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Lawrence Chaney Channels Traitors Host Alan Cumming

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The producers at RuPaul’s Drag Race are killing it with the pop culture references in Season 17. Last week’s premiere episode kicked off with a perfectly-timed Squid Game spoof, and now Episode 2 is giving us Lawrence Chaney channeling The Traitors host Alan Cumming. It’s no coincidence that the episode will air just a day after the Season 3 Traitors premiere. Check out the clip below and bask in all of Lawrence’s Scottish glory.

A Traitor in the Werk Room

In a sneak peek shared by MTV, Lawrence, who won the second season of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, comes crashing into the room in her signature purple. The Season 17 queens were shook. It’s not every day that RuPaul brings an international queen into the US Werk Room!

“It’s me, Alan Cumming,” Lawrence tells the queens. “And there’s a Traitor amongst you.”

A Traitor? Maybe so. During the Drag Race Season 17 premiere, half of the queens performed in a talent show. The remaining queens ranked them using the Rate-a-Queen system, which may or may not have been borrowed from The Circle.

In Episode 2, the bottom queens from both talent shows will lip sync for their lives. In the sneak peek, Lawrence teased the unfortunate fate awaiting the loser of the lip sync.

“Last week, we learned the queens smiling to your face, might be the same queens stabbing you in the back,” she teased. “But tonight, beyond a shadow of a doubt, one of you is going to be murdered!”

Everyone gasped! Suddenly, the Werk Room was feeling a lot more like Ardross Castle. Lawrence did such a good job channeling Alan’s hosting skills that she honestly might have found a new Snatch Game character. The tartan dress was the perfect touch.

If Lawrence’s Drag Race cameo has you itching for The Traitors, you’re in luck. Peacock drops the first three episodes of Season 3 on January 9th, featuring Drag Race alum Bob the Drag Queen. Spoiler alert: someone on The Traitors is actually going to get “murdered.”

RuPaul’s Drag Race airs new episodes every Friday at 8/7c on MTV.

TELL US – WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON LAWRENCE’S CAMEO APPEARANCE? ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO SEASON 3 OF THE TRAITORS?



This story originally appeared on Realitytea

‘General Hospital’ Warns of Upcoming Fire Storyline as Star Cameron Mathison Loses Home to Palisades Wildfires (VIDEO)

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General Hospital star and All My Children alum Cameron Mathison is documenting the devastation the Pacific Palisades wildfires in California have wreaked on his Los Angeles home. He shows “what’s left” of his house in a video posted to social media on Wednesday, January 8. General Hospital has also issued an advisory warning to viewers informing them that the January 8 episode, and more to come, coincidentally features a fire. The soap tweeted that “in light of current events, today’s episode of General Hospital (and several that follow) may prove too difficult to watch for some.”

“Our hearts go out to everyone affected by the fires currently raging in Los Angeles County,” the General Hospital Twitter account said in a Wednesday statement. “In light of current events, today’s episode of General Hospital (and several that follow) may prove too difficult to watch for some. Please keep this in consideration prior to tuning in. Thank you for your understanding.”

Mathison is currently starring in the daytime soap as Drew Quartermaine.

Mathison’s home is one of many houses to burn down in the fires that have been blazing since January 7. He confirms that he and his family are safe, but he’s grieving over the loss of the home that his children were raised in. Mathison shares two children, daughter Leila, 18, and son Lucas, 21, with his ex-wife, Vanessa Arevalo.

“We are safe. But this is what’s left of our beautiful home. Our home where our kids were raised and where they wanted to raise their own someday,” he wrote on Instagram on January 8. “Thanks to all who reached out and checked in. Can’t respond to all so wanted to give an update here. Sending so many prayers to everyone being affected by these fires.”

He’s walking through a yard at the start of the video (embedded below), and the house is completely leveled behind it. There’s no structure left to the building and small fires are still blazing underneath the rubble. Large fires are still raging on in the background of the video.

Mathison documented more of the damage on his Instagram Story in videos taken while in a car driving around the impacted areas, including his neighborhood.

The actor is one of many who has lost their homes to the wildfires that local fire departments are still working to put out. Adam Brody and Leighton Meester‘s home burned down, as did Anna Faris’ and The Hills stars Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag’s.

Other celebrities have posted on social media saying that they’re unsure about the fates of their homes after they evacuated the areas.

The fires began on Tuesday, January 7 in the morning (PT) during a powerful Santa Ana windstorm. The fires prompted the 2025 SAG Awards nominations to be announced via press release instead of live and have caused the Critics Choice Awards to postpone the show that was set to take place this Sunday, January 12 live in California.




This story originally appeared on TV Insider

Kevin O’Leary Teams Up With Frank McCourt for TikTok Bid

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Kevin O’Leary is talking about buying TikTok again, but this time with more specifics.

The social media app is less than two weeks away from facing a potential ban, though the Supreme Court is set to rule on a pause on Jan. 10 after TikTok and its parent company, China-based ByteDance, asked the Court to hold the Jan. 19 deadline.

In April, U.S. lawmakers passed a bill that forces ByteDance to sell TikTok, though the company has repeatedly said it is not for sale and would prefer to shut it down.

Related: Meta Outage, Looming TikTok Ban Has Creators Questioning How Much of Their Business They Really Control

Still, that hasn’t deterred O’Leary, a.k.a “Mr. Wonderful.”

This week, O’Leary announced that he is joining billionaire and former L.A. Dodgers owner Frank McCourt in a plan to purchase the social network. McCourt launched Project Liberty in 2021 to help build and advocate for a safer and more equitable internet, according to its website.

In May, McCourt revealed that Project Liberty was “building a consortium to purchase TikTok and rearchitect the platform to put people in control of their digital identities and data,” which is known as “the People’s Bid for TikTok.”

“We’ve built a clean, American-made tech stack and continue to be the only viable bidder that can offer a seamless transition for everyone on TikTok without the existing algorithm, said Frank McCourt, founder of Project Liberty, in a press release. “With the addition of Kevin and his countless followers to our bid, The People’s Bid enters a new phase.”

Project Liberty’s investor group has committed to more than $20 billion of capital, according to a spokesperson.

O’Leary has been vocal about wanting to buy TikTok since March 2024, after the news broke of a potential ban. He told Fox & Friends that month, “If this order goes through, it’s got to be sold. I’m going to put up my hand and say I’ll buy it.”

“It’s the largest entertainment and business network in America as it stands today, so it’s of great interest and great value,” O’Leary said last March.

McCourt also noted that he looks forward to “working with President-elect Trump to save TikTok.”

“Kevin and I, along with the thousands of supporters who have come forward to back The People’s Bid, firmly believe we can build a better TikTok – one that protects our national security and becomes a safe, secure platform that millions of people on the app will trust,” McCourt said.

Related: Remote Work Enthusiast Kevin O’Leary Does TV Appearance Wearing Suit Jacket, Tie and Pajama Bottoms

O’Leary talked about his bid for the app in a news appearance this week in his signature pink pajama pants and flip-flops.




This story originally appeared on Entrepreneur

Shareholders urge UnitedHealth to analyze impact of healthcare denials By Reuters

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By Amina Niasse and Ross Kerber

NEW YORK / BOSTON (Reuters) – UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:) shareholders on Wednesday said they requested the company prepare a report on the costs and public health impact related to its “practices that limit or delay access to healthcare.”

If the proposal makes it to a vote at the company’s annual meeting it would raise a charged topic after a senior executive was gunned down in Manhattan last month.

A spokesperson for UnitedHealth said the company will respond to shareholder proposals for its 2025 proxy statement once it files the document that serves as an agenda for its annual meeting, which has not yet been scheduled. In recent years, the company has issued its proxy in April ahead of a June annual meeting.

Those who filed the resolution include religious groups led by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary of Quebec, and Trillium Asset Management.

The group proposed an analysis of how prior authorization, or approval required by an insurer before a patient can receive medical care, and denials of medical services lead patients to forgo treatment.

“The pattern of delays and denials of necessary medical care by UnitedHealth and other insurance companies harms more than just the patient themselves,” Wendell Potter, president of the Center for Health & Democracy and a former Cigna (NYSE:) executive, said in a statement sent in support of the resolution by the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility.

UnitedHealth runs the country’s largest health insurer, UnitedHealthcare, as well as pharmacy benefit manager Optum and medical practices.

The killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December galvanized criticism of U.S. health insurers, with swarms of patients describing delayed or denied care and accusing companies of using deceptive practices.

Luigi Mangione, 26, who was accused of killing Thompson, pleaded not guilty in a New York court in December after receiving thousands of dollars in public donations shortly after his arrest.

In a December statement, UnitedHealth said it approves and pays for an average of 90% of medical claims submitted.

“Highly inaccurate and grossly misleading information has been circulated about our company’s treatment of insurance claims,” UnitedHealth said.

UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty in a message to employees described Thompson as “one of the good guys,” adding the company would continue to service the most vulnerable Americans.




This story originally appeared on Investing

Fed expected to pump brake on rate cuts in 2025 as Trump policies stir concern

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Federal Reserve officials at their meeting Dec. 17-18 expected to dial back the pace of interest rate cuts this year in the face of persistently elevated inflation and the threat of widespread tariffs and other potential policy changes.

Minutes from the meeting, released after the typical three-week lag, also showed clear division among the Fed’s 19 policymakers. Some officials expressed support for keeping the central bank’s key rate unchanged, the minutes said. And a majority of the officials said the decision to cut rates was a close call.

Ultimately, the Fed chose to cut its key rate by a quarter-point to about 4.3%. One official, Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack, dissented in favor of keeping rates unchanged.

The Federal Reserve last month cut its key rate by a quarter-point to about 4.3% in a close-call decision. Chairman Powell, above AFP via Getty Images

Still, there was widespread agreement in the minutes that after reducing rates for three straight meetings, Fed officials felt it was time to undertake a more deliberate approach to their key rate.

Fewer rate cuts will likely mean that borrowing costs for consumers and businesses — including for homes, cars, and credit cards — will remain elevated this year.

Policymakers said that the Fed “was at or near the point at which it would be appropriate to slow the pace of policy easing,” the minutes said. In projections released after the meeting, Fed officials said they expect just two cuts next year, down from an earlier projection of four.

The minutes also showed that “almost all” Fed policymakers see a greater risk than before that inflation could stay higher than they expect, in part because inflation has lingered in several recent readings and because of “the likely effects of potential changes in trade and immigration policy.”

The Fed’s staff economists considered the economy’s future path particularly uncertain at the December meeting, in part because of the incoming Trump administration’s “potential changes to trade, immigration, fiscal, and regulatory policies,” which the staff said are difficult to assess in terms of how they will impact the economy. As a result they included several different scenarios for the economy’s future path in their presentation to policymakers.

Fed officials have started to consider the potential impact of President-elect Trump’s proposals, such as widespread tariffs, on the economy and inflation next year REUTERS

And the staff projected that inflation this year would be about the same as in 2024 because they expected Trump’s proposed tariffs would keep inflation elevated.

Fed officials sent stock markets plummeting Dec. 18 after they reduced their outlook for rate cuts. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said at a news conference after the meeting that the decision to reduce rates had been a “close call.”

Powell also said that recent signs of stubborn inflation have caused many Fed officials to pare back their expectations for rate cuts. Inflation, according to the Fed’s preferred measure, ticked up to 2.4% in November, compared with a year ago, above the Fed’s target. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, it was 2.8%.

Inflation, according to the Fed’s preferred measure, ticked up to 2.4% in November, compared with a year ago, above the Fed’s target. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, it was 2.8%. AP

In addition, some officials have started to consider the potential impact of President-elect Trump’s proposals, such as widespread tariffs, on the economy and inflation next year, the minutes said.

Economists at Goldman Sachs, for example, have estimated that Trump’s tariff proposals could push inflation by nearly a half-percentage point later this year.

Earlier Wednesday, Fed governor Christopher Waller said that he still supported rate reductions this year, in part because he expects inflation to steadily head down to the Fed’s 2% target. He also said he didn’t expect tariffs would worsen inflation and wouldn’t change his preference for lowering borrowing costs.

Waller also said, in a question and answer session, that he didn’t think Trump would ultimately impose the universal tariffs he promised in the campaign.



This story originally appeared on NYPost

Chuck Schumer lies about Biden mental decline, Letters

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The Issue: Sen. Chuck Schumer defending President Biden’s record and mental acuity.

Sen. Chuck Schumer said he thinks President Biden has an amazing record as president (“Chuck playing ‘mind’ games,” Jan. 6).

Schumer calls Biden a patriot and said the president’s mental acuity was great.

Well, this patriot let a Chinese spy balloon fly coast to coast.

His amazing record includes a botched pullout from Afghanistan, record high inflation and allowing millions of unvetted migrants to cross the border illegally.

Schumer claims that suggestions that Biden was losing it mentally were just “right-wing propaganda.”

If Schumer truly believes what he says, maybe we should have his mental acuity checked.

Tom Vespo

Bethpage

What is Chuck Schumer smoking?

The only pieces of legislation Biden signed were cash giveaways.

The so-called “Inflation Reduction Act” was a Green New Deal handout to Democratic donors, NGOs and others.

Biden and Schumer will be remembered respectively as the worst president and Senate majority leader in history.

I wish President-elect Donald Trump had a mean and vindictive streak, so these two (among others) might be prosecuted.

Charlie Honadel

Venice, Fla.

Sen. Schumer apparently thought nothing of compromising the national security of the United States to help keep an enfeebled commander-in-chief at the helm.

He and every other Democrat engaged in this dangerous, disloyal behavior should have their access to top-secret briefings and classified materials reviewed and hopefully revoked.

Schumer and his cabal of corrupt, deep-state, power-hungry, Dem narcissists have proven they simply cannot be trusted with the life and safety of American citizens.

Jim Soviero

East Setauket

I am disappointed that interviewers of the good senator do not ask him outright: “Do you consider the mental acuity of President Biden to be equal to or better than yours?”

Certainly the voters in New York deserve an answer before the next election.

Laz L. Schneider

Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

President Biden’s inner circle has made the 25th Amendment insufficient for ensuring that a president is competent to remain in office.

The amendment was supposed to protect the people from unelected advisers taking over for an incapacitated president, but it has failed.

We must have an amendment that ensures this cannot happen again.

The Supreme Court should have the responsibility and authority to determine whether the president is competent as an additional means beyond the current provisions.

Congressional impeachment and removal are too easily thwarted by partisan politics.

Tom Henion

Stafford, Va.

When I read how Sen. Schumer defended Biden against criticism over his mental state and cognitive decline, I once again realized that this man simply cannot ever be believed.

Schumer is as phony as a $3 bill.

It was a beautiful thing to see him get unseated as Senate majority leader when Democrats became the minority.

The only thing better would be to see him lose his Senate seat al­to­gether.

Alan Brooks

Brooklyn

Chuck Schumer believes that President Biden has had an amazing record.

If that’s true, then we urgently need to assess Schumer’s mental acuity.

It seems these people never stop lying to American citizens.

J. Mancuso

Naples, Fla.

Congratulations to Chuck Schumer for winning the “blatantly lying politician of the year” award.

President Biden is in great shape.

Right, Chuck?

His mental acuity could not be better and we shouldn’t believe our lying eyes.

Sure, Chuck: According to you he’s been a great president. Well, his policies resulted in an open border, a derailed economy, high gas prices and a catastrophic withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The list goes on and on.

Mike Klarman

Branford, Conn.

Want to weigh in on today’s stories? Send your thoughts (along with your full name and city of residence) to letters@nypost.com. Letters are subject to editing for clarity, length, accuracy, and style.



This story originally appeared on NYPost

upgrade from Windows 10 to 11 to avoid ‘security fiasco’ – Computerworld

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Cybersecurity company Eset is now urging Windows 10 users to upgrade to Windows 11 or another operating system well in advance of Oct. 14, 2025, when support for Windows 10 ends.

into”It’s about five to twelve minutes to avoid a security fiasco in 2025,” Eset security expert Thorsten Urbanski said, according to Bleeping Computer .

Eset estimates there are around 32 million computers still running Windows 10 in Germany alone, roughly 65% of all devices in the country. Windows 11 runs on 16.5 million devices, corresponding to approximately 33%. According to Statcounter, global figures for Windows 10 and 11 use are similar.



This story originally appeared on Computerworld

PUBG will get AI-powered NPCs

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PUBG: Battlegrounds will add non-player characters powered by NVIDIA ACE generative AI. These PUBG Allies are being dubbed Co-Playable Characters, and they can have real-time conversations with a player about what’s happening in a match. They can also adapt their strategies and gameplay to work with the player’s style. Krafton, the battle royale’s publisher, demoed this technology at CES 2025.

“We will continue to innovate user experiences by integrating CPC into our games and aim to establish it as a benchmark for the gaming industry,” said Kangwook Lee, head of Krafton’s deep learning division. Krafton will also publish upcoming life simulator inZOI, and had a CES demo of a CPC in that game as well.

NVIDIA its generative AI tech, the Avatar Cloud Engine, during a keynote at Computex 2023. The ACE generative AI is also present in the multiplayer title Mecha BREAK, which at Gamescom last year. The Krafton games are using on-device small language models built with NVIDIA ACE. The publisher did not specify in its press release when it will start rolling out CPCs.



This story originally appeared on Engadget

Trump Accused Of Cheating In 2024 By Getting Town Hall Questions In Advance

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There was often a disconnect between the Trump who sounded broken when he was off his teleprompter on the campaign trail, and the guy who appeared at town halls televised by Fox News. Some of it was due to Fox’s pre-taping and editing Trump’s appearances, but allegedly that wasn’t enough. Before a January 2024 town hall, somebody leaked the questions to Trump’s campaign.

CNN reported:

“About thirty minutes before the town hall was due to start, a senior aide started getting text messages from a person on the inside at Fox. Holy s–t, the team thought. They were images of all the questions Trump would be asked and the planned follow-ups, down to the exact wording. Jackpot. This was like a student getting a peek at the test before the exam started,” Isenstadt writes.

,,,

But “with the questions in hand” ahead of the telecast, the team “workshopped answers.”

The same book also alleges that Fox’s Maria Bartiromo has given Trump questions in advance for her interviews.

Trump made a big production out of claiming that Hillary Clinton’s campaign got debate questions in advance during the Democratic primary in 2016, but it turns out that it was Trump who was cheating in 2024.

The Trump team doesn’t want to hear any of this, and they claim that Trump won because he was so accessible, but it helps the candidate to have the questions in advance.

We will discuss below the ramifications of the allegations that Trump cheated and what it means for both Trump and Fox News.



This story originally appeared on Politicususa

LA’s Democrat Mayor Karen Bass Slashed Fire Department Funding by $17.6 Million, Tweets About Fires From Africa as Hydrants Run Dry, City Burns | The Gateway Pundit

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LA’s Democrat Mayor Karen Bass slashed Fire Department funding by $17.6 million a few months before the fires erupted on Tuesday.

This is the most destructive fire in Los Angeles history and the city is not prepared to contain the fire because of Democrats like Karen Bass.

Karen Bass was tweeting from Africa as her city burned down.

The LA Mayor was in Africa attending the presidential inauguration in Ghana as tens of thousands of Los Angeles residents evacuated and watched their homes burn down.

Fire hydrants ran dry due to Democrat incompetence but Karen Bass saved the day by tweeting from Africa.

The New York Post reported:

The Los Angeles Fire Department had its budget cut by a staggering $17.6 million this financial year, records show — as fire crews continue to battle out-of-control blazes ravaging the City of Angels.

The drastic decrease in funding for the fire department was the second-largest cut to come out of embattled Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass‘ 2024-25 fiscal year budget, according to city figures.

The police budget, meanwhile, increased by $126 million, a graphic shared by LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia shows.

Bass had initially wanted to cut the fire department by even more — a staggering $23 million.

The details on Bass’ budget slashing resurfaced as the mayor faced widespread backlash Wednesday after it was revealed she was away in Africa for the Ghana president’s inauguration — even as wind-whipped wildfires turned parts of her city into an apocalyptic hellscape.

Update: Fresh off the plane from Ghana, Mayor Karen Bass met with Governor Newsom and Los Angeles firefighters for a photo op with charred houses as the perfect backdrop.

WATCH:




This story originally appeared on TheGateWayPundit