15+ min ago (600+ words) Top U.S. officials and a Ukrainian delegation met in Florida on Sunday for the latest round of discussions on a plan to end the war between Russia and Ukraine " talks both sides described positively but about which they provided no details and took no questions. "Much work remains, but today was, again, a very productive and useful session where I think additional progress was made," Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in short remarks to reporters after the meeting. Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff met with a Ukrainian delegation headed by Rustem Umerov, secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council. Also present was President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, who does not hold an official U.S. government position but serves as an unofficial adviser. Rubio emphasized wanting to set up Ukraine for "prosperity." He did not delve into specifics, nor…...

19+ min ago (904+ words) Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on NBC News" "Meet the Press" Sunday that authorities believe the suspect in the National Guard shooting was radicalized in the U.S. Rahmanullah Lakanwal came to the U.S. in 2021, during the Biden administration, but was granted asylum during the Trump administration in April. Before he settled in a quiet part of Washington state, he was part of a secret unit of Afghans who operated under CIA direction and hunted down Taliban commanders in highly dangerous missions. Some administration officials have claimed without evidence that the Biden administration failed to vet Lakanwal. But members of these so-called "Zero Units," also known as National Strike Units, were among the most extensively vetted of any Afghans who worked with American forces. CIA officers hailed their bravery, skill and loyalty, and the agency prioritized their evacuation from Afghanistan following the…...

19+ min ago (904+ words) Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on NBC News" "Meet the Press" Sunday that authorities believe the suspect in the National Guard shooting was radicalized in the U.S. Rahmanullah Lakanwal came to the U.S. in 2021, during the Biden administration, but was granted asylum during the Trump administration in April. Before he settled in a quiet part of Washington state, he was part of a secret unit of Afghans who operated under CIA direction and hunted down Taliban commanders in highly dangerous missions. Some administration officials have claimed without evidence that the Biden administration failed to vet Lakanwal. But members of these so-called "Zero Units," also known as National Strike Units, were among the most extensively vetted of any Afghans who worked with American forces. CIA officers hailed their bravery, skill and loyalty, and the agency prioritized their evacuation from Afghanistan following the…...

2+ hour, 20+ min ago (717+ words) Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said Sunday that President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are "not serious people" in response to their comments about a video Kelly and several fellow Democrats made earlier this month urging military and intelligence personnel to "refuse illegal orders." "This president thinks he can bully and intimidate people, and he is not going to, he's not going to stop me from speaking out and holding him accountable for the things that he does that are wrong and unlawful," Kelly told NBC News' "Meet the Press." Officials at the Defense Department earlier this month said they were launching an investigation into Kelly after President Donald Trump accused him and several other lawmakers of "seditious behavior," a charge that the president said could be "punishable by death." The president later walked back his comments, telling conservative…...

2+ hour, 44+ min ago (316+ words) BREAKING: Lane Kiffin leaves Ole Miss on brink of its first College Football Playoff for LSU College football's strangest saga of the season is finally over. Ole Miss Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin will take the same job with the LSU Tigers, he announced Sunday, leaving the seventh-ranked team in the nation for its conference rival. "After a lot of prayer and time spent with family, I made the difficult decision to accept the head coaching position at LSU," Kiffin wrote in a social media post. The Tigers' job became available after the school fired Brian Kelly in October. Kiffin immediately became the most-mentioned name in rumors to take over, despite the Rebels being in the midst of a playoff run. Ole Miss reportedly gave Kiffin an ultimatum to make his decision by this weekend, though the coach denied the…...

3+ hour, 11+ min ago (665+ words) Florida hired Tulane's Jon Sumrall as its next coach Sunday, settling for its second choice after Lane Kiffin reportedly picked LSU over the Gators. The 43-year-old Sumrall will remain with the 22nd-ranked Green Wave for next week's American Conference title game and through the College Football Playoff if Tulane makes the 12-team field. The Gators also are on the verge of signing general manager Dave Caldwell, who won a Super Bowl during his five seasons with the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles. He also spent eight years (2013-20) with the Jacksonville Jaguars and built a roster that made the AFC title game. Caldwell is expected to help manage Florida's salary cap and evaluate college talent as demands on coaches have expanded with the burgeoning transfer portal and name, image and likeness payments. Sumrall played linebacker at Kentucky (2002-04) and returned to his alma mater…...

5+ hour, 1+ min ago (1029+ words) BEIRUT " Pope Leo XIV challenged Lebanon's political leaders on Sunday to be true peacemakers and put their differences aside, as he sought to give Lebanon's long-suffering people a message of hope and bolster a crucial Christian community in the Middle East. Leo arrived in Beirut from Istanbul on the second leg of his maiden voyage as pope. He came to encourage the Lebanese people to persevere at a precarious moment for the small Mediterranean country as it faces economic uncertainty, deep political divisions and fears of a new war with Israel. Leo is fulfilling a promise of his predecessor, Pope Francis, who had wanted to visit Lebanon for years but was unable to because of its many crises and as his health worsened. Lebanon's political system, based on sectarian power-sharing, has been prone to deadlock with lengthy power vacuums and…...

5+ hour, 31+ min ago (946+ words) Cat Murphy, a college student, has wanted to be a journalist since she was 11. Many of her friends don't understand why. When they engage with the news " if they do " they hear a cacophony of voices. They don't know who to believe. Reporters are biased. They make mistakes. Besides, why would you hitch your future to a dying industry? "There is a lot of commentary " "Oh, good for you. Look what you're walking into. You're going to be screaming into the void. You're going to be useless," said Murphy, a 21-year-old graduate student at the University of Maryland's journalism school. She is undeterred. And it's also why she's not surprised by the findings of a study this fall that documented negative attitudes toward the news media among 13- to 18-year-old Americans. The press rarely fares well in surveys of adults, but…...

5+ hour, 34+ min ago (616+ words) Max Verstappen won the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday after a costly strategy error by McLaren hurt both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, setting up a three-way championship decider next weekend in the last Formula 1 race of the 2025 season. Oscar Piastri finished second and fellow McLaren driver Lando Norris finished fourth after getting stuck behind a few cars following his final pit stop. Norris continues to lead the standings with 408 points, but his lead has narrowed after the result. Verstappen is behind him with 396 points and Piastri slightly further behind with 392 points. With a maximum of 25 points available in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix next weekend, all three of them stand a chance of winning. For Norris and Piastri, it would be their first championship. For Verstappen, it would be his fifth consecutive championship. "Really well done with the strategy,…...

5+ hour, 53+ min ago (654+ words) A 45-car pile up involving commercial and passenger vehicles on Interstate 78 in Indiana and a Delta flight skidding off the runway in Iowa are just two incidents being blamed on a powerful winter storm taking aim at the heart of the country, impacting one of the biggest travel days of the year. Around 25 million people remain under winter weather alerts Sunday morning amid the Thanksgiving weekend storm system that has brought over a foot of snow and strong winds to parts of the Midwest, and thunderstorms across the South. Snowfall totals as of 11 a.m. include 15 inches in Fort Dodge, Iowa, 13 inches in Lancaster, Wisconsin and a foot of snow in Pana, Illinois. The National Weather Service warned that a quick burst of snowfall will impact the Chicago area Sunday morning, reducing visibility on the roads and making travel dangerous. In Indiana…...