At least 10 dead, 180,000 forced to flee their homes as L.A. wildfires rage
Clarissa-Jan Lim – January 10, 2025
Aaron Lubeley hugs a family member and cries while viewing the remains of his home burned in the Eaton fire in the Altadena area of Los Angeles county on Jan. 9, 2025.
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A series of wildfires have sparked since Tuesday because of extreme dry conditions and powerful Santa Ana winds. Three of the biggest blazes — the Palisades Fire, the Eaton Fire and the Hurst Fire — have destroyed a total of 33,700 acres, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire).
Officials have said the true death toll remains unknown, as the L.A. County medical examiner’s office said Thursday night that at least 10 people have died in the fires.
Here are the latest numbers from Cal Fire:
The Palisades Fire has consumed more than 20,000 acres and damaged almost 5,300 structures, L.A. officials said in updates Thursday evening. It is 8% contained. City Fire Chief Kristin M. Crowley has called it “one of the most destructive fires in the history of Los Angeles.”
The Eaton Fire has burned through 13,690 acres and is 3% contained. L.A. County Fire Chief Deputy Jon O’Brien said more than 5,000 structures are estimated to have been destroyed.
The Hurst Fire has destroyed 771 acres and is 37% contained.
Further north, the Lidia Fire, near Acton, has swept through 394 acres and is 75% contained.
The Kenneth Fire, which began Thursday afternoon in the Woodland Hills area near Calabasas, has burned through 960 acres so far. It is 35% contained.
The National Weather Service has said that critical fire weather conditions will continue through Friday morning. The Santa Ana winds is expected to recede later Friday and into Saturday and to pick back up on Sunday through mid-week.
Los Angeles wildfires in photos: Multiple blazes rage across the city, leaving a path of destruction
Images from the ground show strong Santa Ana winds driving the blazes as firefighters try to battle the flames.
Yahoo News Photo Staff, Kate Murphy – January 9, 2025
Megan Mantia and her boyfriend Thomas return to Mantia’s fire-damaged home after the Eaton Fire swept through the area, Wednesday in Altadena, Calif. (Ethan Swope/AP)
Five wildfires fueled by ferocious winds were scorching thousands of acres in Southern California on Thursday. At least five people were reported dead in Los Angeles County and around 130,000 people are under evacuation orders.
According to the latest figures from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the Palisades Fire has reached over 17,200; the Eaton Fire in the Pasadena area has covered 10,600 acres; the Hurst Fire, over 855 acres; the Lidia Fire, 348 acres; and the Sunset Fire, burning through the Hollywood Hills, is around 43 acres.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency on Tuesday after the Palisades Fire started that morning in the hills north of Malibu. Photos below show flames from the wildfires engulfing homes, residents evacuating and firefighters working to battle the blazes as strong Santa Ana winds complicate their efforts.
The sun is seen behind smoke above charred structures and vehicles after the passage of the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades, Calif., on Wednesday. (Agustin Paullier/AFP via Getty Images)A man walks past a fire-ravaged business after the Eaton Fire swept through Wednesday, in Altadena, Calif. (Ethan Swope/AP)A home burns during the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades, Calif., on Wednesday. (Agustin Paullier/AFP via Getty Images)Melted lawn chairs are seen near the remains of a burnt home after the passage of the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades, on Wednesday. (Agustin Paullier/AFP via Getty Images)A man walks in front of the burning Altadena Community Church, Wednesday, in the downtown Altadena section of Pasadena, Calif. (Chris Pizzello/AP)A person lowers a flag from the flagpole outside his burning cousin’s house as powerful winds fueling devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area force people to evacuate, at the Eaton Fire in Altadena, Calif., Wednesday. (David Swanson/Reuters)MoreThe Palisades Fire burns in Los Angeles. (Eugene Garcia/AP)Fire-ravaged businesses are seen in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Jan. 8. (Eugene Garcia/AP)The Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025. (Damian Dovarganes/AP)The Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades. (Damian Dovarganes/AP)The Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades. (Damian Dovarganes/AP)A vehicle and other structures are burned as the Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades. (Damian Dovarganes/AP)A statue and other structures are burned as the Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades. (Damian Dovarganes/AP)The Palisades Fire ravages a neighborhood amid high winds in the Pacific Palisades. (Damian Dovarganes/AP)
Scenes from Tuesday night
Fire personnel on Tuesday try to keep the Palisades Fire from destroying other nearby homes while a helicopter drops water on the area. (David Swanson/AFP via Getty Images)The Palisades Fire ravages an L.A. neighborhood amid high winds on Tuesday. (Ethan Swope/AP)Firefighters battling a blaze ripping through the Theatre Palisades amid a powerful windstorm on Tuesday. (Apu Gomes/Getty Images)A fire engulfs a structure on the west side of Los Angeles on Tuesday. (Ringo Chiu/Reuters)A fire truck races through a Los Angeles neighborhood on Tuesday. (Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images)Residents of a senior center in Altadena, Calif., are evacuated on Tuesday as the Eaton Fire approaches. (Ethan Swope/AP)Firefighters battle the Palisades Fire during a windstorm on the west side of Los Angeles on Tuesday. (Ringo Chiu/Reuters)A firefighter battles a fire as it burns a structure in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Tuesday. (Ethan Swope/AP)A Christmas tree can be seen burning inside a residence in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles engulfed by flames on Tuesday. (Ethan Swope/AP)Firefighters battle a wildfire as it burns multiple structures in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Tuesday. (Ethan Swope/AP)The Eaton Fire burns a residence on Wednesday in Altadena, Calif. (Ethan Swope/AP)Firefighters work to extinguish flames as the Eaton Fire burns a McDonald’s location in Pasadena, Calif., on Tuesday. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)A firefighter walks by a home engulfed by the Palisades Fire amid a powerful windstorm on Tuesday. (Apu Gomes/Getty Images)Flames from the Eaton Fire destroy a structure in Pasadena, Calif., on Tuesday. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)Fire crews battle the Palisades Fire as it spreads through multiple structures in a Los Angeles neighborhood on Tuesday. (Ethan Swope/AP)A structure in Pasadena, Calif., is swallowed up by flames from the Eaton Fire. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)A wildfire destroys a residence in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles on Tuesday. (Ethan Swope/AP)
Elon Musk Sets His Sights on Toppling Another World Leader
Malcolm Ferguson – January 9, 2025
Elon has zeroed in on his next political target: U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
The world’s richest man has been consulting with his right-wing allies to devise a strategy to oust the Labour Party’s Starmer before the next election, according to a report from the Financial Times Thursday.
Musk has been antagonizing Starmer on X for some time, but according to people familiar with the matter, he is now focused on finding a way to destabilize the Labour government and bolster other alternatives.
“His view is that Western civilisation itself is threatened,” one source told FT.
Musk has been rallying to free far-right, Islamaphobic hooligan Tommy Robinson from prison since the new year and thinks that all-out civil war is “inevitable” in the nation. He’s also been calling for a national investigation into the grooming and exploitation cases in the Midlands region of England. Musk blames Starmer, who was a director of public prosecutions at the time, for his oversight on the issue.
Musk’s attempted toppling of Starmer is another installment in his efforts to exert the same political influence he has in the United States in Europe. The billionaire has been singing the praises of Germany’s far-right, nativist Alternative for Germany, or AfD, Party. He published an op-ed in a German newspaper in which he wrote, “Portraying the AfD as far-right is clearly false, considering that Alice Weidel, the party’s leader, has a same-sex partner from Sri Lanka! Does that sound like Hitler to you? Come on!” He has since been accused of election interference by the German government but has shown no signs of stopping. He is also scheduled to host AfD leader Alice Weidel live on X sometime before the German elections in February.
Meanwhile, Musk is also closing in on a massive telecommunications deal with Italy’s far-right government, entrenching himself in the Eurozone.
A tale of two presidents: How L.A. fires show the difference between Biden and Trump
Taryn Luna, Liam Dillon, Alex Wigglesworth – January 8, 2025
President Biden, Gov. Gavin Newsom, middle, and U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla attend a briefing in Santa Monica on the L.A. County fires on Jan. 8, 2025. (Christina House/Los Angeles Times)
As communities across Los Angeles County burned Wednesday in a spate of wildfires, the crisis highlighted the stark difference between the incoming and outgoing presidents and their relationships with California.
President Biden stood next to Gov. Gavin Newsom, a fellow Democrat, at a fire station in Santa Monica and pledged to provide full federal support to the state.
“We’re prepared to do anything and everything for as long as it takes to contain these fires,” Biden said.
Hours earlier, Republican President-elect Donald Trump, just days away from being sworn in on Jan. 20, blamed “Newscum and his Los Angeles crew” for the unfolding calamity.
In a post on his social media site, Truth Social, Trump said the Democratic governor “refused to sign a water restoration declaration,” which he alleged would have allowed millions of gallons of rain and snowmelt to flow south to the areas on fire.
“Now the ultimate price is being paid,” Trump wrote. “I will demand that this incompetent governor allow beautiful, clean, fresh water to FLOW INTO CALIFORNIA!”
The morning missive from the president-elect, as communities burned and thousands of people fled their homes, echoed his prior threats to withhold wildfire funding if Newsom declined to go along with Trump’s water policy for California. Water experts have said, however, that Trump’s water proposals probably will encounter substantial obstacles, and that his claims attempting to link water deliveries to the firefighting response were inaccurate.
Though Newsom praised Trump during his first term for approving federal disaster funding for wildfires, the governor has since said he had to “kiss the ring” to convince Trump to help.
Newsom has commended Biden for not playing political games during disasters.
“It’s impossible for me to express the level of appreciation and cooperation we’ve received from the White House and this administration,” Newsom said in Santa Monica on Wednesday.
California is grateful to @POTUS & his Administration's support fighting the LA wildfires.
Presidents have wide discretion when it comes to disaster aid, which could be in jeopardy in the future if Trump follows through with his threats after his inauguration.
California and other states receive most federal wildfire aid through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, including direct payments and services to homeowners and renters whose properties were damaged, and public assistance for things such as search-and-rescue teams, debris removal and infrastructure repair.
States need to show that an incident is of such a severity and magnitude that a response is beyond the state’s capability in order to qualify. The governor must request, and the president must declare, a major disaster and then approve any aid the governor requests.
FEMA decides whether a federal disaster declaration is warranted and issues a recommendation to the president. In the past, presidents have followed that recommendation, but there’s nothing in the law that requires them to do so.
Trump initially refused to approve federal aid to California for wildfires in 2018 until a National Security Council staffer showed him that Orange County had a dense concentration of voters who supported him, according to Politico.
State Sen. Ben Allen, a Democrat who lives and grew up in Santa Monica, attended Wednesday’s briefing with the president and governor. Allen said it was obvious from Newsom’s remarks since the fires began that the governor was worried about federal support for disasters under the Trump administration. Allen said Biden’s response was remarkably quick and thorough. But he said he couldn’t imagine that Trump would ignore Californians in any time of need.
“I have every expectation that the new administration will assist fellow Americans in moments of vulnerability,” Allen said. “That’s what every White House has done, whether Democrat or Republican, throughout history. There’s no reason why they shouldn’t continue to provide the same level of assistance and service that previous presidents have.”
Despite Trump’s feisty rhetoric, he did travel to California as president to survey fire damage and meet with Newsom. Trump toured Paradise in 2018 in the aftermath of the state’s deadliest wildfire. And he met with Newsom in Sacramento after a spate of wildfires in 2020.
Newsom and Trump traded blows on social media, in the news media and in the courts during the president-elect’s first term, but remained cordial in texts, calls and even in person. But that relationship appears to have soured during Biden’s presidency.
Newsom has said Trump did not return a call he made in November to congratulate the incoming president on winning the election. An aide to Newsom said the two men have still not spoken.
The president-elect continued to blame Newsom on Truth Social for the blazes on Wednesday: “As of this moment, Gavin Newscum and his Los Angeles crew have contained exactly ZERO percent of the fire. It is burning at levels that even surpass last night. This is not government.”
Trump also took shots at Biden.
“NO WATER IN THE FIRE HYDRANTS, NO MONEY IN FEMA,” he posted. “THIS IS WHAT JOE BIDEN IS LEAVING ME. THANKS JOE!”
Peter Gleick, a hydroclimatologist and senior fellow of the Oakland-based Pacific Institute, said Trump’s comments attempting to link California water policy with the water-supply problems facing firefighters in Southern California were “blatantly false, irresponsible and politically self-serving.”
“There is no water shortage in Southern California — the state’s reservoirs are all at, or above, levels normally expected for this time of year. The problem with water supply for the fires is entirely the result of the massive immediate demands for firefighting water, broken or damaged pipes and pumps, and homeowners leaving hoses and sprinklers running in hopes of saving property.”
Staff writer Ian James contributed to this report.
Trump’s pick for defense secretary bodes ill for military sexual assaults
Christopher Kilmartin and Ronald Levant – January 8, 2025
When it comes to preventing and responding to military sexual assaults, leadership matters a great deal. Thus, we are very concerned about the safety of our service women and men under President-elect Donald Trump and his nominee for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth.
Both men have sexual assault allegations against them, and in both cases, there is reliable evidence that corroborates these reports. Trump seems to be an especially egregious offender who is named in more than 20 reports. This is not a case of he said, she said; it is a case of he said, they said.
The U.S. military publishes reliable estimates of sexual assaults every two years based on those both officially reported and recorded by survey. And this is not a problem only for women in the ranks — many of the assault victims are men.
Tracking the numbers tells us about the possible role that the president, as commander-in-chief, has in the increase or decrease in incidents in which a soldier experiences intentional harm from someone who wears the same uniform and took the same vow to serve and protect.
In 2006, the military estimated that there were about 34,000 assaults. That number dropped steadily the next 10 years by more than half (14,900), and the reporting rate nearly tripled between 2012 and 2016, from 11% to 32%. Although nearly 15,000 assaults are still 15,000 too many, we were going in the right direction: fewer assaults, more reports.
Experts believe that victim advocacy is the main factor in the rise of reporting rates. And several things happened to prevent the problem in the first place: more vigorous enforcement and removal of offenders from the ranks, leadership training, both for senior officers and on down the chain of command, bystander intervention training for all members, and environmental interventions.
But then in 2020, the number increased by more than a third to 20,600. (Reporting rates held fairly steady at 30%.) And then came the worst news of all: the 2022 number was 36,000, with the reporting rate dropping to 23.6%.
While the military changed how it collected data for the 2022 report, it still showed a shocking number of assaults and several steps back in progress.
The sharp increases in 2020 and 2022 were data collected during the first Trump administration.
The 2024 number, the first under President Joe Biden and the latest data available, once again indicated progress: 29,061 estimated assaults, more than 6,000 fewer than in 2022, though still higher than it had been 14 years earlier. We know Biden prioritized reducing this number: At his direction, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered an independent commission to develop solutions to the crisis, including changes to the military justice system.
But now, we have a man found liable for sexual abuse at the head of the armed services again, and he has made matters even worse by nominating another man accused of sexual assault as second in command.
Defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth meets Dec. 5, 2024, with Senator-elect Jim Banks, R-Indiana, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
A story about how much leadership matters: I (Kilmartin) was invited to San Antonio, Texas, in 2011 to do a training for Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month on three military bases.
At the first base, the general showed he was serious and passionate about reducing on-base violence by engaging in the training. At the second base, the “mandatory” training for 300 people resulted in only about 60 attendees. And at the third base, where attendance was voluntary, I presented to seven people.
Since leadership is so important, having a commander-in-chief from 2017-2021 who has been reported for sexual assault by more than 20 women could have been a critical factor in the 2022 increases. We fully expect that the 2024 numbers, the last under Biden, who has a long record of working to end gender-based violence, will again show a decrease.
The important lesson from the 2006-2016 progress is that we know what works, and so the task for the military is to redouble their efforts. Having two leaders with such callous disregard for others’ rights will surely make this work even more challenging than ever. Congressional pressure on Trump to nominate a defense secretary with a strong record on this critical issue would be a step in the right direction.
Christopher Kilmartin is a Fredericksburg, Virginia, author, trainer and activist in preventing violence in schools, the military, and the workplace internationally. His latest book is “The Fictions that Shape Men’s Lives” from Routledge.
Ronald Levant is a former president of the American Psychological Association and professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Akron. His latest book is “The Problem with Men: Insights on Overcoming a Traumatic Childhood from a World-Renowned Psychologist” from Koehler Books Publishing.
Democrats dial up pressure on Hegseth as confirmation battle nears
Missy Ryan and Abigail Hauslohner – January 7, 2025
The record of Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Pentagon, should disqualify him for such a pivotal national security role, a Democratic senator told the former Fox News personality in an expansive letter that illustrates the party’s breadth of concern with one of the president-elect’s most controversial Cabinet picks ahead of his confirmation hearing next week.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, outlined 10 areas of concern in her letter, posing more than 70 questions for Hegseth in what appears to be a preview of Democrats’ approach when they interrogate his qualifications, past conduct and beliefs. The letter highlights allegations of heavy drinking and sexual misconduct, remarks suggesting female military personnel should play a more limited role, his past skepticism about the need for U.S. troops to comply with laws of war, and accusations of financial mismanagement arising from the veterans’ organizations he once led.
Hegseth has vehemently denied claims of wrongdoing.
“I am deeply concerned by the many ways in which your behavior and rhetoric indicates that you are unfit to lead the Department of Defense,” Warren said in the letter. “Your confirmation as Secretary of Defense would be detrimental to our national security and disrespect a diverse array of service members who are willing to sacrifice for our country.”
The Trump transition team declined to comment on Warren’s letter. Hegseth is due to appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Jan. 14.
Spanning 33 pages, the missive resurfaces statements and alleged incidents reported by the news media in the weeks following Trump’s selection of the 44-year-old – a former Army National Guard member, Princeton University graduate and longtime Fox News host – to lead the Pentagon. Several news outlets have published reports scrutinizing Hegseth’s background, including revelations that he made derisive comments about Muslims and current military leaders, and an incident in which he was investigated, but not charged, in an alleged sexual assault.
Warren’s letter also coincides with growing concern among Democrats about the incoming Trump administration’s decision to spurn steps traditionally involved in the selection, vetting and approval process for high-level government officials.
Hegseth’s confirmation hearing will provide an early test of how congressional Republicans, in particular, intend to size up their preferences against those of their president. While Hegseth’s record has stirred doubts among some in the GOP, Trump has lobbied forcefully for his confirmation.
And while some Republicans have praised Hegseth – who wasn’t widely seen as a contender for high office until Trump announced his pick days after the election – others, including Sen. Joni Ernst (Iowa) and Sen. Susan Collins (Maine), have not publicly declared how they will vote, though both said they had productive meetings with Hegseth last month. Ernst is a member of the Armed Services Committee and a sexual assault survivor. Collins is a prominent moderate within the GOP.
To proceed for a vote on the Senate floor, Hegseth must secure the support of a majority of the Republican-led Armed Services Committee. Committee Democrats are widely expected to oppose him.
If confirmed, Hegseth, who as a Fox News host successfully lobbied Trump for lenient treatment of service members convicted of war crimes, is expected to focus on cultural and personnel issues at the Pentagon, which he has said is insufficiently focused on combat and is dominated by “woke” generals.
In her letter, Warren told Hegseth to be ready to respond to questions, and she asked that he first reply in writing by Jan. 10. Separately, a group of Democratic senators, including Warren, Tim Kaine (Virginia), Tammy Duckworth (Illinois) and Kirsten Gillibrand (New York), sent a letter to Trump’s designated chief of staff last month focused on Hegseth’s record on women.
Critics have assailed Trump for tapping Hegseth before he completed key aspects of the vetting process, which for Senate-confirmed positions usually includes an FBI background check. While the FBI typically delivers the results of a nominee’s classified background check to the relevant oversight committee about a week ahead of a confirmation hearing, that hadn’t happened in Hegseth’s case as of Tuesday, said a Senate aide familiar with the process, who like some others spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the vetting process.
Upon receiving the results of an FBI background check, the committee chair and ranking minority-party member – in this case, Sens. Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi) and Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island) – have the discretion to share it with other lawmakers, aides said. Senators in both parties, including some like Collins who do not sit on the committee, have expressed interest in seeing the FBI’s findings. It is unclear if Wicker and Reed will make the FBI report more widely available.
Senate aides also said Hegseth had declined to hold meetings with committee Democrats in the lead-up to next week’s hearing, a development they called a disturbing break with tradition. Reed, the committee’s top Democrat, is expected to meet with Hegseth later this week.
The aides said Hegseth, through intermediaries, offered Democrats opportunities to meet with him only after his confirmation hearing.
“It’s obviously really concerning, and very unusual to not be taking those meetings,” one Senate aide said. “It’s disrespectful to the process.”
A Trump transition official disputed that claim, saying Hegseth and his team reached out to nearly all Democratic committee members well before the end-of-year holidays but received no agreements to meet in December. The aide identified one Democrat, Sen. John Fetterman (Pennsylvania), who had met with Hegseth but is not a member of the Armed Services Committee.
“Despite a poor response rate and multiple communications attacking the nominee before these Senators have even met with him (and going outside standard hearing procedures to make these requests), Mr. Hegseth is doing his level best to meet with as many Democrat Senators as he can before and after his hearing,” the Trump transition official said via email.
So you can imagine my delight when my hero, President-elect Trump, gave a news conference Tuesday and strongly addressed those crucial subjects, along with other things that matter deeply to REAL AMERICANS like me, including shower water pressure and making Canada part of the United States.
I voted for Trump for 1 reason: American invasion of Greenland
President-elect Donald Trump makes remarks at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., on Jan. 7, 2025.
Refusing to rule out using the military to take control of Greenland, Trump, who I voted for because I knew he would keep us out of wars, said: “Well, we need Greenland for national security purposes. … People really don’t even know if Denmark has any legal right to it. But if they do, they should give it up.”
YES! I was predominantly a one-issue voter, and that issue was the exorbitant cost of seal meat. By threatening our ally Denmark and using military force if necessary, the Trump administration can proudly claim Greenland as a U.S. territory, dramatically lowering the cost of seal meat for American consumers like myself. That will allow me and my fellow MAGA supporters to affordably make Suaasat, a Greenlandic soup, AS IS OUR RIGHT AS AMERICANS!
Some voters were concerned about egg prices. TRUE PATRIOTS were concerned about seal-meat prices.
And Trump is on the case.
I am very worried about the name ‘Gulf of Mexico’
The soon-to-be president also announced a change that has been talked about for years in the rural diners I frequent with my fellow forgotten American men and women.
“We’re going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America,” Trump said. “Gulf of America – what a beautiful name.”
President-elect Donald Trump announces the Gulf of Mexico will get a new name: the Gulf of America.
SO BEAUTIFUL! And also, so directly impactful on the quality of my day-to-day life.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to miss work because I was feeling down about having to give Mexico credit for that 218,0000-square-mile, semienclosed oceanic basin that I know was BUILT BY AMERICANS.
America for sure owns the Gulf of AMERICA, people!
As Trump said Tuesday: “We’re going to change, because we do most of the work there, and it’s ours.”
Finally, a president who hates windmills as much as I do
The greatest president in history, speaking from his Mar-a-Lago resort, went on to bless us with this: “We’re going to try and have a policy where no windmills are being built.”
Praise the Lord! I know some in the MAGA community are more concerned about the economy, immigration and making life terrible for transgender people, but many of us picked Trump again because we abso-freakin’-lutely despise windmills.
See Don Quixote’s La Mancha
They are distracting and can easily be mistaken for giants, leading innocent Americans to tilt at them like the late, great Don Quixote used to do. (Hopefully, Trump will also soon announce that Don Quixote will be renamed “Don America.”)
MAGA voters wanted a president unafraid of Big Shower
Trump also addressed America’s shower-water-pressure crisis, saying: “When you buy a faucet, no water comes out because they want to preserve, even in areas that have so much water you don’t know what to do, it’s called rain, it comes down from heaven. … No water comes out of the shower. It goes drip, drip, drip.”
Finally, we will have a president with the meteorological knowledge to identify that rain correctly comes from heaven. This is clearly the man best suited to handle America’s nuclear codes.
Sure, Canadians will welcome us taking control of their country
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Biden administration finalizes rule to strike medical debt from credit reports
Rob Wile – January 7, 2025
The Biden administration says people who previously had medical debt on their credit reports could see their credit scores rise by an average of 20 points.
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what’s in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience.Generate Key Takeaways
U.S. consumers will no longer have medical debt appear on their credit reports under a new rule the Biden administration finalized Tuesday.
The change, which administration officials had proposed over the summer and is set to take effect in March, means some $49 billion in medical bills will be struck from the credit reports of about 15 million Americans. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said lenders would also be prohibited from using medical information in their lending decisions.
“People who get sick shouldn’t have their financial future upended,” CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in a statement. “The CFPB’s final rule will close a special carveout that has allowed debt collectors to abuse the credit reporting system to coerce people into paying medical bills they may not even owe.”
About 1 in 12 adults in the U.S. had medical debt as of 2021, according to an analysis by KFF, a nonprofit group that researches health policy issues. The CFPB determined that a medical bill on a person’s credit report was a poor predictor of whether they would repay a loan yet contributed to thousands of denied mortgage applications.
The agency expects the rule will lead to the approval of some 22,000 additional mortgages every year, and that Americans with medical debt on their credit reports could see their credit scores rise by an average of 20 points.
The three major U.S. credit bureaus already announced in 2023 that previously paid medical debts, or any medical debts under $500, would no longer appear on credit reports.
The move comes as Biden administration officials race to safeguard aspects of their work weeks before President-elect Donald Trump retakes office. The White House on Monday, for example, announced a ban on new offshore oil and gas drilling along most of the U.S. coastline. When it comes to consumer finance, advocates are preparing for an expected rollback of certain safeguards imposed in the last four years by the CFPB, a high-profile target of some GOP lawmakers and Trump allies including Elon Musk.
How removing unpaid medical bills from credit reports could help consumers
Cora Lewis – January 7, 2025
FILE – Medical bills are seen in Temple Hills, Md., on June 26, 2023. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Lenders will no longer be able to consider unpaid medical bills as a credit history factor when they evaluate potential borrowers in the U.S. for mortgages, car loans or business loans, according to a rule the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized Tuesday.
The three national credit reporting agencies — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — said last year that they were removing medical collections under $500 from U.S. consumer credit reports. The government agency’s new rule goes further by banning all outstanding medical bills from appearing on credit reports and prohibiting lenders from using the information.
The rule is set to take effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register, although President-elect Donald Trump has proposed sweeping changes and limits to the CFPB’s regulatory reach.
Here’s what to know:
How many people will this affect?
The CFPB estimates the rule will remove $49 million in medical debt from the credit reports of 15 million Americans. According to the agency, one in five Americans have at least one medical debt collection account on their credit reports, and over half of collection entries on credit reports are for medical debts.
The problem disproportionately affects people of color, the CFPB has found: 28% of Black people and 22% of Latino people in the U.S. carry medical debt versus 17% of white people. While the national credit reporting agencies voluntarily agreed to disregard medical debt below $500, many consumers have amounts much higher than this threshold on their reports.
What will the impact be for consumers?
The CFPB says its action will give millions of consumers increased access to loans and lead to the approval of approximately 22,000 additional mortgages a year. Americans with outstanding medical bills may see their credit scores rise by an average of 20 points, according to the bureau.
The rule was also drafted to increase privacy protections and to help keep debt collectors from using the credit reporting system to coerce people into paying bills they don’t owe. The CFPB has found that consumers frequently receive inaccurate bills or are asked to pay bills that should have been covered by insurance or financial assistance programs.
What’s more, lenders will be barred from using information about medical devices, such as prosthetic limbs, to make them serve as collateral for a loan and subject to repossession, according to the CFPB’s announcement.
How are advocates responding?
Nonprofits in the healthcare space are pleased.
“This decision is great news for everyday Americans,” said Carrie Joy Grimes, founder of personal finance organization WorkMoney. “Medical debt is not a reflection of being bad with money — any one of us can experience illness or injury. With this new rule, Americans will now be able to focus less on the strain of medical debt and more on getting back on their feet.”
Patricia Kelmar, health care campaigns director for the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, said the rule would help “many financially responsible families who have accumulated medical debt from unpredictable health issues, high out-of-pocket costs, insurance claim denials and billing errors.”
What should you do after receiving an unexpectedly high medical bill?
First, determine whether you qualify for charity care. Federal law requires nonprofit hospitals to lower or write off bills for individuals depending on household income. To determine if you qualify, do an internet search for the hospital or health care provider along with the phrase “charity care” or “financial assistance policy.” The nonprofit organization Dollar For also provides a simplified online tool for patients.
Next, appeal under the provisions of the No Surprises Act, a federal law that says insurance companies must reasonably cover any out-of-network services related to emergency and some non-emergency medical care. If you’re being charged more than you’re used to or expect when you receive in-network services, that bill may be illegal.
Also: Always ask for an itemized bill. Medical billing is notoriously complicated and rife with errors. An itemized bill includes the billing codes of all care received. If something is off between these codes and the care provided, contesting your bill can yield changes.
Another approach — comparing the bill with insurance companies’ estimates of fair charges for services can also help. If the price you were charged is more than average, you may have your costs lowered. You could even take the provider to small claims court over the discrepancy – or let them know you have a case.
Finally, always compare your insurance company’s “explanation of benefits” to the bill. The hospital’s bill must match the explanation of costs that are covered and not covered. If it does not, you have another reason not to pay and to ask the provider to work with your insurance company further first.
Even after taking these steps, you can always appeal health claims with your insurance company if you believe there is any reason the bills should be covered entirely or more than the company initially decided. You may also contact your state insurance commissioner for support.
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This version has been corrected to show a consumer organization mentioned in the 13th paragraph is the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, not the U.S. Public Interest Resource Group.
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The Associated Press receives support from Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.
New federal rule will remove medical debt from credit reports
Elizabeth Schultz – January 7, 2025
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In a major change that could affect millions of Americans’ credit scores, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Tuesday finalized a rule to remove medical debt from consumer credit reports.
The rule would erase an estimated $49 billion in unpaid medical bills from the credit reports of roughly 15 million Americans, the CFPB said.
That could help boost those borrowers’ credit scores by an average of 20 points, helping them qualify for mortgages and other loans.
PHOTO: Vice President Kamala Harris waits in the Old Senate Chamber before swearing in new senators at the U.S. Capitol, Dec. 9, 2024, in Washington. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“No one should be denied economic opportunity because they got sick or experienced a medical emergency,” Vice President Kamala Harris said in a statement touting the new rule.
“This will be life-changing for millions of families, making it easier for them to be approved for a car loan, a home loan or a small-business loan,” Harris added.U.S. & World NewsLatest national and global stories
Major credit reporting agencies have already announced voluntary steps to remove medical debt from their reports.
The final rule is set to take effect in March – but that timeline could be delayed by legal challenges.
Debt collection industry groups like the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals have opposed the change, saying it would result in “reduced consequences for not paying your bills, which in turn will reduce access to credit and health care for those that need it most.”
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