Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora recently opened up about why he skipped a trip to the Trump White House after leading his team to the 2018 World Series title.
During an interview on "The Mayor's Office" podcast on Wednesday, Cora admitted that he skipped out on meeting President Trump because he wanted to prioritize his home country of Puerto Rico. When the Red Sox visited the White House in May 2019, Puerto Rico was still recovering from the destruction of Hurricane Maria in 2017, and Cora wasn't satisfied with the federal government's response.
"One of the things that — it's not that I regret, but I think I should've been more clear — it was a visit to the White House," Cora said. "I have nothing against the President at that moment. It was Donald Trump at that moment, President Trump, but I felt me celebrating something at that stage, while [Puerto Ricans] were still suffering, it was bad. I didn't feel comfortable doing it."
Cora says he would have felt "awkward" celebrating at the White House, given the state of his country at the time.
"We are part of the United States," he continued. "What they do for us is amazing — the funding, all of that — but there was still work to do. And I felt very awkward, like, 'let's celebrate this at the White House' right while a lot of people suffered here. People took it like politics. No. My thing is sports and my family, right? I regret because I wasn't clear about it."
In May 2019, Cora told reporters the U.S. government has done "some things back home that are great," but added that "we still have a long ways to go."
"I'd rather not go. And, you know, just be consistent with everything," Cora said then of skipping the White House visit.
Trump himself said his response to the hurricane was an "incredible success" in September 2018 while giving remarks at the Oval Office.
"I think Puerto Rico was incredibly successful," Trump said. "The job that FEMA and law enforcement and everybody did, working along with the governor in Puerto Rico, I think was tremendous. I think that Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success."
Hurricanes Irma and Maria struck the island in September 2017, the latter of which had its official death toll increased in August 2018 from initially 64 people dead to 2,975.
The updated number came via an independent investigation ordered by the local government, prompting Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello to raise the official figure.
The Trump administration's efforts in Puerto Rico received widespread criticism. But after visiting the island in September 2017, the president said that Puerto Ricans were fortunate that the storm did not yield a catastrophe akin to the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Katrina along the Gulf Coast in 2005.
Vince McMahon, who co-founded and previously served as the CEO of WWE, and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have reached a settlement following a yearslong probe over undisclosed settlements.
The federal investigation was launched to determine whether McMahon disclosed to the company's board and others that he signed two settlement agreements worth more than $10 million with two women in order for them not to reveal potential claims against himself and WWE.
The SEC said McMahon, without admitting or denying its findings, agreed to cease and desist from violating certain provisions, pay a $400,000 civil penalty and reimburse WWE approximately $1.3 million.
McMahon released a statement on Friday, arguing the situation was the result of "minor accounting errors."
"The case is closed. Today ends nearly three years of investigation by different governmental agencies. There has been a great deal of speculation about what exactly the government was investigating and what the outcome would be. As today's resolution shows, much of that speculation was misguided and misleading," the statement read. "In the end, there was never anything more to this than minor accounting errors with regard to some personal payments that I made several years ago while I was CEO of WWE. I'm thrilled that I can now put all this behind me."
SEC officials on Friday said one agreement was signed in 2019 and the other in 2022. One agreement required McMahon to pay a former employee $3 million in exchange for the former worker's agreement to not disclose her relationship with McMahon and her release of potential claims against WWE and McMahon.
The other agreement obligated McMahon to pay a former WWE independent contractor $7.5 million in exchange for the independent contractor's agreement to not disclose her allegations against McMahon and her release of potential claims against WWE and McMahon, per the SEC.
McMahon stepped down from his role as chairman and CEO of the popular professional wrestling promotion in 2022, pending the results of an internal investigation which stemmed from allegations of hush-money agreements. His daughter Stephanie McMahon assumed her father's leadership duties.
A few weeks after stepping down, McMahon announced his intentions to retire from WWE. He returned as executive chairman in 2023, but resigned from TKO — a company that was the result of a merger between the WWE and Zuffa, UFC's parent company — in 2024. McMahon's resignation came after a former employee filed a federal lawsuit accusing him and another former executive of serious sexual misconduct.
McMahon maintained he committed no wrongdoing following the filing of the lawsuit.
By McMahon not disclosing the agreements to WWE's board, legal department, accountants, financial reporting personnel or auditors, it circumvented the company's system of internal accounting controls and caused material misstatements in its 2018 and 2021 financial statements, the commission said.
The SEC's order found that, because the payments required by the 2019 and 2022 agreements were not recorded, WWE overstated its 2018 net income by approximately 8% and its 2021 net income by about 1.7%.
Once WWE learned of the settlement agreements, it issued a restatement of its financial statements in August 2022.
"Company executives cannot enter into material agreements on behalf of the company they serve and withhold that information from the company's control functions and auditor," Thomas P. Smith Jr., associate regional director in the New York Regional Office, said in a statement.
Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick is one of the thousands in Los Angeles whose home did not survive the wildfires that have ravaged the area this week.
Redick was in Dallas for a game when he learned of the fires and that his family had evacuated.
Speaking with the media Friday, a day after a Lakers game at Crypto.com Arena was postponed, he opened up about his experience returning to Palisades and what he saw.
"I'm good. My wife got out really early. She was actually on the other side and came outside, saw the fire, was with some people, and were headed to the airport. … Got the kids from school. They're safe. All that mattered," he said.
"Went to the hotel, woke up at 7, headed up to Palisades. I had to see it for myself. I was not prepared for what I saw. It's complete devastation and destruction. I had to go a different way to the house but went through most of the village, and it's all gone. I don't think you can ever prepare yourself for something like that."
"We were renting for the year to try to figure out where to be long-term, and everything we own that was of importance to us — almost 20 years of being together and 10 years of parenting — was in that house," an emotional Redick said. "There's certain things you can't replace. They'll never be replaced.
"The material stuff is whatever. My family and I, we're processing the self side, the individual side of losing your home. You don't ever want to wish that on anybody. It's an awful feeling to lose your home. … Not sure I've wept or wailed like that in several years.
Monday night's Vikings-Rams NFL playoff game was moved from Inglewood to Arizona because of the fires that have claimed at least 10 lives, destroyed over 10,000 buildings and burned roughly 30,000 acres.
The Arizona Cardinals are reportedly embarking on a mission to rescue their division rivals from the California wildfires.
The franchise is sending two of its team planes to Los Angeles to evacuate LA Rams players, their families, team staffers and pets and fly them to Arizona, according to ESPN.
Six dogs and two cats will join the human passengers.
The Cardinals are also offering their home field, State Farm Stadium, to the Rams for their playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings as fires continue to ravage Southern California. The Rams will also be using the Cardinals’ training complex in Tempe.
The Rams considered staying another night, but Tony Pastoors, the Rams' VP of football & business administration, said "hope is not a strategy," according to the team.
The NFL announced Thursday that the game will be moved to Arizona.
Several wildfires, including the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire, have devastated communities in the Los Angeles area, including Pacific Palisades and Altadena. The fires have burned nearly 30,000 acres during a Santa Ana wind event, with at least 130,000 people in the area under evacuation orders.
At least five people have been killed in the fires, and more than 1,000 buildings have been destroyed.
The Rams-Vikings game was moved "in the interest of public safety," the NFL said in a statement. "The decision was made in consultation with public officials, the participating clubs and the NFLPA."
The game kicks off at 8 p.m. ET Monday.
The Rams had a scheduled day off Wednesday. The Los Angeles Chargers, who share SoFi Stadium and head to Houston for a wild-card game Saturday, limited players’ time outside during practice due to poor air quality.
State Farm Stadium has played a similar role in the past. During the COVID season in 2020, the 49ers played three "home" games there. Prior to that, the Miami Dolphins and San Diego Chargers played in Tempe, Arizona, at Sun Devil Stadium Oct. 27, 2003, due to wildfires in San Diego.
Iowa University's women's basketball team and head coach Jan Jensen are going through their first season without star Caitlin Clark since 2019.
The Hawkeyes are off to a 12-4 start and are ranked 23rd in the nation, but they've struggled with conference play in the first year of the newly-expanded Big 10, going just 2-3.
Jensen addressed the team's "lack of senior leadership" to reporters after a loss to Illinois on Thursday — with the Hawkeyes having lost back-to-back conference games for the first time since Clark's freshman season — citing the youth of the current roster.
"I can't afford to compare what has happened in the past, because these guys are giving me a lot and they're still young, and I have to develop a little bit of senior leadership or upperclassman leadership, because that is what we're missing," Jensen said.
In four seasons at Iowa, Clark broke the NCAA's all-time scoring record among both men's and women's players, leading the team to the NCAA championship game twice. She was also a consensus National Player of the Year as a junior and senior.
Clark was selected with the No. 1 pick in last year's WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever after her Iowa career.
As a WNBA rookie in 2024, Clark set records for the most points and 3-pointers by a rookie in league history, while also becoming the first rookie to record a triple-double, a feat she accomplished twice. Her 337 assists not only were the most by a rookie, they were the most by any player ever in a single season.
The Iowa women's basketball team announced it will have a ceremony to retire Clark's jersey on Feb. 2.
Clark's No. 22, which she wears for the Fever, will hang from the rafters at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City after a ceremony honoring the program's most accomplished player.
Clark is expected to be in attendance, and the event will be broadcast on FOX.
Clark's jersey retirement will come just two months after Time magazine named her the publication's Athlete of the Year. The choice prompted praise, but also criticism from some, including Washington Mystics owner Sheila Johnson, who recently wondered in a CNN interview why Clark was tapped for the honor and not the entire WNBA. Johnson suggested it had to do with Clark's race.
The NFL announced it will donate $5 million for wildfire relief efforts as Southern California continues to battle raging wildfires.
"Led by individual contributions from clubs and ownership groups from the Los Angeles Chargers, Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, Houston Texans and NFL Foundation, these funds will deliver vital resources to local organizations supporting those affected by the wildfires," the NFL said in a statement Friday.
"We are heartbroken over the devastating losses experienced by so many in the Los Angeles area and inspired by the heroism of first reponders and residents who have supported their neighbors," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said.
More than 10,000 buildings have been destroyed by fire as of Friday morning, officials confirmed. Authorities also confirmed that the Palisades Fire, Eaton Fire, Kenneth Fire, Hurst Fire and Lidia Fire torched more than 27,000 acres across the Los Angeles area.
The Vikings and the Wilf Family Foundation announced a $1 million donation for relief efforts. Brothers Zygi and Mark Wilf and cousin Leonard Wilf own the Vikings.
"The Vikings and the Wilf Family Foundations are providing a $1 million contribution to support on-the-ground relief efforts in communities affected by the California wildfires," the Vikings' statement said.
Also Friday, the Houston Texans confirmed a $1 million contribution to "provide support and resources to those who have been impacted by the wildfires."
SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, was originally scheduled to host Monday's NFC wild-card round game between the Rams and Vikings. But the NFL moved the game to State Farm Stadium, the home of the Arizona Cardinals, as wildfires continue to sweep through the region.
On Thursday, a fire broke out just miles from the Rams' training complex in Woodland Hills, California, and smoke was visible from the team's practice field, ESPN reported. The Rams and Chargers are scheduled to play playoff games this weekend, and both teams practiced outdoors Thursday. Some Chargers players elected to wear masks during the practice.
On Friday afternoon, ESPN reported the Cardinals sent one of their Boeing 777 planes to Los Angeles to transport Rams players, staff, their families and some pets to Arizona. The Cardinals are also making their practice complex available to the Rams, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Chargers said the franchise will provide $200,000 in targeted funding to the American Red Cross, LA Fire Department Foundation, Team Rubicon and pet rescue organizations sheltering animals displaced due to the wildfires.
FOX Corporation has donated $1 million to the American Red Cross' California Wildfire relief efforts. The donation will help the agencyprovide safe shelter, hot meals, emotional support and resources to aid in recovery in the region.
FOX Corporation, which continues to be an annual Disaster Giving Program partner, is encouraging viewers to contribute to help families affected by the devastating wildfires. To donate, visit GO.FOX/REDCROSS
A list of available shelters compiled by the American Red Cross in Los Angeles can be found here.
Lakers coach JJ Redick says he hopes Saturday's game against the Spurs will be played as scheduled, giving the people of Los Angeles 'hope' in the wake of recent wildfires.
Police in Louisiana have issued an arrest warrant for LSU receiver and NFL Draft prospect Kyren Lacy for negligent homicide after police allege he fled a deadly car crash last month.
Louisiana State Police said in a press release issued Friday that Lacy, 24, was driving "recklessly" and speeding past other cars while driving on the highway Dec. 17.
According to police, Lacy was "crossing the centerline and entering the northbound lane while in a designated No-Passing Zone" when a driver of a pickup truck in the northbound lane swerved to avoid a head-on collision with Lacy.
The actions of the pickup truck caused the driver of the vehicle immediately behind it, a Kia Cadenza, to swerve to avoid colliding with Lacy’s car, but the driver instead collided head-on with another vehicle in the southbound lane.
A passenger in the Kia Cadenza identified as 78-year-old Herman Hall was transported to a hospital before eventually dying, police said.
In addition to being wanted for negligent homicide, Lacy is facing a felony hit-and-run charge after police say he "drove around the crash scene and fled" without stopping to render aid or call 911. He also allegedly failed to notify law enforcement about his involvement.
Lacy’s warrant also includes a charge of reckless operation of a vehicle. According to Louisiana State Police, the former LSU star has since been in contact with law enforcement.
Lacy transferred to LSU in 2022. This season, he caught 58 passes for 866 yards and nine touchdowns. He did not play in LSU's win over Baylor in the Texas Bowl Dec. 31.
Lacy declared for the 2025 NFL Draft just two days after the crash.
"LSU has truly made a big impact on my life on and off the field, these past 3 years. Playing in Death Valley, for the best fans in the country, was an experience I will never forget. Not too many people get to fulfill a dream like this. I am forever grateful for it," Lacy wrote in his announcement.
"I want to express my appreciation to all my coaches, support staff, and trainers for helping develop me as a football player, but most importantly as a person. Although, we didn't accomplish our goal of winning a national championship, I promise to take all of those life lessons with me in the next chapter of my life."
LSU did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
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