Josh Gill, United Cajun Navy Incident commander, and meteorologist Amy Metz provide firsthand accounts of dangerous Texas flood rescues, as two people have died. They emphasize improved preparedness compared to the previous year’s tragic Camp Mystic floods, which killed 28. The Guadalupe River rose 32 feet in four hours, highlighting the need for vigilance.
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An Arkansas police officer drowned after entering a river to save his fiancée just hours after proposing to her, according to her mother.
Fred Marsh, 24, of the Rogers Police Department, entered Missouri’s Elk River on Saturday to help another swimmer and did not resurface, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol. His fiancée’s mother identified that swimmer as her daughter. Marsh was recovered and pronounced dead Sunday after asking his fiancée, Hailey, to marry him Saturday morning.
“They had been together for three beautiful years, and they had a very beautiful, loving relationship,” Sheryl Padgett told KHBS. “Even though legally he was not my son-in-law, he will forever be my son.”
The pair, who had been together for three years, were out canoeing with another couple on the river near Noel, Missouri, when Hailey entered the water and began struggling against the current while trying to return to the boat.
Fred Marsh entered Elk River on Saturday and was recovered Sunday after asking his fiancée, Hailey, to marry him that morning.(GoFundMe)
Marsh and a fellow Rogers police officer who was with them then jumped into the water to help her, Padgett said. They were able to move her to safety, but Marsh became distressed and exhausted, went underwater and never resurfaced, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
“He saw the love of his life in distress, and he was going to help his friend and do what a good human would do,” Padgett said. “He gave his life helping someone else.”
Padgett said Marsh was loving, hardworking and guided by his Christian faith, emphasizing that he never hesitated when someone needed help.
“There’s nothing he wouldn’t do for anyone,” Padgett said. “You didn’t have to tell him. You didn’t have to beg him. He just was willing and would jump in there and do whatever it took to help someone.”
Padgett said she had lost her only son in a fatal accident four years earlier. She began calling Marsh her son soon after he started dating her daughter.
Fred Marsh and his fiancée, Hailey, had been together for three years.(GoFundMe)
“We instantly made a connection and a bond,” she said. “I called him son, and he called me mama.”
A motorcade escorted Marsh’s body through Northwest Arkansas on Monday as people lined up along the route to honor him. Padgett said the response from law enforcement and the community showed the impact Marsh had made on many others.
“They made it very clear that Fred was not just their family, but so was my daughter, my family and, even more importantly, Fred’s family,” Padgett said.
Marsh was in his first year with the Rogers Police Department. He graduated from the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy in April and only recently started working as an officer.
Fred Marsh was in his first year with the Rogers Police Department.(GoFundMe)
A GoFundMe created for Hailey by her sister to cover her lease, bills and other unforeseen expenses has raised nearly $2,000 as of Thursday morning.
“Fred was an upstanding young man- Son, Fiancée, Officer, Brother, Friend, and more to all. We are devastated and will miss him dearly,” the fundraiser reads.
Funeral arrangements are being handled by Marsh’s family, and Padgett said the family expects officers, former classmates, childhood friends and others from across the state to attend.
“Let’s do something in Fred’s honor,” Padgett said. “Be kind to your fellow man. When Fred loved, he loved with everything he had, and he loved well.”
We’ve all been there: the jeans that felt so great when you bought them a few months ago just won’t do up. Is it the giant bowl of pasta you ate at lunch? Is it just a bit of hormonal bloating? Or has your weight fluctuated?
Whatever the reason, this is a common occurrence. Bodies – particularly women’s bodies – change all the time. Hormones have a reported effect on bloating and weight gain or loss during the menstrual cycle and menopause, and now with the rise of weight loss drugs, women’s body shapes are fluctuating so much that “Ozempic dressing” has become a trend.
The problem is that our wardrobes aren’t designed to change with us. If your dress size has changed, that means buying new clothes – an added financial cost for you and a damaging cost for the environment. Even if you can still squeeze into your clothes when bloated, it’s not exactly comfortable. No wonder the athleisure trend of wearing stretchy leggings all day has been so popular for so long.
But now there’s a new solution that doesn’t involve dressing for the gym: adjustable clothing. Designers like Dries Van Noten and Loewe have recently created clothing with elasticated and drawstring waists, while Phoebe Philo even used a knitted stretch panel in one of her jackets to allow for extra weight gain. And the last couple of years have also seen a rise in new fashion brands that only sell adjustable clothing.
“I started my business because my body has changed so much over the years,” explains Alice Holland-Lu, founder of The Female Archetypes. “I’ve been a size six and a size 16, and I just felt there were not enough or any solutions out there for women whose weight is fluctuating. Nobody was making sustainable solutions for women whose bodies are always shifting and evolving.”
Her brand is designed to appeal to professional women who appreciate quality clothing that is made ethically with longevity as the main priority. Instead of using elasticated waists or drawstrings, she uses clever systems of hidden zips, poppers and removable panels in her range of jeans, shirts, jackets and dresses to ensure that they can fit anyone between a size 10-18.
“Everything we do is subtle so there are no really obvious additional buttons on the outside. Because, quite frankly, if you’re feeling self-conscious, the last thing you want is for someone to see that your jeans are on the wider setting. Our clothes can cover you not only through different sizes, but fluctuation during the day: when you sit down, when you stand up, we are all different sizes in the morning and the evening. And I want to eat pasta at lunch, so I need clothes that adapt to those needs.”
Sanja Studio jeans are genderless and adjustable (Matt McConaghy at MyMy Creative)
Of course, adjustable clothing is not in itself a new concept – the wrap dress, which can be tied to accommodate different waist sizes, has been around for years. But fashion has typically avoided clothing that can see a woman through every body change in her lifetime because, naturally, that means customers will buy less clothing.
“That’s a big part of the problem with it being economically difficult [for brands],” explains Rachel Kan, founder of sustainable fashion consultants Circular Earth. “But I think it is a trend we’ve seen coming forward, particularly in smaller businesses where people are thinking about circularity and longevity and doing something about it. In larger businesses, I haven’t seen it much myself – they generally tend to stick to their usual size ranges, but they do get a lot of returns for fit, which is a massive problem.”
Kan was recently inspired to join forces with a group of other fashion insiders to create their own collaborative brand selling adjustable trousers: Sanja Stories. They only sell one product, created by an ex-Burberry designer – a pair of genderless, non-toxic, hand-woven trousers.
We design almost backwards, fabrication-wise, into what already exists. Because, quite frankly, we don’t need any more clothes in the world
Alice Holland-Lu, founder of The Female Archetypes
“We wanted a blank canvas that could be styled with anything,” explains Kan. “You don’t want to have 10 pairs of trousers – you want a small capsule that can go with many things. You can tuck in a T-shirt for the school run, or wear with a blazer for work. It’s versatile, and genderless so you can style it with anything and make it yours.”
Each pair of “Sanjas”, as Circular Earth call them, costs £35 to make, and is sold for £150 each so everyone can be paid fairly. Customers can pay in instalments while their trousers are made (they have to wait up to six months unless you buy the express batch that arrives in one month) and during that period, they receive information on how the product is made and real circularity. “The waiting helps customers to love it more with the emotional durability,” explains Kan. “They love the story and the journey.”
This is a radical way of shopping compared to the fast fashion consumerism of the everyday high-street, but as the interest in sustainable fashion grows in tandem with the cost of living crisis, adjustable clothing feels like the way forward.
The usability of these items is one thing – the fact that they are actually stylish is a plus (The Female Archetypes)
The “Sanjas” can be ordered in basic sizes (XS to XL) but have buttons and drawstrings to ensure they can accommodate weight gain or loss. Meanwhile, The Female Archetype’s wide-legged jeans and chic white oversized shirt can last a woman throughout her whole pregnancy – and then remain a stylish fashion choice post-partum and beyond.
Ideal for pregnancy, the clothes are more expensive than high-street maternity wear at £295 for a pair of jeans and £225 for the adjustable overshirt, but they’re guaranteed to last. “All our clothes are made from dead stock fabric or fabric that already exists because there’s a lot of fabric out there,” explains Holland-Lu. “We design almost backwards, fabrication-wise, into what already exists. Because, quite frankly, we don’t need any more clothes in the world.”
It means that most items are classics – blazers, trench coats, wide-legged jeans at The Female Archetype or the slightly baggy Sanjas that have a 90s combat feel that can be elevated with a crisp shirt and heels. Adjustable fashion isn’t about following trends – it’s about creating capsule items that can be worn over and over again.
Kerryl Bullen founded Ever by X in Australia back in 2018 and originally only sold one dress that fits a size 8-22, and appeals to anyone in their early twenties to their late 80s. “I was developing a luxury travel dress,” she explains. “As a new mum of twins, I needed instant readiness and to switch from city to coast, day to night, with minimal wardrobe change.”
The dress she designed is also multiwear which means it can be adapted nine ways – the perfect item to take on holiday. But as Bullen’s customer base grew (she now has 20,000 customers worldwide), she realised the dress also had the appeal of making women feel good without worrying about what dress size they were wearing.
New life: the adjustable jeans are made from dead stock material (The Female Archetypes)
“We never talk size, age or that our garments provide ‘confidence’ like some brands do, as our wearers are themselves,” she says. “Age and dress size is peripheral to this.” The brand now offers six designs, and like most adjustable clothing brands, has a tiny carbon footprint and only uses dead stock textiles.
When it comes to the economic challenge of making a profit from clothes designed to last, Bullen says loyal customers are enough. Her website is full of reviews from shoppers buying the same dress in multiple colours because they love it so much. Meanwhile, The Female Archetype and Sanja Stories have built devoted customer bases who feel invested in the brands’ growth – something that’s much harder to achieve for larger fashion labels.
“From a business perspective, you’re going to sell less, but from a sustainability perspective, it is so much more sustainable,” says Holland-Lu, who primarily gives jobs to women with caring responsibilities, allowing them to work flexibly, and strongly believes in paying people fairly.
“We believe that to sit at a sewing machine, you don’t need to speak English or have a degree,” she explains. “So when we say we empower women, we do. Because unlike other brands, the customer feels good with our products and we’re empowering women along the way to make the clothes. So, I feel like we can actually stand by those words.”
Sen. Ron Johnson responds to New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill’s admission of 6,600 non-citizens improperly registered to vote due to a software error, with 400 actually voting. Johnson, from Wisconsin, stresses that election integrity, including voter ID and cleaning voter rolls, should be a non-partisan issue to restore public confidence in U.S. elections.
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Nicaragua’s lawmakers announced plans to abolish elections in the Central American country, following through on President Daniel Ortega’s declaration over the weekend that there would be no more elections, which enraged the international community.
The move was revealed on Tuesday by Nicaragua’s congress, which is firmly in the hands of Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo. Lawmakers said planned constitutional overhaul will ensure Nicaragua’s “peace, security and stability.”
With the announcement, lawmakers are making good on Ortega’s promise of no more elections, further closing off any potential path for the opposition to challenge the government he leads with Murillo, whom constitutional reforms elevated from vice president to “co-president.”
“There won’t be any more elections here for them to try to seize the government and seize power,” Ortega said on Sunday during a speech commemorating the 1979 Sandinista revolution, in which Ortega participated in the overthrow of the U.S.-backed dictatorship of Anastasio Somoza.
Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega said officials in the Central American country will no longer hold elections.(REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria)
“The days when parties backed by the Yankees (United States) and the Somocistas would return to power are over — never again,” he declared.
The declaration appeared to eliminate the possibility of a future electoral challenge as Ortega and Murillo continue consolidating control over the country’s political institutions.
Ortega and Murillo expanded their authority through sweeping constitutional changes that took effect in 2025. The reforms included extending the presidential term from five years to six and placing the legislative, judicial and electoral institutions under the authority of the presidency.
The pair now exercise control over nearly every branch of government, including the armed forces, police and judiciary.
Ortega, Nicaragua’s longest-serving leader, has remained in power until early 2028, although his statement on Sunday effectively canceled Nicaragua’s next elections, which had been scheduled for November 2027.
Critics say Ortega had already effectively eliminated meaningful electoral competition during elections in 2011, 2016 and 2021.
President Daniel Ortega’s promise to abolish elections prompted widespread condemnation from the international community.(Carlos Becerra/Bloomberg)
Many prominent opposition leaders have been imprisoned, forced into exile or stripped of their Nicaraguan citizenship, while opposition parties and independent civic organizations have lost their legal status.
A United Nations group of experts has accused the Ortega-Murillo government of systematically violating human rights as part of a campaign to eliminate criticism and preserve its hold on power. The experts said some alleged violations may amount to crimes against humanity.
The government launched a violent crackdown on anti-government protests in 2018. More than 300 people were killed during the unrest, according to international human rights groups.
Ortega’s effort to abolish elections prompted widespread condemnation from foreign governments, including the U.S.
“Daniel Ortega’s declaration that under his family’s dictatorship, Nicaragua will never again hold elections lays bare their true authoritarian nature. Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo have abandoned even the pretense of popular consent,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday.
“The Nicaraguan people have the right to choose their own leaders through democratic elections. The United States calls on the international community to join forces to demonstrate to the Murillo-Ortega dictatorship that it cannot expect to maintain business as usual with other nations when it is thwarting the basic tenets of our democratic hemisphere,” he added.
The move to abolish elections was announced by Nicaragua’s congress, which is firmly in the hands of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo.(INTI OCON/AFP)
The Trump administration has described the Ortega-Murillo government as a dictatorship and imposed sanctions on members of the government and their allies. The State Department has also enacted visa restrictions targeting more than 2,350 Nicaraguan officials and their family members.
Volker Türk, the United Nations’ high commissioner for human rights, denounced Nicaragua’s legislative ambitions on Wednesday, saying that “people of all political viewpoints must be allowed to vote and run for office.”
“These latest developments further deepen the severe restrictions on fundamental freedoms, the dismantling of civic space, and the steady erosion of the rule of law,” Türk said in a statement.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
National Vanilla Ice Cream Day is celebrated every year on July 23 and marks the most favourite day for ice cream enthusiasts who get an opportunity to indulge in this yummy frozen delight. While flavours like chocolate, strawberry, and many more innovative ones tend to attract a lot of attention, the popularity of vanilla has not diminished with time due to its amazing scent, taste, and versatility. Whether enjoyed solo or combined with warm desserts and various fruits and syrups, vanilla ice cream is a true classic. Here are six interesting facts about National Vanilla Ice Cream Day and its delicious frozen treat.
Why vanilla has become a classic
In spite of the opinion that vanilla is just another flavour, it has quite a rich history. It comes from vanilla pods of the vanilla orchid, which happens to be one of the most labour-intensive agricultural products to produce. It has a unique floral scent and sweet taste and has been used for making desserts for hundreds of years. Before there were hundreds of ice cream flavours, vanilla was already considered to be a luxury product to complement almost any recipe.
A match for almost all desserts
Another reason why vanilla ice cream is so popular is that it is very versatile. It goes well with brownies, apple pie, waffles, pancakes, cakes, fruit salad, hot puddings and so on. The creamy and smooth taste of vanilla makes it a perfect partner for almost any dessert and is loved by home cooks and restaurateurs all over the world. Whether enjoyed in a cone or served with freshly baked goodies, vanilla ice cream is still the number one choice.
How vanilla bean becomes ice cream
The first step in making genuine vanilla ice cream is harvesting vanilla beans from orchids grown mainly in Madagascar, Indonesia, Mexico, and other countries. Then, they should go through a long period of curing process that will make them develop their special scent before they are used for flavouring the dairy mixture. Good quality of vanilla ice cream usually contains a few little black specks of the real vanilla beans, though many commercial brands add natural or artificial vanilla flavour.
A favourite of generations
While modern flavours of ice cream usually appear in the season, disappear soon and then emerge again, vanilla flavour has been popular for decades. Kids love its sweet taste while grown-ups enjoy its special complexity. What’s more, it is one of the most suitable flavours for parties because it suits different tastes. That is why vanilla is still one of the best-selling flavours of ice cream in many countries of the world.
Many ways to have vanilla ice cream
As for enjoying vanilla ice cream, there are many more options than just putting a scoop of this tasty dessert into the bowl or on the cone. It is the main ingredient in milkshakes, sundaes, ice cream sandwiches, floats, smoothies, and homemade desserts. People often personalise this flavour with toppings like chocolate syrup, caramel, nuts, fresh fruits, cookies, or even sprinkles.
Celebrating the day at home
National Vanilla Ice Cream Day is a perfect excuse for people to enjoy this wonderful dessert with their families and friends. Some people try to prepare some homemade recipes for this flavour, while others visit their favourite ice cream parlours or invent new toppings for their ice cream cones or bowls.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan issued a criminal referral against former Special Counsel Jack Smith on Wednesday for allegedly making “willfully and intentionally false statements” when testifying before Congress last December.
“The Committee on the Judiciary writes to refer strong evidence that appears to show Jack Smith, former Special Counsel, knowingly made false statements during his December 17, 2025 deposition,” Jordan wrote in a letter sent to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith testifies before the House Judiciary Committee at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026.
Mark Schiefelbein/AP
Lawyers for Smith did not immediately respond for comment.
Top Judiciary Democrat Rep. Jamie Raskin slammed the GOP-led criminal referral — calling it “baseless” and “vindictive.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Officials say 76 of the roughly 179 people believed to have been aboard survived, and 53 bodies have been found so far.
Published On 23 Jul 202623 Jul 2026
The expected death toll from Guyana’s ferry disaster over the weekend has climbed to around 100, with the authorities facing mounting pressure to explain how the country’s worst maritime disaster in decades occurred.
Officials said on Tuesday that 76 of the roughly 179 people believed to have been aboard survived, while 53 bodies have been recovered as divers continue searching for the remaining missing.
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Families have gathered in the northern town of Charity, waiting for news of loved ones still unaccounted for.
“I know my baby is in that boat,” said Samantha Ramin, who lost two of her three children.
The body of her young daughter has been found, but her baby boy is still missing.
“I know he is down there. I know he is down there,” she said. “I want to see them find my baby.”
The 87-year-old vessel, MV Barima, left Georgetown for Port Kaituma on Saturday but began taking on water and capsized off the Essequibo coast. Although its manifest listed 133 people, authorities now believe as many as 179 were aboard.
Anger has grown over the length of time it took to rescue survivors, some of whom told reporters they spent hours stranded in the water.
Passengers have also alleged the ferry was dangerously overloaded with people and heavy cargo, including engines, vehicles, fuel containers and commercial goods. One survivor said the boat was more crowded than on any of his previous trips, describing cargo packed tightly below deck.
Anger has grown over the length of time it took to rescue survivors, some of whom told reporters they spent hours stranded in the water [Juan Edghill/Reuters]
Survivors also allege the ferry suffered engine trouble shortly after departure but that the crew attempted repairs at sea rather than turning back, and that concerns about water entering the vessel were dismissed by crew members as routine.
Government officials say the ferry was actually under its capacity limits for both passengers and cargo, but acknowledge that conflicting accounts make it too early to draw firm conclusions. The head of the Maritime Administration Department said a full investigation is needed to establish facts such as how the vessel was loaded and whether supervisory staff acted properly.
Prime Minister Mark Phillips said Tuesday that the government has nothing to hide and pledged that anyone found responsible – including for negligence or criminal wrongdoing – will face legal consequences.
Police have already detained the rescued captain, along with at least one other crew member. Both reportedly tested positive for marijuana.
Asked why such an old vessel remained in service, officials said a US$12.7 million replacement ferry purchased from India was awaiting the completion of a special pier at Port Kaituma. The MV Barima last underwent major repairs in 2024 and had additional maintenance scheduled for October.
Yemen’s Houthis say they have attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea as the US launched its 12th consecutive night of strikes on Iran.
Iranian state media said two people had been killed in the US strikes on Wednesday, and a tanker caught fire in an explosion in a mined route in the Strait of Hormuz.
Ahead of the latest round of strikes, US President Donald Trump had threatened to destroy an Iranian bridge or power plant if Iran attacked a ship in the strait and to “take care of” the Houthis if they blocked the Red Sea.
If confirmed, the Houthi attack would be the first since the Iran-backed group announced a “maritime embargo” against Saudi Arabia.
The Houthis named the tankers as the Encelia and the Layla, though neither their responsibility, nor the attack on the Layla has been confirmed.
The group’s military spokesperson Yahya Saree said they had targeted the ships with drones and missiles for allegedly violating its naval blockade.
Saree added that the Houthis promised to continue their naval operations and would continue “enforcing the ‘siege for a siege’ equation”.
UK Maritime Trade Operation (UKMTO) reported an “unknown projectile” struck a Saudi tankerabout 130km from Al Shuqaiq in Saudi Arabia at 20:00 GMT. The attack caused a fire but no casualties, it said.
British maritime risk management group Vanguard also reported that the Saudi tanker Encelia had been hit.
US Central Command (Centcom) said at 21:30 GMT it had launched strikes at Trump’s direction “to further degrade Iran’s ability to threaten civilian mariners and commercial vessels transiting regional waters”.
The strikes targeted “Iranian military targets including maritime capabilities, missile and drone storage facilities, coastal surveillance sites, and air defense assets,” it said.
Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain soon reported responding to airborne threats, before Iran’s military said they had targeted US assets in all three countries, according to AFP.
Iranian state media reported two people had been killed in US strikes on the country’s south near its border with Iraq.
Meanwhile, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) said the Strait of Hormuz was “completely closed” after an explosion in the channel, Iranian state media reported.
The IRGC said it had stopped three oil tankers from passing through the strait.
One tanker caught fire and two others turned back after attempting to pass through a mined route south of the strait, according to Iranian state media.
It comes after Trump promised earlier on Wednesday to attack an Iranian bridge or power plant if its forces hit ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi later warned of an “eye for an eye” response to attacks on Iran.
On Tuesday, Trump told reporters he would “take care of the Houthis” should they obstruct the Red Sea as they had said.
Few details of the “maritime embargo” were given by the Houthis when it was announced on Monday, but a media official said they were closing the Bab al-Mandab Strait – the Red Sea’s southern gateway – to Saudi vessels.
A White House adviser has accused China’s Moonshot AI of a “large scale” effort to steal the capabilities of top US artificial intelligence (AI) models.
US President Donald Trump’s Science and Technology adviser Michael Kratsios said Moonshot AI carried out the campaign through what is known as distillation – when a weaker AI model extracts answers from a stronger one.
The BBC has contacted Moonshot, the Chinese embassy in Washington, Anthropic, the White House, and Nvidia for comment.
Kratsios said on X that the US government has information that Moonshot AI “distilled” capabilities from Anthropic’s Fable AI for the development of its K3 model.
Kimi K3 gained attention around the world after it was unveiled last week, with many believing it to have narrowed the gap between Western and Chinese AI models. Moonshot said its K3 model is able to rival top US technology.
Moonshot is likely to have also used servers powered by Nvidia’s GB300 Grace Blackwell computing platform, Kratsios said.
Washington restricted the export of Nvidia’s most advanced chips in 2022 over concerns that they could be used by the Chinese military.
Since then, government’s around the world have cracked down on the smuggling of the chips.
Kratsios’ allegations come just a day after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday the US would examine whether Chinese AI models have stolen the capabilities from American rivals.
On Wednesday, Bessent also said that sanctions “will be on the table” when Chinese companies “cross the line” into intellectual property (IP) theft by conducting “industrial-scale distillation attacks”.
“We support open-source AI and the innovation it unlocks. But open source is not open season on American IP,” Bessent said on social media.
The Chinese government has not yet issued a public statement in response to the latest allegations but has previously said that its country’s development of AI was “the result of its own dedication and effort as well as international cooperation”.
The increased scrutiny by the US of Chinese AI companies also comes as Trump is expected to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in September.
Moonshot AI will release Kimi K3 as an open-source model on 27 July, making it the first of its scale that can be freely downloaded and customised by developers and members of the public.
Anthropic urged Congress to penalise the companies behind the alleged attacks and heighten measures to prevent US technology from being stolen.
The White House said in April that it would work more closely with US AI companies to combat “industrial-scale campaigns” by foreign rivals to steal technology.
Kratsios said in a memo at the time that the campaigns were aimed to “systematically undermine American research and development and access proprietary information”.
The lineup for this year’s WNBA All-Star 3-point contest has been a talking point in the sports world since it was announced.
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu was among the most notable players absent from the annual competition.
Ionescu addressed the speculation ahead of Wednesday’s Liberty-Sky matchup, pushing back against reports that she chose not to participate in this weekend’s WNBA 3-point contest in Chicago.
“I can’t decline an offer I never got officially invited to. So, was pretty surprised to see that. Never got invited,” the defending 3-point contest champion told reporters pregame.
Caitlin Clark and Kayla McBride were also among the high-profile stars who reportedly declined invitations to the competition.
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu competing in the Kia WNBA Skills Challenge and WNBA STARRY 3-Point Contest on July 18, 2025, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.(Mike Lawrence/NBAE via Getty Images)
“Whether it’s against Steph Curry or in the W, I always go out and try and beat my record, every single time I’ve gone out,” said Ionescu, who has won the 3-point contest twice, highlighted by her record-setting 37-point performance in 2023.
“I just kind of wanted to set the record straight,” she continued. “Like that was just false, but I’m really excited for the participants in it, and obviously there’s going to be a new winner. So, I’m excited to see who wins.”
“Maybe I’ll do it with Steph again at NBA All-Star and get a really nice official invite,” she said.
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu celebrates after winning the WNBA Starry 3-Point Contest July 18, 2025, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.(A.J. Mast/NBAE via Getty Images)
The confirmed list of 3-point contest participants includes Dallas’ Azzi Fudd, Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard, Golden State’s Janelle Salaün, Portland’s Bridget Carleton, Toronto’s Marina Mabrey and Seattle’s Natisha Hiedeman. Howard and Mabrey are the only players in that group with prior 3-point contest experience at All-Star weekend.
Earlier this week, Ionescu refuted a report that she had opted out of this year’s festivities, commenting “lies” under a since-deleted Bleacher Report Instagram post. McBride also weighed in via social media, saying her agent had texted her about the event in the 48 hours before her Instagram story post, but no formal invitation ever came.
“Posting things like I’m afraid of shooting smoke is weird and if you didn’t hear it from me prob shouldn’t believe it,” McBride wrote. “We should focus on the great shooters in it already!!! Because there’s some killas in there.”
New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu competes in the WNBA STARRY 3-Point Contest during the 2025 WNBA All-Star weekend at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis July 18, 2025.(Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
The House on Wednesday passed a bill that would ban members of Congress from trading individual stocks as well as mandate that voters provide photo identification “as a condition of casting a ballot” by a 232-198 vote.
Thirteen Democrats voted with all Republicans in favor of the bill.
The Stop Insider Trading Act, championed by House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil of Wisconsin, would prohibit members of Congress, their spouses and their dependent children from buying new stocks. The bill would, however, allow lawmakers to keep the stocks they already own.
“This is the first congressional stock trading ban to receive a vote on the floor of the House,” Steil said on the floor. “If you want to day trade, there is a place for that on Wall Street.”
Administration Committee ranking Democrat Joe Morelle of New York called the bill a “sham” because it “allows members of Congress to continue owning and trading stocks.”
Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez of New Mexico, the chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus, told ABC News that the bill wouldn’t prevent a member from selling stock they already hold.
Representative Teresa Leger Fernandez, a Democrat from New Mexico, wears a “Release the Files” badge during an event with survivors of deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring hosted by the Democratic Women’s Caucus ahead of the State of the Union address on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. President Donald Trump needs his State of the Union address Tuesday to assuage voters anxious about the economy, foreign policy and even more tariff turmoil. Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Bloomberg via Getty Images
“It doesn’t ban stock trading because you could still acquire stocks, sell stocks, use information that you have that you garner here in Congress to make a profit. And stock trading involves purchase and sales, and it does not prohibit sales,” she said.
Some Democrats opposed the bill in part because they contend it doesn’t go far enough to rein in stock trading for the executive branch, including the president and vice president.
“The biggest glaring absence is that the president and vice president can continue to stock trade,” Leger Fernandez said.
President Donald Trump’s recent financial disclosure report shows his investment advisers made more than 21,000 trades on his behalf last year, many involving companies with business before, or regulated by, his administration.
Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas also expressed regret that GOP leadership made the vote a “partisan exercise” by attaching voter ID to the ban and agreed with Democrats who argue the scope of legislation should address all three branches of government.
“It should apply to everybody. That was my preference, and always had been,” Roy said. “We stuck on focusing on Congress because you know, get your own house in order, and then you know you can kind of start pointing fingers elsewhere, but I would like it to apply to everybody in the executive branch, judiciary branch, and here.”
Other Democrats opposed the bill because it combined the stock ban bill with the voter ID provision as Trump continues to push Republicans in both chambers to pass the SAVE America Act, which Democrats oppose because they say it would disenfranchise some voters.
Online stock trading on mobile.
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According to the bill text, that provision requires voters to show a valid physical photo identification when casting a ballot for federal office. Mail-in and absentee voters can attach a photocopy of their ID to their ballot. If an eligible voter forgets to bring their ID to vote, they can cast a provisional ballot.
“They’ve added provisions that have absolutely nothing to do with stock trading and everything to do with their obsession, their obsession with the 2020 election,” Morelle said of the voter ID provision.
Leger Fernandez said the bill amounted to a “Trojan Horse” for the Save America Act.
Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez of New York called it a “bait-and-switch” bill.
“They attached these voter suppression provisions specifically because they knew it would kill a stock trading ban. I proudly voted no because we are not going to sabotage mail-in voting in this country, and we’re not going to fall for, kind of, their bait-and-switch tactic here.”
Because of the voter ID language in the bill, the bill faces a rocky path in the Senate. Trump has pushed Republicans in the upper chamber to eliminate or modify the filibuster to pass his election legislation, though Majority Leader John Thune has repeatedly said Republicans don’t have the votes to do that.
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