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Elon Musk Calls Himself 'Ozempic Santa' In Festive New PhotoMaharashtra polls: Rifts emerge within Mahayuti, MVA after election results

Since November 28, large-scale protests have rocked Georgia following the government’s decision to freeze negotiations for the country’s EU accession until 2028. Despite attempts by police to block off Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, the strife has continued with demonstrators erecting barricades, lighting fires, and shooting fireworks at law enforcement. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze has insisted that Georgia will not allow itself to be “Ukrainized,” as his Western-backed opponents encouraged a mass mobilization. The political fallout has been enormous. Outgoing President Salome Zourabichvili, who hails from France, rejected the legitimacy of the new parliament, insisting she would remain in office despite the fact that elections are scheduled for December. In response, the ruling Georgian Dream party, which comfortably won the parliamentary elections, announced that new presidential elections would proceed as planned. The protests are not just about internal politics—they also signal a broader geopolitical struggle, with Georgia at the crossroads of the Russian-Western rivalry. Election Results and Protests A few weeks after the Georgian Dream party’s victory in the October elections, Kobakhidze announced a freeze on EU accession negotiations until 2028, fueling protests across the country. Critics immediately accused the ruling party, which they label as “pro-Russian,” of undermining Georgia’s European future. This accusation has been leveled against the government, even though many of the opposition parties, funded by Western NGOs, have long pushed for Georgia to fall in line with Western powers. Both President Zourabichvili and former President Mikhail Saakashvili, staunch pro-Western figures, quickly led the charge against the election results, calling them fraudulent and part of a “Russian special operation.” Zourabichvili stated, “Recognizing these elections is the same as accepting Russia’s entry here and Georgia’s subordination to Russia.” Such rhetoric has been repeated by others in the opposition, who insist that Georgia’s future is tied to Western Europe, not Russia. Despite the claims of fraud, the international community did not back up the opposition’s accusations. Western governments have called for investigations into alleged electoral violations but have stopped short of formally rejecting the results. In fact, the European Parliament – which is relatively toothless – was the only entity to refuse to recognize the elections, even calling for sanctions on Georgia’s leadership. Meanwhile Azerbaijan, Armenia, Hungary, Türkiye, and China congratulated the ruling party on their victory. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov emphasized that Russia does not interfere in its neighbor’s internal affairs and urged others similarly. “[This is ] the choice of the Georgian people – it’s crucial that no third parties interfere in the results of this election,” he said. Overall, according to OSCE observers, the voting process went smoothly, with media reports indicating only a few major incidents. However, following the outcry from the election losers, the Central Election Commission decided to recount the ballots from five precincts in each electoral district for data verification. The recount confirmed the initial results. But this did not stop the opposition. Protests and Violent Clashes The protests reached a new intensity over the week. Some 20,000 demonstrators gathered in Tbilisi on the evening of the announcement, and the rallies have spread to other cities, including Poti, Rustavi, Telavi, and Kutaisi. Despite Kobakhidze’s firm stance against ‘Ukrainization,’ the opposition remains steadfast, demanding new elections with international supervision. “The only negotiations we will hold with the government will be about conducting new elections with the assistance of international observers,” said opposition MP Giorgi Vashadze. However, under Georgian law, a repeat election can only be called if the original vote is invalidated or if no party receives at least 5% of the votes. The opposition’s call for new elections is therefore unlikely to succeed. The opposition has little means to influence the government, due to a lack of power and administrative resources, Dr Stanislav Pritchin, head of the Central Asia sector at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO) of the Russian Academy of Sciences, has told RT. “Firstly, the opposition does not hold a majority in parliament and can only block initiatives that require a constitutional majority. Therefore, they have very limited ability to influence government decisions. Secondly, regarding public influence, the protests have proven ineffective. The opposition lacks supporters, energy, and substantial backing from the West,” Pritchin claimed. Even with active support from the EU and US, the opposition would still struggle to alter the situation in the country or influence public sentiment, Pritchin believes, since the October election results are convincing and have been recognized by international observers. The Future of Georgia’s Geopolitical Alignment Prime Minister Kobakhidze has repeatedly emphasized that Georgia’s future lies in Euro-Atlantic integration, but recent statements suggest that the country’s path is far more complicated. He has voiced the hope that it will be ready for EU membership by 2030, but his government also sees strategic partnerships with Russia and China as important parts of Georgia’s future. “We have very important foreign policy priorities, and the main one is of course, Euro-Atlantic integration,” he said, although this is tempered with a desire for improved relations with Russia. The conflict between Georgia’s domestic political forces and the West over EU membership is exacerbated by the pressure from Western powers, particularly the EU and the US, to align more closely with them against Moscow. While Georgia has made moves to engage with Russia diplomatically, tensions remain high over Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which Georgia aims to reintegrate. They are recognized as independent states by Russia. In contrast, the opposition, backed by Western powers, wants Georgia to lean decisively toward the EU and NATO, even at the risk of souring relations with Moscow. With a fragmented electorate and deeply polarized political factions, the current protests are unlikely to end without a significant political shift—either through reform or a potential collapse of the Georgian Dream government. On November 30, the US suspended its strategic partnership with Georgia, citing “anti-democratic” actions by the ruling party. The State Department claimed that by halting the EU accession process, Georgian Dream has made the country more vulnerable to Russia. The following day, on December 1, the new EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, the former Prime Minister of Estonia, indicated that the EU might impose sanctions on Georgia due to the harsh crackdown on protests.. Follwing the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, the Georgian authorities asserted that a “global war party” wanted to open a “second front” against Russia in Georgia. Former Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili claimed this was the goal of the opposition and its “ideological allies from the Ukrainian government” . As the election campaign progressed, this rhetoric intensified. Officials didn’t mention the EU or US, although a few days before the elections, former Georgian PM Bidzina Ivanishvili stated that a senior official from “one of the countries” had suggested to Garibashvili that he should start a war against Russia. Improving relations with Russia—strained since the 2008 war over Abkhazia and South Ossetia—became a key theme of the election campaign. Kobakhidze identified the normalization of bilateral relations as a key priority for the coming years, while Ivanishvili expressed confidence that Georgia would “find the strength to apologize” to Abkhazia and South Ossetia, territories it lost following the 2008 conflict begun by the UMP's Saakashvili. Georgia’s ultimate goal is to reintegrate the unrecognized republics. However, after the elections, the moderately pro-Russian rhetoric in Georgia gave way to a colder tone. Kobakhidze stated that the country doesn’t plan to restore diplomatic relations with Russia, citing that “10% of our territory is occupied” . “We have very important foreign policy priorities, and the main one is of course, Euro-Atlantic integration,” he said, noting that relations with the EU will be reset in “intensive mode” starting in 2025. Ivanishvili, one of Georgia's richest men, elaborated on the matter and said that ties with the West would improve once the conflict in Ukraine concludes, which he believes could happen soon. However, until then, Georgia will staunchly defend its interests and avoid confrontation with Russia, even at the potential cost of its relationship with the EU. Stanislav Pritchin told RT that Georgian authorities will pursue a balanced approach in international relations. They will strive to build pragmatic ties with Russia while keeping the door open for negotiations with Western nations. “Russia-Georgia relations are likely to proceed along the same lines as they do now. Indeed, there may be attempts to deepen bilateral ties and establish more regular political contacts. But for now, Georgia isn’t ready to resume diplomatic relations or fully cooperate in economics and other fields. A lot will depend on the ability of Western countries to adjust [their position] and offer something in light of the new conditions, such as unfreezing EU membership talks with Georgia,” the expert noted. It is unlikely that Western countries consider a change in the situation in Georgia as a realistic scenario from the outside. Georgian Dream has not backed down on any fundamental issues, has confidently won the elections and continues to maintain its position even under threat of being removed from the list of EU candidate countries and likely mass protests. A Country at a Crossroads Georgia’s future remains uncertain, caught between the competing interests of Russia and the West. The ongoing protests reflect a deep division within the country: one side sees Georgia’s path tied to Russia, while the other pushes for integration with the EU. The ruling Georgian Dream party may have won the elections, but the opposition, though lacking significant public support, is fighting to keep Georgia on the path of its backers. This political crisis has become a critical juncture in the country's history. The ultimate direction Georgia takes will not only determine the future of its sovereignty but also shape its role in the broader geopolitical struggle between Russia and the West. Will Tbilisi fully embrace a Western future, or will it forge a path of pragmatism that acknowledges Moscow’s influence? The outcome remains uncertain, and the consequences will resonate far beyond Georgia.President-elect Donald Trump’s designated debt-busters, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, last week wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal providing the fullest accounting yet of their plans to cut “waste, fraud and abuse” — that most well-worn and oft-broken of political promises. Indeed, an omission from the dynamic duo’s piece suggests that they — and Trump — may have already trimmed their ambitions: Musk and Ramaswamy made no mention of Musk’s previous boasts that he’d slash “at least” $2 trillion in a single year from the federal budget. It’s a wonder that the aspiring oligarch and “super genius,” as Trump calls him, made the outlandish claim in the first place, including at Trump’s infamous preelection rally at Madison Square Garden. Perhaps he’s finally been schooled on the realities of fiscal policy. Yet neither did Musk and Ramaswamy disavow the $2-trillion promise. So it’s worth examining just why the goal is a mission impossible, and why the actions they say Trump will take are unlikely to significantly reduce federal debt. In fact, if we subtract Trump’s promised tax cuts from the projected revenue, annual deficits and the debt could well increase — just as they did during his first term, when his actions caused the national debt to balloon by $8.4 trillion over a decade. A little fiscal math: The federal budget for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1 is $6.8 trillion. Musk proposed to cut 30% of that. Which would be hard enough if the whole amount were on the chopping block. But roughly three-quarters of the $6.8 trillion is either politically untouchable (especially Medicare and Social Security, which Trump has vowed to leave unscathed) or legally off-limits (interest on the debt). That leaves just over a quarter of federal spending: $1.9 trillion in so-called “discretionary spending” that Congress controls annually through its budget process. But discretionary programs account for just about everything that the government does and that Americans expect it to do — including domestic spending and funding the military. A few examples: air traffic control, agriculture programs, disaster aid, education, courts, highways and other infrastructure, immigration, homeland security, law enforcement, national parks, the Pentagon and scientific research. (For those America First-ers who like to trash foreign aid: It’s less than 1% of spending, not the roughly 25% that many Americans tell pollsters they think it is.) In short, Musk’s aim to cut $2 trillion would require wiping out not just supposed waste, fraud and abuse but also all discretionary spending — even though Trump has said he wants to increase the defense portion. And still the cuts would come up short. Musk conceded “temporary hardship” would result, but Bloomberg News wrote that slashing so much “would require a level of austerity unprecedented since the winding down of World War II.” That’s probably an understatement. And consider this: Discretionary spending has been at “historic lows” as a share of the budget, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. That’s because it’s the piece of the federal pie that always gets sliced up whenever presidents and Congresses do whittle spending. Meanwhile, expenditures for health and retirement benefits for aging baby boomers are growing fast, as is interest on borrowing. Together with tax cuts, these drive up the debt. Another perspective: Contrary to claims from Presidents Reagan, George W. Bush and Trump, tax cuts do not pay for themselves by spurring economic activity. Extending Trump’s first-term tax cuts, as he’s promised, would add about $4 trillion to the debt over 10 years. (By contrast, much discretionary spending — for instance, on infrastructure, education and research — actually does bring economic benefits; it’s considered the “seed corn” for the nation’s physical and human capital.) The current year-end budget follies give a small glimpse into just how hard budget-cutting is. Congress is tussling as usual over farm spending, while considering an unanticipated expense — nearly $100 billion — for disaster aid after Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Skeptics be damned, Musk and Ramaswamy say. They’ll “cut the federal government down to size.” What size, you ask? They don’t say. For a half-century, no matter which party held power, annual federal spending has been about 21% of the size of the nation’s economy, the gross domestic product. And tax revenue has been roughly 17% of GDP. Hence yearly deficits and a growing debt. The consistency of annual spending levels across decades and parties shows that Americans seem to want a government of roughly that size. Spending in 2024 is nearly 24% of GDP. There’s room to cut, just not by $2 trillion. Musk and Ramaswamy also didn’t identify specifically what they’d cut, aside from three perennial conservative targets — Planned Parenthood, public broadcasting and foreign aid — that together add up to $2.3 billion, hardly even a rounding error relative to annual deficits. They broadly take aim at more than $500 billion in annual spending for programs that Congress hasn’t reauthorized formally. But big-ticket items in that category include veterans’ health programs, NASA and homeland security. Don’t hold your breath for those cuts. They contend that Trump would simply impound funds that Congress appropriates but he doesn’t want. Well, that’s illegal under the Nixon-era 1974 Impoundment Control Act. The law has stood the legal and political tests of 50 years’ time, but no matter, the Trump advisors wrote: “The current Supreme Court would likely side with” Trump. Maybe so, maybe not. Musk and Ramaswamy wrote more in their op-ed about cutting federal regulations than cutting spending. Repealing rules would allow for cost-saving “mass” firings in the government bureaucracy, they argued. But conservative economist Brian Riedl, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, calculated that even large workforce reductions wouldn’t meaningfully pare the budget. And, he said, the government would likely end up hiring private contractors for some functions. In sum, as we say in math exercises, Trump’s numbers won’t add up to reduced deficits and smaller government. Again. @jackiekcalmes

Wolves head coach Gary O’Neil insists he is happy to look fans in the face and take the criticism which comes his way after his team were jeered off after losing 4-0 to Everton at Goodison Park. It was the fourth time this season they had conceded four or more and the performance showed why they have the Premier League’s worst defence. When O’Neil and the players went over to acknowledge the visiting supporters there were boos for a run of two wins in 14 league matches. “Whatever the fans think of me, there is definitely no-none working harder than me and I will continue to do so until someone tells me not to,” said O’Neil, who is under increasing pressure with his side second bottom of the table. “I go over there to see them because I appreciate every one of the Wolves fans. They have given me unbelievable support since I arrived at the football club,” he said. “We managed to produce some unbelievable stuff last season with a team that was heavily tipped by most of the nation for relegation. We managed to enjoy it together. “Now it is tough. I was happy to go over there and look them right in the face and take any criticism they want to throw at me. “I accept responsibility for my part in that. Whatever criticism they want to throw at me will not change how I feel about them. “Everyone at this football club needs to do more. We will get back to be ready to fight again on Monday (another crucial game against West Ham, whose manager Julen Lopetegui’s tenure is hanging by a thread). “I will work with everything I have. I will back myself to get the most out of the group. I understand the drive for change (but) you never know how much of a percentage of supporters it is.” Veteran Ashley Young ended Everton’s 370-minute wait for a goal with a 10th-minute free-kick, his first league goal for more than two years, and on-loan Lyon midfielder Orel Mangala blasted home his first for the club to establish a 2-0 half-time lead. Two Craig Dawson own goals secured Everton’s biggest home league win since April 2019, but manager Sean Dyche insisted their issues up front were far from sorted. He said: “It’s our fifth clean sheet in the last eight so the consistency has been there in one degree, we just haven’t been scoring goals. That’s been the hardest thing to find consistently and we haven’t solved it yet. “Goals change everything, they change opinions. That’s what football is like.” The victory was hugely important in a month in which, having been hammered 4-0 at Manchester United, they face top-six sides Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and Nottingham Forest and undoubtedly eased some of the pressure on Dyche and his players. “I’ve told them how proud I am of them,” he added. “The challenges come thick and fast on and off the pitch and they just keep going. “It’s only a step and there are many more to go but it’s a good step and a positive step. “It’s a temporary moment in time because the next one is a big one (Saturday’s Merseyside derby).”dished out advice for recreating his "trivela" assist on FIFA after starring in 's 5-1 win against in LaLiga on Tuesday. The 17-year-old returned to the starting lineup for the first time since Nov. 3 after recovering from an ankle injury as Barça ended a three game winless run in the league. He won the penalty which led to Barça's second goal and then set up for the third with a sublime pass with the outside of his boot, which he pointed out can be easily recreated on PlayStation. "I think the button on FIFA is L2 [for the trivela pass]," he told Esport3 after the match. "It is something I can do quite well, something I usually do and something I will keep doing." It's the second time this season that Yamal, who has a league-high eight assists, has teed up Raphinha with the outside of his boot. He played a similar pass, albeit from a much longer distance, in the win over earlier in the campaign. "I am really happy for Raphinha, we have a good understanding," Yamal added. "And he knows when I am in that area of the pitch, I will always try that pass." ' opener was cancelled out by Mallorca's before the break, but Barça pulled clear in the second half courtesy of a brace from Raphinha, his 15th and 16th goals of the season, and strikes from substitutes Frankie de Jong and . De Jong's goal, set up by Victor, also came after Yamal had played another pass in behind the Mallorca defence with the outside of his boot. The win moved Barça four points clear at the top of LaLiga, although second-placed have two games in hand, starting with on Wednesday. "It was a really important win after two defeats [in three games] in LaLiga," Yamal said. "So it was important to win with a result like this. We are really happy. "We have been good in the Champions League, but in LaLiga we were dropping silly points. This was a big win for everyone. The goals for those that play less will give them a lot of confidence." Barça have now won all 12 league games that Yamal has started this season. They have failed to win any of the four when he has not been in the starting lineup -- losing three and drawing one. "Lamine is always important," coach Hansi Flick said of the teenager's return to fitness. "With his quality, he is a huge difference in our team. He also could score today one or two goals." Flick, who rested striker against Mallorca, also joked he is happy to see the back of November after defeats to and and a draw against . "Today was really important to win this match," he added. "We deserve this win, these three points. We created chances, scored [them] and it was really fantastic. "We are happy. We are happy that s--t November is over and now we start with December."

By Blake Brittain (Reuters) - A federal jury in Marshall, Texas, on Friday awarded computer memory company Netlist $118 million in damages from Samsung Electronics in a patent lawsuit over technology for improving data processing in high-performance memory products. The verdict follows a $303 million verdict against Samsung for Irvine, California-based Netlist in a related case last year. Netlist also won $445 million from chipmaker Micron in May in a separate lawsuit over some of the same patents. Spokespeople for Samsung and Netlist did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Friday verdict. The jury also determined that Samsung's infringement was willful, which could lead to a judge increasing the award by up to three times. Netlist sued Samsung in 2022, alleging that the Korean tech giant's memory modules used in cloud computing servers and other data-intensive technology infringed its patents. Netlist said its innovations increase the power efficiency of memory modules and enable users to "derive useful information from vast amounts of data in a shorter period." Samsung denied the allegations, arguing that the patents were invalid and that its technology worked differently than Netlist's inventions. Samsung has also filed a related lawsuit in Delaware federal court accusing Netlist of breaking an obligation to offer fair licenses for technology required to comply with international standards. (Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Jonathan Oatis)None

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's brief imposition of martial law marks a new warning for the worldwide fragility of democracy, even in a country hailed as a model of political transformation. Yoon's overnight attempt to shut down political activity, censor media and lock out opposition lawmakers stunned South Korea's longtime ally, the United States, which said it had no advance warning and issued a statement of concern. South Korea's transition to elected rule since a mass uprising in 1987 had been seen as so thorough that the United States increasingly spoke of its ally as a global partner. Meanwhile, Seoul billed itself as a new, ideal hub for international media as China clamped down on Hong Kong. President Joe Biden had even chosen Yoon as the host in March of his final Summit for Democracy -- a signature initiative of the outgoing US leader, who sought to champion liberal values globally, in an unstated repudiation of Donald Trump, who returns to the White House next month. But observers, while stunned by Yoon, said there were warning signs. Danny Russel, a top US diplomat for Asia under former president Barack Obama and who earlier served in South Korea, pointed to the deadlock in parliament where the opposition repeatedly sought impeachments against Yoon's administration. Yoon's move "was a complete surprise to me (but) yes, there were very obvious structural forces at work," he said. "There is a radically polarized political scene in Korea. The opposition has been pursuing scorched-earth political obstruction tactics," he said. But he pointed to the quick, large-scale protests that erupted after Yoon's declaration as a sign of a vibrant civil society ready to defend democracy. "One certainly would hope that this would serve as a wake-up call to both the ruling conservative party and the progressive opposition that both sides have gone too far and that there needs to be some process of reconciliation, of dealing with legitimate differences and grievances." Yoon himself had earlier shown signs of authoritarianism. In a national address last year, Yoon raged against supposed communists who have "disguised themselves as democracy activists, human rights advocates or progressive activists." A prosecutor, Yoon narrowly won the 2022 election on a platform of economic reform and advocated close ties with the United States as well as historic rival Japan. But his popularity swiftly slid and the opposition won the National Assembly. Celeste Arrington, a Korea expert at George Washington University, noted that Yoon had never held elected office before and had become increasingly frustrated. "This is really an extreme move that may signal, I think, the president's lack of political experience," she said. She said that martial law showed "some cracks in democracy" but that the quick reversal "gives me hope in the health and strength and vibrancy of democracy in South Korea." Bruce Klingner, a senior research fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation, expected Yoon's career to be over after attempting martial law, which constitutionally can only be imposed for wars or other emergencies. "Yoon's action is a damning reversal to decades of South Korean efforts to put its authoritarian past behind it," he said. The number of democracies worldwide soared starting in the late 1980s as the Soviet Union collapsed and student-led uprisings brought reforms elsewhere. But globally, democracy has been in retreat for the last 18 straight years, according to the Washington-based group Freedom House, which promotes political liberty. Democratically elected leaders have taken increasingly authoritarian steps in countries as diverse as India, Turkey and Hungary. V-Dem, another closely watched democracy index, had most recently ranked South Korea third in Asia after Taiwan and Japan. In the United States, Trump has rejected long-held norms, refusing to accept he lost to Biden four years ago -- culminating in his supporters violently rampaging through the US Capitol. Trump's rejection of democracy ultimately worked out for him: campaigning on the rage of 2020, he won last month's election. But experts said Yoon's power play -- and its reversal -- could in fact show a victory for democratic values. "Yoon is a deeply unpopular and ineffectual leader, but there was nothing I saw of people being dissatisfied with the way government runs," Alan Yu, a senior vice president at the left-leaning Center for American Progress, said after a recent trip to Seoul. Darcie Draudt-Vejares of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said that with the swift response to Yoon, "this crisis may ultimately strengthen Korean democracy by reaffirming civilian control and demonstrating institutional resilience." sct/nroSynopsys fiscal Q4 results beat expectations, but soft guidance weighs

NES to FG: Get inputs from Nigerian experts before consulting IMF, World BankGabe Vasquez is still optimistic. The second term Congressman from southern New Mexico said during a webinar on the state of the outdoors industry last week that even with a change in leadership, he is confident outdoors-related legislation can pass.(The Center Square) – Legislators in Washington, D.C., have taken a number of steps over the past few days to push for insurance and pharmaceutical reforms to be passed before the end of the year. On Wednesday, a bicameral group of Republican and Democrat lawmakers held a press conference discussing the need for pharmacy benefit manager reform to protect small pharmacies across the country and “save lives.” “Whether you are a Republican, Democrat, or an independent, we all want the same thing. We want accessible, affordable, quality health care,” said Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga. “We’re not here today to just discuss one bill or to discuss just one patient’s story. We're here because there's broad, bipartisan pharmacy benefit manager, or PBM, reform that is needed to save lives.” Pharmacy benefit managers are the middlemen responsible for managing the drug prices covered by health insurance plans. According to the Harvard Political Review , the problem with pharmacy benefit managers is that they “have vertically integrated with pharmacy chains and health insurers through massive conglomerates.” That then allows them to abuse their power to cut out small pharmacies and increase prices. Carter also signed a letter that was released last week calling on the Department of Justice to dig into the role pharmacy benefit managers played in the opioid epidemic. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., Deborah Ross, D-N.C., and Cliff Benz, R-Ore., all joined him in signing that letter. “The opioid crisis has devastated communities in North Carolina and across the country, and PBMs may have fueled it by prioritizing profits over people,” Ross said on social media . “That’s why I joined a letter calling on the DOJ to investigate their role and hold these bad actors accountable.” The letter looked at recent reports on the largest pharmacy benefit managers, CVS Caremark, Express Scripts, and OptumRx which state that they “colluded and conspired to steer patients towards OxyContin in exchange for $400 million.” OxyContin is a trade name for the narcotic oxycodone hydrochloride, a painkiller available by prescription only. This and the general “lack of transparency” is just one of the many complaints that legislators aired on Wednesday. “My colleagues who are joining me today, Democrats and Republicans ... all recognize that PBMs are decreasing the accessibility, the affordability, and therefore the quality of health care in America,” Carter said. “We have an opportunity, right now, to advance bipartisan legislation that increases reporting requirements, which would heighten transparency and shine a light on the opaque practices of these PBMs.” Carter was also joined by Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., who is leading the effort to get legislation passed in the U.S. Senate. “This year, we're losing about one pharmacy a day in America,” Lankford said. “We want leadership to be able to take this up and to bring it up in the end-of-year package ... Stop holding up legislation that is bipartisan, bicameral, and solving a problem that Americans need solved.”Stock market today: Tech stocks and AI pull Wall Street to more records

( ) just reported the fiscal fourth quarter (Q4) and full-year 2024 results that disappointed the market. Investors are wondering if the pullback in the stock on the earnings news is a good opportunity to add BNS stock to a self-directed Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) or (RRSP) portfolio. Bank of Nova Scotia share price Bank of Nova Scotia trades near $77 per share at the time of writing. The stock is off the 12-month high near $80 but is still up more than 20% in 2025. The bank is in a transition phase, which was launched by its new chief executive officer last year. Bank of Nova Scotia is shifting its growth strategy away from South America to focus more on Canada, the United States, and Mexico. In the past, the bank spent billions of dollars to acquire assets in Chile, Colombia, and Peru. These countries, along with Mexico, make up the core of the Pacific Alliance trade bloc that enables the free movement of goods, services, and capital among the member markets. The attraction for the bank has always been the growth potential as the middle class expands in these countries. Combined, they have a total population of more than 230 million with low bank services penetration compared to Canada. Economic and political turbulence, however, increases risks in these markets. That’s probably the reason investors have largely preferred the other big Canadian banks for several years. The new strategy of focusing on North American opportunities is designed to boost investors’ returns. In recent months, Bank of Nova Scotia announced a US$$2.8 billion deal to acquire a 14.9% stake in KeyCorp, a U.S. regional bank. The move gives Bank of Nova Scotia a platform to expand its American operations. Bank of Nova Scotia has also created a new executive position to oversee expansion in Quebec. Earnings Bank of Nova Scotia generated adjusted net income of $2.12 billion in fiscal Q4 2024 compared to $1.64 billion in the same period last year. For fiscal 2024, adjusted net income rose to $8.63 billion from $8.36 billion in 2023. Return on equity dipped slightly to 11.3% from 11.6%. Overall, the Q4 and full-year results are solid. Bank of Nova Scotia continues to maintain a strong capital position with a common equity tier-one (CET1) ratio of 13.1%. This gives the bank financial flexibility to ride out turbulence in the markets or to make additional acquisitions. The bank took a $430 million charge in the quarter related to a previous investment in China. Bank of Nova Scotia also reported fiscal Q4 provisions for credit losses (PCL) of $1.03 billion compared to $1.05 billion in the same period last year. Investors might have been hoping for a drop in PCL, given the cuts to interest rates in Canada and the United States in recent months. For fiscal 2024, PCL was $4.05 billion compared to $3.42 billion in 2023. The elevated PCL suggests that customers with too much debt are still struggling despite the decline in interest rates in the second half of this year. Risks High interest rates remain a headwind for the . Inflation rose in October in Canada and the U.S. after a steady decline over the past year. If the Trump administration moves ahead with planned tariffs next year, inflation in the U.S. could surge, potentially forcing the central bank to put rate cuts on hold. Tariffs would also put pressure on the Canadian economy. If the central banks are forced to slow down planned rate cuts or start to raise rates again, Bank of Nova Scotia and its peers might see defaults start to increase next year. Should you buy the dip? BNS stock is due for a pullback after the big gains this year. Given the uncertain outlook over the coming months, it might be best to wait for earnings reports from the other large Canadian banks to get a sense of where they see things headed in 2025. A better entry point might be on the horizon.

Year in Review: North Carolina’s 24 in 2024Gov. Abbott Targets CCP Infiltration In Texas

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