptions for certain construction materials to reduce costs.
Lumber costs have been particularly volatile this year amid the Trump administration’s implementation of tariff policies, particularly given U.S. imports of Canadian lumber.
FIGHT OVER LUMBER TARIFFS COULD RESHAPE FUTURE OF US HOME BUILDING
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported that as of the week ending Aug. 22, the composite price of framing lumber was up 5.8% year-over-year, while lumber futures were 19.1% higher than a year ago despite recent declines.
The Commerce Department in July announced that it would more than double countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber imports from 6.74% to 14.63%. Canadian lumber is also subject to an anti-dumping tariff of 20.6%, which brings the total rate applied to Canadian lumber to 35.2%, up from 14.4%, the NAHB noted.
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Other construction materials that are sensitive to tariffs are gypsum, which is used in drywall and is largely imported from Mexico.
College cheerleader is arrested after police make grim discovery at residence
A 21-year-old University of Kentucky cheerleader has been arrested after allegedly hiding her dead infant inside a closet.
The Lexington Police Department took Laken Snelling into custody Sunday after officers were “dispatched for an unresponsive infant at a residence in the 400 block of Park Avenue” earlier last week.
“When officers arrived, they located an infant that was pronounced deceased at the scene,” police said. “The Fayette County Coroner’s Office will release the infant’s cause of death.”
Snelling, whom the Lexington Police Department said was the infant’s mother, was charged with abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence and concealing the birth of an infant.
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A University of Kentucky spokesperson told Fox News Digital on Tuesday that Snelling “is a senior at UK and a member of the STUNT team.”
University of Kentucky Athletics describes STUNT as a “head-to-head competition between two teams that focuses on the technical and athletic aspects of cheer” that is “one of the fastest-growing female sports in the United States.”
Snelling is listed as a member of the STUNT team on its website.
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A police document said the “infant was located wrapped in a towel inside of a black trash bag” and was placed in a closet, according to WLEX.
The station also cited the document as saying that Snelling, during an interview with police, “admitted to giving birth.”
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The Lexington Police Department said its “Special Victims Section is continuing to investigate.”
Woman who admitted Trump death threats to Secret Service released by judge
A woman arrested last month for allegedly making death threats against President Donald Trump has been released by a federal judge who has clashed with the Trump administration several times this year, including by attempting to block the deportations of Venezuelan migrants under the Alien Enemies Act.
Chief Judge James Boasberg ordered Nathalie Rose Jones, 50, released no later than Aug. 27 under electronic monitoring and instructed her to visit a psychiatrist in New York City once she retrieves her belongings from a local police station.
Boasberg’s order came after US Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya ordered Jones to be held without bond and undergo a competency evaluation. She cited her “very troubling conduct” of social media posts aimed at the president, combined with the fact that she had then traveled to the District of Columbia, per WUSA9.
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Jones took part in a “dignified arrest ceremony” for Trump at a protest in Washington, D.C., which circumnavigated the White House complex and was arrested following an investigation into her series of concerning Instagram and Facebook posts.
In early August, Jones labeled Trump a terrorist, referred to his administration as a dictatorship, and stated that Trump had caused extreme and unnecessary loss of life in relation to the coronavirus.
“I am willing to sacrificially kill this POTUS by disemboweling him and cutting out his trachea with Liz Cheney and all The Affirmation present,” an Aug. 6 post directed at the FBI states.
In an Aug. 14 post directed to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Jones allegedly wrote, “Please arrange the arrest and removal ceremony of POTUS Trump as a terrorist on the American People from 10-2pm at the White House on Saturday, August 16th, 2025.”
The next day, Jones voluntarily agreed to an interview with the Secret Service, during which she called Trump a “terrorist” and a “nazi,” authorities said.
She said that if she had the opportunity, she would kill Trump at “the compound” if she had to and that she had a “bladed object,” which she said was the weapon she would use to “carry out her mission of killing” the president.
Following the protest in Washington, D.C on Aug. 16, Jones was interviewed again by the Secret Service, during which she admitted that she had made threats towards Trump during her interview the previous day.
She was charged with threatening to kill, kidnap, or seriously hurt the president and sending messages across state lines that contained threats to kidnap or harm someone.
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Upadhyaya expressed concern over the gravity of Jones’s threats and ruled they were serious enough to justify detention and scheduled a status conference and preliminary hearing for Sept. 2, with prosecutors required to secure an indictment by Sept. 15.
But Jones’s lawyers, who had argued their client was unarmed and had no real desire to follow through with the threats, appealed Upadhyaya’s detention decision, and Boasberg overturned Upadhyaya’s detention order.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Justice Department for comment.
Boasberg, a President Barack Obama appointee, has found himself in the crosshairs of the Trump administration several times this year.
In March, he issued a temporary restraining order seeking to block Trump’s use of a 1798 wartime-era immigration law, the Alien Enemies Act, to summarily deport hundreds of Venezuelan nationals to El Salvador.
Boasberg ordered all planes bound for El Salvador to be “immediately” returned to U.S. soil, which did not happen, and later, ordered a new investigation to determine whether the Trump administration had complied with his orders.
In April, he ruled that the court had grounds to move on possible contempt proceedings, though that ruling was stayed by a higher appeals court, which has yet to consider the matter.
His March 15 order touched off a complex legal saga that ultimately spawned dozens of deportation-related court challenges across the country — though the one brought before Boasberg was the very first — and later prompted the Supreme Court to rule, on two separate occasions, that the hurried removals had violated migrants’ due process protections under the U.S. Constitution.
Trump has publicly attacked him as a “Radical Left Lunatic” and called for his impeachment.
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In July, Attorney General Pam Bondi filed a misconduct complaint against Boasberg, accusing him of making improper comments about President Trump’s administration, Chief Justice Roberts, and roughly two dozen other federal judges — remarks that she allegedly argued undermined the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.
Boasberg allegedly warned the judges that he believed the Trump Administration would “disregard rulings of federal courts” and trigger “a constitutional crisis.”
“Although his comments would be inappropriate even if they had some basis, they were even worse because Judge Boasberg had no basis—the Trump Administration has always complied with all court orders,” the complaint reads. “Nor did Judge Boasberg identify any purported violations of court orders to justify his unprecedented predictions.”
JAMES CARVILLE: Police union breaks with tradition to endorse Democrat for governor
I’ll admit it: Democrats are on the defensive when it comes to crime. President Donald Trump’s takeovers of Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles aren’t making America any safer, but they’re effective stunts — designed to put Democrats on the back foot and distract from his administration driving our country to economic ruin.
Republican law and order messaging is nothing new — Google “Richard Nixon.” But in the wake of the whole “defund the police” debacle, Democrats are still working to find clear, consistent answers to it that voters trust. Democrats’ perceived positions on law-and-order issues are some of the clear disconnects we have with working-class voters of all races.
That needs to change — and fast. The stupidity from the White House will only intensify heading into the 2026 midterms. We need to be ready to not just counter punch, but to go on offense when talking about crime. Democrats can’t get caught up litigating stupid slogans.
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The good news is that former Virginia Democrat Rep. Abigail Spanberger, who is on the ballot this November for governor in Virginia, is delivering a masterclass in what credible leadership on stopping crime looks like.
This month, the Virginia Police Benevolent Association, the state’s largest police union, unanimously endorsed Spanberger — the first time they’ve backed a Democrat for governor of Virginia since the late 2000s. They notably snubbed Spanberger’s opponent in this year’s race, current Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears, who these police had endorsed in 2021 and whose campaign highlights to-date include telling recently laid-off Virginians that she doesn’t “understand why” losing your job is “a huge, huge thing.”
Of course, this isn’t the first time Spanberger stands apart from her party. Five years ago, the former federal law enforcement officer, CIA officer and daughter of a cop, blasted fellow Democrats for adopting “defund the police” messaging, warning that the phrase was both substantively wrong and politically toxic. Sounds familiar.
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Instead of following the worst instincts of her party, Spanberger has repeatedly stuck to her guns and bucked the party orthodoxy. She talks about what it means to wear the badge, and what it meant to see her dad put one on every day when he went to work.
She crossed the aisle to vote for additional funding for police departments. She also led the charge to let retired officers receive the full Social Security benefits they paid into during their careers. That law even earned her recent praise from the Fraternal Order of Police, the same police union that endorsed Trump during each of his three runs for president.
These aren’t just political winners, they’re the kind of decisions that Americans actually agree with — even if they leave some liberals grumbling. A 2024 survey by Pew Research Center found that nearly six in 10 adults, including almost half of Democrats, wanted “reducing crime” to be a top priority for American leaders.
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A Gallup poll from the same year showed public confidence in the police rising to its highest level since 2018, with big increases among young people, non-White Americans and political independents — the exact voters Democrats lost ground with in 2024.
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But to win elections, Democrats need to do more than just govern effectively — we need to aggressively communicate the steps we’re taking to actually make American communities safer. That means speaking in plain, direct language that people really use, not sounding like we’re auditioning for NPR pledge week.
Democrats need to be on the attack. Our party’s leaders can’t be afraid to call out Republican recklessness when it puts lives at risk. Just look at Louisiana’s Republican governor, who deployed National Guard troops this month not to respond to a real emergency, but to score political points with Trump. Washington bureaucrats might not know, but we’re in the middle of hurricane season, and our governor wants Louisiana’s troops used as props for photo-ops. Seems nuts to me.
Instead of following the worst instincts of her party, Spanberger has repeatedly stuck to her guns and bucked the party orthodoxy.
The Democratic Party needs to bring more candidates into the fold who can speak to families’ very real concerns about crime. Leaders like Abigail Spanberger and Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic nominee for New Jersey governor this year, didn’t just serve our country — they’re moms. They know firsthand that safety and security aren’t abstract talking points, they’re a daily concern for American families.
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That kind of authenticity cuts through the B.S. in lazy Republican attack ads and PR stunts. It connects with voters who want to see leaders buck up and do something to actually prevent crime in their communities.
Democrats running in 2026 — and beyond — should pay attention.
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‘You’re not a celebrity’: Prince Philip’s stern warning to Kate Middleton revealed
Prince Philip had a blunt warning for Kate Middleton about surviving royal life.
Hello! magazine recently revisited Gyles Brandreth’s 2021 book, Philip: The Final Portrait,” which claimed the Duke of Edinburgh gave the future Princess of Wales his no-nonsense “golden rule” for making it as a senior member of the British royal family.
“If you think the attention is on you personally, you’ll end up in trouble,” Philip told her, as quoted by the outlet. “The focus is on your role, what you do, what you support. It’s not focused on you as an individual. You’re not a celebrity. You represent the royal family.”
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According to Brandreth, the late queen’s husband told Kate that one crucial way to avoid feeling like a star was to “never look at the camera” when photographers were present. He stressed that Queen Elizabeth II never looked at the camera, but instead at the person she was speaking with.
Brandreth noted that Philip, who supported his wife for more than seven decades, served as a mentor to the younger royals. He worried they might be consumed by fame, casting aside duty and service.
Philip was reportedly “relieved” that his grandson Prince William, heir to the throne, had found a “level-headed girl” like Kate.
“I have been on walkabouts with [the Princess of Wales],” said Brandreth. “She does not look at the camera. Whenever she is interviewed, Catherine talks about the matter at hand, never about herself.”
British broadcaster and photographer Helena Chard told Fox News Digital that Philip’s advice continues to shape Kate’s role as a beloved senior royal.
“She was taught by the best,” said Chard. “Prince Philip reminded her that she wasn’t a celebrity. She represents the royal family. She needs to dedicate herself to a life of service, concentrate on the job at hand and never smile directly at the camera.
WATCH: KATE MIDDLETON’S COLLEGE PAL RECALLS BEFRIENDING THE FUTURE PRINCESS OF WALES
“The Princess of Wales’s deep humility and discretion, along with Philip’s advice in dealing with life in the spotlight, has given her the strength to breeze through challenging media firestorms.”
British royal expert Hilary Fordwich told Fox News Digital it was easy for Kate to follow Philip’s advice.
“One of the many reasons Princess Catherine has followed his advice was due to the national respect she always garnered,” Fordwich explained. “She also values tradition, service, as well as stability.”
“He implored her to always focus on the role, that of dedication and duty, not on herself,” said Fordwich. “That’s why she avoids seeking public attention for personal fame. He made it blatantly clear that royalty and celebrity are two completely different things. Philip’s advice has helped her preserve the monarchy’s respected public image, rendering her as one of the most level-headed, grounded, popular, revered and trusted members of the royal family.”
Royal experts previously said Kate was touched by her exchanges with Philip. Biographer Penny Junor told the U.K.’s Daily Mail that despite not having an aristocratic background, Kate mastered palace rules with ease.
“Kate shines in her own light, but she knows her place in the royal family,” Junor told the outlet. “I think Kate is a bit like Prince Philip, who has always supported Queen Elizabeth II.”
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Kate and William are also said to be inspired by the longevity of Elizabeth and Philip’s union, Vanity Fair reported. The couple were married for 73 years until Philip died in 2021 at age 99. Queen Elizabeth, Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, died in 2022 at age 96. William and Kate are believed to want to set an example not only for their three young children but for the nation.
“The late Queen Elizabeth made a huge success of her long life of service,” said Chard. “Her beloved Philip was her constant strength and guide. Princess Catherine is happy to be part of the bigger picture, the glue of the royal family. She is still scrutinized by the public and photographers, yet she handles the spotlight with grace and sheer dedication to the royal family.”
“The Princess of Wales holds star power by shining in her own light,” Chard added.
And Kate wasn’t the only Princess of Wales who turned to Philip for guidance.
“When [Princess Diana] found the restrictions of royal life difficult, it was Philip who helped her,” Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine, wrote in her book, “Prince Philip Revealed.”
“Once she was married, she never sat next to her husband; she always sat next to Philip at the endless black-tie dinners, and he took care of her,” Seward wrote, as quoted by Hello! Magazine. “Diana found the Balmoral dinners a massive strain and the atmosphere stifling. When the piper came around the table after dinner with his kilt swirling and his pipes whining, she couldn’t wait to leave the room.”
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In the 2021 Netflix docuseries “Harry & Meghan,” Meghan Markle recalled meeting Prince Harry’s grandfather.
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“At dinner, I was sat next to H’s grandfather, and I just thought it was so wonderful,” she said. “And I was like, ‘Oh, we chatted, and it was so great, and I talked about this and talked about this.’”
When Harry told her that she “had his bad ear,” the Duchess of Sussex laughed.
“Oh, well, I thought it went pretty well,” she said.
Florida State becomes first ACC team fined for field invasion after upset over Alabama
Florida State was fined $50,000 after fans stormed the field following Saturday’s 31-17 victory over Alabama, becoming the first team in the ACC to receive the fine following the conference’s policy change in July.
The ACC announced the fine Monday, noting that the celebratory actions by fans were a violation of the league’s event security policy.
“The violation occurred when fans entered the field of play after the conclusion of the contest. The conference’s event security policy is designed to protect the safety and well-being of all student-athletes, coaches, officials and fans,” the statement read.
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“In accordance with ACC policy, Florida State will incur a fine of $50,000 for a first offense.”
ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips announced the policy change in July, which limits fans from storming the field in football and men’s and women’s basketball.
The policy, which tracks a two-year period, will fine schools $50,000 for the first offense. The second will result in a $100,000 fine and the third, $200,000.
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“Our enhanced health and safety initiatives reflect our continued responsibility to lead with integrity, prioritize the well-being of our programs and fans, and modernize our operations to meet the evolving needs of today’s collegiate landscape,” Phillips said at the time of the announcement.
The ACC is not the first conference to implement policies meant to thwart fans from storming the field or court.
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In May, the SEC increased its previous policy to fine schools $500,000 per incident. It replaced the old policy in which the first offense resulted in $100,000 and increased for each subsequent offense.
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‘Pawn Stars’ icon calls out Las Vegas casinos and hotels for tourism decline
As Sin City grapples with a tourism decline, one Las Vegas icon is pointing fingers at overpriced casinos and hotels and the damage the COVID-19 virus left behind.
Rick Harrison of “Pawn Stars” told Fox News Digital in an interview he’s noticed fewer people on the Las Vegas Strip than in times past. (See the video at the top of this article.)
“I think it’s the COVID hangover,” he said. “For a couple of years, everybody was just making crazy COVID money. The government was giving everybody money left and right. Everybody had tons of money to spend.”
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The influx of money, said Harrison, caused inflation in the area while also making it more likely tourists would visit Vegas.
“I also blame the casinos on the Strip a little bit,” he said. “I mean, they’ve gotten a little insane with their prices.”
Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) statistics show that only 3.1 million people visited the city in June, which was down 11.3% compared to last year.
“I’ve heard so many people complain,” said Harrison. “They go to a hotel, they go to check out. And there’s $500 in stupid fees on their bills — resort fees and parking fees and this fee and that fee.”
The hotel industry is feeling the burn of fewer visitors, with occupancy dropping 6.5% while average daily room rates have lowered to $163.64 — down 6.6%, according to the LVCVA.
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Harrison said it is “financial Darwinism,” sharing that casinos need to evolve and make their customers happy to stay afloat.
While most tourist numbers are down citywide, Harrison said his business is doing better than last year with lots of traffic in his shop.
He credited his long business tenure of 37 years and an attentive team that focuses on customers.
“You have to evolve or die. You have to give your customers what they want and not p— your customers off,” he said. “Customers need be happy to be with you. And it’s just a general — it’s a good business plan.”
Harry Reid International Airport revealed that there were nearly 300,000 fewer passengers this July compared to last year — marking a 5.7% drop.
Last month, 4,773,905 passengers went to Sin City, while in 2024 there were over five million who visited in the same period.
Harrison noted that he sees casinos that cater to their customers surviving the decline by keeping a “loyal following.”
“I think trying to scrape every single penny you can out of a customer, eventually, is going to turn your customer off. I just think that the casinos on the Strip have to straighten out a little bit.”
Harrison said Las Vegas is still the epicenter of entertainment around the world — highlighting sporting events such as National Hockey League games, F1 racing, baseball and NASCAR. They’re all expected to draw scores of tourists.
“I’ve lived here almost my entire life. It’s the greatest city in the world,” said Harrison.
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“You just have amazing shows with $100-million-dollar sets. I mean, no one can replicate that. There is still tons of value in Las Vegas.”
People worrying about Vegas is nothing new, he said, as the city always comes out on top.
“Everyone said this town was going to fall when [the state of] New Jersey got gambling. And then when Mississippi got gambling, they said it was going to fall.”
He noted other such projections that didn’t come to pass.
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People said “it was going to be bad for Vegas,” he said.
Yet “we will just keep on going.”