"They may try to misgender me, they may try to say the wrong name, they will do what we can predictably assume they might do," she told the TransLash podcast last month ahead of her resounding election victory on November 5. "They are going to do that to get a rise out of me and my job will be to not give them the response they want," the Democrat from Delaware explained. Ahead of her arrival in the House of Representatives on January 3, McBride was targeted by a resolution this week from a right-wing Republican colleague that would ban transgender women from women's toilets in the Capitol. "Just because a Congressman wants to wear a mini skirt doesn’t mean he can come into a women’s bathroom," South Carolina firebrand Nancy Mace wrote on social media as she led a highly personal campaign against McBride. House Speaker Mike Johnson, after initially seeking to buy time to debate the issue, came out in support of a ban, saying that all single-sex facilities would be "reserved for individuals of that biological sex." McBride -- who wears knee-length dresses, not miniskirts -- issued a statement saying that she said would respect the rules "even if I disagree with them." "I'm not here to fight about bathrooms," said the politician and activist, who transitioned as a 21-year-old and told her parents on Christmas Day 2011. Donald Trump repeatedly raised transgender issues in the closing stages of his presidential campaign, with aides noting how questions around trans identity struck a nerve with swing voters. Two of the biggest issues -- at the heart of ongoing "culture wars" between conservatives and progressives -- are whether transgender women should be allowed in women's toilets and be admitted in women's sport. Mocking transgender athletes and "woke ideology," Trump promised to get "transgender insanity the hell out of our schools, and we will keep men out of women’s sports." McBride has long been an advocate for trans rights and she helped campaign for a law banning gender discrimination in her home state of Delaware, during which she was publicly called a "freak" and the "devil incarnate". "Listening to that was demeaning and dehumanizing for my child," her mother Sally told The Washington Post in a 2018 profile. "I still have a hard time coping with that." Undeterred, McBride rode the blows and was elected as the first US transgender state senator in 2020. She has been open about her mental health struggles growing up as a boy named Tim and the personal tragedy that has marked her life since, writing a memoir called "Tomorrow Will Be Different" in 2018. "I remember as a child praying in my bed at night that I would wake up the next day and be a girl," she told a TED talk in 2016. She first gathered major public attention with an open letter while a student leader at American University in Washington that announced her transition. She went on to encounter President Joe Biden and his family, also Delaware natives, when she became active in grassroots politics there. After interning at the White House under President Barack Obama, she secured an invitation to speak at the 2016 Democratic Party convention. The White House was also the scene of her first encounter with her late husband, Andrew Cray, a transgender man and LGTBQ+ activist. They married two years later shortly before Cray died from cancer. Knowing the attention she is destined for in the US Congress, she says her aim is to be an effective congresswoman focused on everyday voter priorities such as housing and inflation. But she knows she will be constantly pushed to be a spokeswoman -- and defender -- of the trans community. "I can't do right by the trans community if I'm not being the best member of Congress that I can be for Delaware," she told TransLash. "It's the only way that people will see that trans people can be good doctors, can be good lawyers, good educators, good members of Congress. I can't be there to put out a press release and tweet every time someone says something." adp/bgs

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The people that president-elect Donald Trump has selected to lead federal health agencies in his second administration include a retired congressman, a surgeon and a former talk-show host. All of them could play pivotal roles in fulfilling a new political agenda that could change how the government goes about safeguarding Americans' health — from health care and medicines to food safety and science research. And if Congress approves, at the helm of the team as Department of Health and Human Services secretary will be prominent environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine organizer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.

Top 25 roundup: No. 22 UCLA edges No. 14 GonzagaBy MICHELLE L. PRICE WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An online spat between factions of Donald Trump’s supporters over immigration and the tech industry has thrown internal divisions in his political movement into public display, previewing the fissures and contradictory views his coalition could bring to the White House. The rift laid bare the tensions between the newest flank of Trump’s movement — wealthy members of the tech world including billionaire Elon Musk and fellow entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and their call for more highly skilled workers in their industry — and people in Trump’s Make America Great Again base who championed his hardline immigration policies. The debate touched off this week when Laura Loomer , a right-wing provocateur with a history of racist and conspiratorial comments, criticized Trump’s selection of Sriram Krishnan as an adviser on artificial intelligence policy in his coming administration. Krishnan favors the ability to bring more skilled immigrants into the U.S. Loomer declared the stance to be “not America First policy” and said the tech executives who have aligned themselves with Trump were doing so to enrich themselves. Much of the debate played out on the social media network X, which Musk owns. Loomer’s comments sparked a back-and-forth with venture capitalist and former PayPal executive David Sacks , whom Trump has tapped to be the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar.” Musk and Ramaswamy, whom Trump has tasked with finding ways to cut the federal government , weighed in, defending the tech industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. It bloomed into a larger debate with more figures from the hard-right weighing in about the need to hire U.S. workers, whether values in American culture can produce the best engineers, free speech on the internet, the newfound influence tech figures have in Trump’s world and what his political movement stands for. Trump has not yet weighed in on the rift, and his presidential transition team did not respond to a message seeking comment. Musk, the world’s richest man who has grown remarkably close to the president-elect , was a central figure in the debate, not only for his stature in Trump’s movement but his stance on the tech industry’s hiring of foreign workers. Technology companies say H-1B visas for skilled workers, used by software engineers and others in the tech industry, are critical for hard-to-fill positions. But critics have said they undercut U.S. citizens who could take those jobs. Some on the right have called for the program to be eliminated, not expanded. Born in South Africa, Musk was once on an a H-1B visa himself and defended the industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. “There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent,” he said in a post. “It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley.” Related Articles National Politics | Should the U.S. increase immigration levels for highly skilled workers? National Politics | Trump threat to immigrant health care tempered by economic hopes National Politics | In states that ban abortion, social safety net programs often fail families National Politics | Court rules Georgia lawmakers can subpoena Fani Willis for information related to her Trump case National Politics | New 2025 laws hit hot topics from AI in movies to rapid-fire guns Trump’s own positions over the years have reflected the divide in his movement. His tough immigration policies, including his pledge for a mass deportation, were central to his winning presidential campaign. He has focused on immigrants who come into the U.S. illegally but he has also sought curbs on legal immigration , including family-based visas. As a presidential candidate in 2016, Trump called the H-1B visa program “very bad” and “unfair” for U.S. workers. After he became president, Trump in 2017 issued a “Buy American and Hire American” executive order , which directed Cabinet members to suggest changes to ensure H-1B visas were awarded to the highest-paid or most-skilled applicants to protect American workers. Trump’s businesses, however, have hired foreign workers, including waiters and cooks at his Mar-a-Lago club , and his social media company behind his Truth Social app has used the the H-1B program for highly skilled workers. During his 2024 campaign for president, as he made immigration his signature issue, Trump said immigrants in the country illegally are “poisoning the blood of our country” and promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. But in a sharp departure from his usual alarmist message around immigration generally, Trump told a podcast this year that he wants to give automatic green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges. “I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country,” he told the “All-In” podcast with people from the venture capital and technology world. Those comments came on the cusp of Trump’s budding alliance with tech industry figures, but he did not make the idea a regular part of his campaign message or detail any plans to pursue such changes.

LONDON — A woman who claimed mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor "brutally raped and battered" her in a Dublin hotel penthouse was awarded nearly 250,000 Euros ($257,000) on Friday by a civil court jury in Ireland. Nikita Hand said the Dec. 9, 2018, assault after a night of partying left her heavily bruised and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. McGregor testified that he never forced the woman to do anything against her will and said she fabricated the allegations after the two had consensual sex. His lawyer had called Hand a gold digger. The fighter, once the face of the Ultimate Fighting Championship but now past his prime, shook his head as the jury of eight women and four men found him liable for assault after deliberating about six hours in the High Court in Dublin. He was mobbed by cameras as he left court but did not comment. He later said on the social platform X that he would appeal the verdict and the "modest award." Hand's voice cracked and her hands trembled as she read a statement outside the courthouse, saying she would never forget what happened to her but would now be able to move on with her life. She thanked her family, partner, friends, jurors, the judge and all the supporters that had reached out to her online, but particularly her daughter. "She has given me so much strength and courage over the last six years throughout this nightmare to keep on pushing forward for justice," she said. "I want to show (her) and every other girl and boy that you can stand up for yourself if something happens to you, no matter who the person is, and justice will be served." The Associated Press generally does not name alleged victims of sexual violence unless they come forward publicly, as Hand has done. Under Irish law, she did not have the anonymity she would have been granted in a criminal proceeding and was named publicly throughout the trial. Her lawyer told jurors that McGregor was angry about a fight he had lost in Las Vegas two months earlier and took it out on his client. "He's not a man, he's a coward," attorney John Gordon said in his closing speech. "A devious coward and you should treat him for what he is." Gordon said his client never pretended to be a saint and was only looking to have fun when she sent McGregor a message through Instagram after attending a Christmas party. He said Hand knew McGregor socially and that they had grown up in the same area. She said he picked her and a friend up in a car and shared cocaine with them, which McGregor admitted in court, on the way to the Beacon Hotel. Hand said she told McGregor she didn't want to have sex with him and that she was menstruating. She said she told him "no" as he started kissing her but he eventually pinned her to a bed and she couldn't move. McGregor put her in a chokehold and later told her, "now you know how I felt in the octagon where I tapped out three times," referring to a UFC match when he had to admit defeat, she said. Hand had to take several breaks in emotional testimony over three days. She said McGregor threatened to kill her during the encounter and she feared she would never see her young daughter again. Eventually, he let go of her. "I remember saying I was sorry, as I felt that I did something wrong and I wanted to reassure him that I wouldn't tell anyone so he wouldn't hurt me again," she testified. She said she then let him do what he wanted and he had sex with her. A paramedic who examined Hand the next day testified that she had never before seen someone with that intensity of bruising. A doctor told jurors Hand had multiple injuries. Hand said the trauma of the attack had left her unable to work as a hairdresser, she fell behind on her mortgage and had to move out of her house. Police investigated the woman's complaint but prosecutors declined to bring charges, saying there was insufficient evidence and a conviction was unlikely. McGregor, in his post on X, said he was disappointed jurors didn't see all the evidence prosecutors had reviewed. He testified that the two had athletic and vigorous sex, but that it was not rough. He said "she never said 'no' or stopped" and testified that everything she said was a lie. "It is a full blown lie among many lies," he said when asked about the chokehold allegation. "How anyone could believe that me, as a prideful person, would highlight my shortcomings." McGregor's lawyer told jurors they had to set aside their animus toward the fighter. "You may have an active dislike of him, some of you may even loathe him – there is no point pretending that the situation might be otherwise," attorney Remy Farrell said. "I'm not asking you to invite him to Sunday brunch." The defense said the woman never told investigators McGregor threatened her life. They also showed surveillance video in court that they said appeared to show the woman kiss McGregor's arm and hug him after they left the hotel room. Farrell said she looked "happy, happy, happy." McGregor said he was "beyond petrified" when first questioned by police and read them a prepared statement. On the advice of his lawyer, he refused to answer more than 100 follow-up questions. The jury ruled against Hand in a case she brought against one of McGregor's friends, James Lawrence, whom she accused of having sex with her in the hotel without consent. Get local news delivered to your inbox!JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Laboratory Co. of America Holdings ( NYSE:LH – Free Report ) by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,930,395 shares of the medical research company’s stock after purchasing an additional 167,137 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 2.31% of Laboratory Co. of America worth $431,405,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LH. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 34.5% in the 2nd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 73,321 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $14,922,000 after purchasing an additional 18,820 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Laboratory Co. of America by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 7,800 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $1,587,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Laboratory Co. of America by 909.5% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 13,174 shares of the medical research company’s stock worth $2,681,000 after purchasing an additional 11,869 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Laboratory Co. of America by 81.1% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the medical research company’s stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. 95.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Insider Buying and Selling In other Laboratory Co. of America news, Director Dwight Gary Gilliland sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.00, for a total transaction of $241,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,858,592. This trade represents a 11.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website . Also, EVP Glenn A. Eisenberg sold 11,711 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.43, for a total transaction of $2,815,675.73. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 31,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,522,814.27. The trade was a 27.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Insiders have sold 24,572 shares of company stock worth $5,910,209 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock. Analyst Ratings Changes Get Our Latest Stock Report on Laboratory Co. of America Laboratory Co. of America Stock Down 0.3 % LH stock opened at $230.43 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $233.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $222.68. The company has a market cap of $19.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.44. Laboratory Co. of America Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $191.97 and a fifty-two week high of $247.99. Laboratory Co. of America ( NYSE:LH – Get Free Report ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The medical research company reported $3.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Laboratory Co. of America had a return on equity of 15.27% and a net margin of 3.43%. Laboratory Co. of America’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.38 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Laboratory Co. of America Holdings will post 14.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Laboratory Co. of America Dividend Announcement The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 26th. Laboratory Co. of America’s payout ratio is presently 55.71%. Laboratory Co. of America Profile ( Free Report ) Labcorp Holdings Inc provides laboratory services. It operates through two segments, Diagnostics Laboratories and Biopharma Laboratory Services. The company offers various tests, such as blood chemistry analyses, urinalyses, blood cell counts, thyroid, PAP, hemoglobin A1C and vitamin D, prostate-specific antigens, sexually transmitted diseases, hepatitis C, microbiology cultures and procedures, and alcohol and other substance-abuse tests. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Laboratory Co. of America Holdings ( NYSE:LH – Free Report ). Receive News & Ratings for Laboratory Co. of America Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Laboratory Co. of America and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .Kings back home for double dip with Edmonton, PhiladelphiaArne Slot 'keeping an eye on' three players as Liverpool face difficult decision

Arsenal up to second after Kai Havertz goal sees off struggling IpswichDefiant David Gray insists he won't walk away from Hibs as he declares 'the players are with me'In 2024, I watched, tested and reviewed more TVs than I can count. I've gawked at some of the best OLEDs I've ever seen, I've had my eyes blasted by bright, colorful Mini-LEDs and I've glimpsed the future of ultra-affordable 4K TVs. In the spirit of ringing in the new year (and in the spirit of end-of-year lists), I'm picking my favorite TVs across multiple price points. All of them are on sale, too, ahead of CES 2025 . 1. TCL Q6: my favorite QLED under $500 I've recommended this TV to three separate friends and family members this year with the exact same pitch each time: If you're just looking for an affordable TV with easy-to-use smart features, this is the one. The TCL Q6 is a dependable QLED with an accurate out-of-the-box picture and Google TV baked right in. Right now, the 65-inch TCL Q6 is just $399 at Best Buy . In 4K, its gaming support is limited to 60Hz, but you'll get ultra-low latency with an input lag of below 10ms, and the Q6 is bright enough to look good in most living rooms. You can read more about it in our full TCL Q6 review , but we thought it checked most of the boxes for a budget-friendly, set-it-and-forget-it set. Other sizes on sale: 55-inch TCL Q6: was $449 now $269 @ Best Buy 75-inch TCL Q6: was $749 now $529 @ Best Buy 2. Hisense U7N: my favorite Mini-LED TV under $1,000 If you're a casual or competitive gamer on a budget, or just someone who's looking for a good amount of HDR horsepower for movies and shows, the Hisense U7N is just the ticket. It's the brand's mid-range Mini-LED for 2024, and I really appreciate what it has to offer for the price. Right now, a 65-inch Hisense U7N is just $697 at Amazon. In our Hisense U7N review , we marveled at its tremendous HDR performance, as it sports over 1,300 nits of highlight brightness during HDR movies and games while its Mini-LED backlighting keeps contrast in check. It delivers nearly all of the gaming features one would expect from a higher-end TV, too, including support for 4K gaming at up to 144Hz and VRR. Other sizes on sale: 55-inch Hisense U7N: was $798 now $497 @ Amazon 75-inch Hisense U7N: was $1,499 now $899 @ Best Buy 3. LG B4: my favorite OLED under $1,500 The LG B4 is one of my favorite TVs of the year. It's not as bright as higher-end OLEDs, nor is it as thoroughly loaded with features. But it is an OLED TV, which means it's a real showstopper thanks to the built-in benefits of this impressive display technology (namely, perfect black levels and ultra-wide viewing angles). The 65-inch LG B4 is just $1,196 at Amazon , but most of the other sizes are on sale, too. You can read all about it in our LG B4 review , but this set offers excellent color volume (with fantastic accuracy in Filmmaker mode) along with some crucial gaming enhancements. It supports 4K gaming at 120Hz across all four of its HDMI 2.1 inputs. Other sizes on sale: 48-inch LG B4: was $799 now $699 @ Best Buy 55-inch LG B4: was $1,099 now $996 @ Amazon 4. LG C4: my favorite OLED under $2,000 The LG C4 lives up to its pedigree with incredible performance and a more agreeable price tag than you'd expect. It's one of the best TVs of the year in this price range, and right now, you can land a 65-inch LG C4 for $1,496 at Amazon . The C4 is the TV to get if you're looking for an OLED that's brighter than the B4 but not as pricey as a flagship model. In our LG C4 review, we noted the TV's impressive HDR brightness: over 1,000 nits for impressive specular highlights. The C4 also comes with pretty much every gaming feature you could ask for. It supports 4K gaming up to 144Hz, delivers VRR, FreeSync, and G-Sync compatibility, and LG's Game Optimizer mode is among the best in the biz. Other sizes on sale: 48-inch LG C4: was $1,599 now $1,196 @ Amazon 55-inch LG C4: was $1,296 now $1,196 @ Amazon 77-inch LG C4: was $3,699 now $2,196 @ Amazon 5. Sony Bravia 9: my favorite flagship Mini-LED TV It's been a highly competitive year for Mini-LED TVs, but if you were to drop a small sack of money on my lap and tell me to pick out my favorite of 2024, it would undoubtedly go to the Sony Bravia 9. It's a pricey proposition, as the 65-inch Sony Bravia 9 is on sale for $2,498 at Amazon . That's more than you'd spend on most of its competitors, so why do I love it so much? The Bravia 9 may not be the best Mini-LED for most people, but to my eyes, it's got some of the most impressive backlight control and picture processing I've ever seen. It also gets brighter than everything else on this list. For our Bravia 9 review , we measured HDR highlights in the 2,500- to 3,000-nit range. The Bravia 9 is limited to just a pair of HDMI 2.1 inputs with the remaining ports being HDMI 2.0. If you're a serious gamer or home theater enthusiast, this could be less than ideal. If you're committed to owning one of the best Mini-LED TVs on the market, splash out on Sony's top-of-the-line Bravia.