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California wildfires prompt House Republican talks on conditioning aid: 'A pound of flesh'

As wildfires rage in California, Republicans in Washington have begun discussing whether to condition federal aid on changes to policies they blame for the blazes.

"It’s part of the discussion right now," Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Wis., told Fox News Digital. "People are unwilling to just stroke a check for something that, quite honestly, they still have a lot of questions. And obviously, the fires are still burning, so we don’t even know what the total is going to be at the end of the day."

The Los Angeles area has been grappling with multiple deadly wildfires in recent days, with nearly 100,000 Californians under evacuation orders.

Officials are far from knowing what the final damage estimates will be, as well as how much additional funding will need to be approved by Congress.

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But a broad cross-section of Republicans are already blaming the Democratic stronghold state’s policies and management for exacerbating the issue.

"I think there’s going to be a lot of questions raised about it, but we also want to work cooperatively with, you know, everybody on both sides of the aisle," House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., said when asked about conditioning aid. "But I think that’s just the reality. There’s gonna be some questions we’ll be asking."

Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee’s subcommittee on housing and insurance, said it was too early to be discussing possible specific conditions but criticized California’s home insurance policies.

"I think there’s real issues… For far too long, California state laws have been pushing out insurers from that state, making it even harder to get home insurance," Flood told Fox News Digital. 

POWER GRID FAULTS SURGED RIGHT BEFORE LOS ANGELES WILDFIRES BEGAN: EXPERT

"I think California’s got to do a couple of things. They have to demonstrate that they are going to create an environment where home insurance, housing insurance, is reflected in the risk, that they understand the risk, and they are pricing accordingly. And then, as it relates to forestry management, I think there’s a lot of members of Congress who will wanna say, ‘How did this happen? What kind of policies led to this?’"

Meanwhile, members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, who typically are adamant about steep cuts to offset any supplemental government spending, are no different on California’s fires.

"It’s got to be more than paid for. They’ve got to own it," Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., told reporters. "California has never been exactly the most conservative state in terms of spending. We’ve got to get a pound of flesh on any dollar spent on California, in my opinion."

Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., who also sits on the House Appropriations Committee, told Fox News Digital, "Why would we continue to fund the same policies that caused the problem? I mean, seriously, why would you do that?"

California Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., did not explicitly rule out conditioning aid but said people needed help as soon as possible.

"California needs to change the way it approaches issues of water, forest management, and not to mention a lot of other things. I think that absolutely we need to demand those changes take place. At the same time, folks who are suffering, who have lost everything, lost their homes, lost their communities, we need to get them help, and we need to get them help… as soon as possible, and we shouldn’t let anything stand in the way," he said.

Not all Republicans are on board, however. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., whose own home state has seen a fair share of natural disasters, told Huffington Post, "I think we ought to do aid the way we do everybody else."

But the idea has gained traction with the highest levels of GOP leadership — including Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who first floated conditional disaster aid to reporters Monday.

"It appears to us that state and local leaders were derelict in their duty. And in many respects, and that's something that has to be factored in," Johnson said. "I think there should probably be conditions on that aid. That's my personal view. We'll see what the consensus is."

Democrats, meanwhile, have vehemently attacked the idea.

"Conditioning aid for suffering people who have paid beyond their fair share in federal taxes is uniquely reprehensible, even for my colleagues across the aisle," Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., wrote on X.

Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus, told reporters during a press conference on Tuesday. "I just want to say it is outrageous for Speaker Johnson to try to tie conditions onto this disaster relief or to tie disaster aid to unrelated concepts like the debt ceiling. We should not be leveraging the pain and suffering of our fellow Americans to try to force through policy changes."

Gold Star families devastated by Biden's botched Afghanistan withdrawal endorse Hegseth for SecDef

Families who lost loved ones during the disastrous 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan are throwing their support behind Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth.

Hegseth, who Trump tapped to head the Defense Department, underwent questioning from the Senate Armed Services Committee during his confirmation hearing on Tuesday, where he faced over four hours of questioning from Republican and Democratic lawmakers.

The Abbey Gate Coalition, a group of the parents and families of those who tragically lost their lives in a terrorist attack after President Biden withdrew troops from Afghanistan, penned a letter to senators on Tuesday urging them to confirm President-elect Trump's defense nominee and doubling down on their criticism of the current administration's handling of the deadly event.

"We have been sitting by watching the current administration do nothing but attempt to take victory laps and thumb their noses at the sacrifice that our children made on that fateful day," the letter reads. "They have had no interest in giving us any of those answers that we seek, and have attempted to put Afghanistan in the rear view mirror as was further evidenced yesterday in President Biden's final address on his foreign affairs and his supposed successes.

DEM SENATOR'S ‘LIES AND STUPIDITY’ AT HEGSETH HEARING ROASTED ON SOCIAL MEDIA: ‘CLOWN SHOW’

The coalition has been critical of the Biden administration since the withdrawal, writing in the letter that they have been "stonewalled" by his administration.

GOP SENATOR FLIPS SCRIPT ON DEMS FOR ‘HYPOCRITICAL’ GRILLING OF HEGSETH: ‘SO RIDICULOUS’

"We have been stonewalled at every turn and only given ‘bread-crumbs’ to attempt to make us just go away! We feel that there has been a complete coverup at the department of Defense with the current Secretary of Defense leading the way," the coalition wrote.

The families said that the process for accountability for Afghanistan begins with the confirmation of Hegseth to lead the defense department.

"We ask that you please hear our words and feel the pain that we do, knowing that it was avoidable in respect to what happened to our children," the letter reads.

HARRIS LEAVES OUT DEADLY BOTCHED AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL IN SOARING PRO-MILITARY DNC SPEECH

The Biden administration’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan led to the deaths of 13 U.S. service members defending the Kabul airport during the operation, while hundreds of Americans and tens of thousands of Afghan allies were left in the country under Taliban rule. Conservative critics, such as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said the withdrawal paved the way for adversaries such as Russia to invade Ukraine. 

The Taliban claimed control of Afghanistan following the withdrawal. 

GOLD STAR DAD SAYS BIDEN-HARRIS 'DENIED' SON'S SERVICE AS FALLEN AFGHANISTAN SOLDIERS HONORED IN CALIFORNIA

The families who lost loved ones during the botched withdrawal have previously and repeatedly slammed Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris over their deaths, including launching a scathing defense attack against Harris — when she was running for president – after the anniversary of the withdrawal last year. Parents and other loved ones claimed that the "administration killed my son" and that they "have not seen any support from you or your administration."

Trump, meanwhile, has repeatedly remembered the service members who died, and invited their families to the RNC in Milwaukee in July. 

TRUMP SUPPORTERS, GOLD STAR FAMILIES FLOOD HARRIS' X ACCOUNT AFTER ARLINGTON ATTACK: ADMIN 'KILLED MY SON'

"Look at our faces. Look at our pain, and our heartbreak. And look at our rage. [The Afghanistan withdrawal] was not an extraordinary success," said Cheryl Juels, the aunt of Marine Sgt. Nicole Gee, at the RNC. "Joe Biden owes the men and women who served in Afghanistan a debt of gratitude, and an apology."

​​"While Joe Biden has refused to recognize their sacrifice, Donald Trump spent six hours in Bedminster with us," said the mother-in-law of Nicole Gee at the RNC. "He allowed us to grieve, he allowed us to remember our heroes. Donald Trump knew all of our children’s names, he knew their stories, and he spoke to us in a way that made us feel understood, like he knew our kids."

Former Cowboys star Jason Witten floated as potential head coach replacement following Mike McCarthy's exit

The Dallas Cowboys' search for the franchise's next head coach is underway. 

On Monday, longtime Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones confirmed that the organization and coach Mike McCarthy mutually agreed to part ways. "Prior to reaching the point of contract negotiations, though, it became mutually clear that it would be better for each of us to head in a different direction. I thank Mike and wish him, his wife Jessica and their family the best. They have been a wonderful part of our community here," Jones said in the statement obtained by ESPN. 

After news of McCarthy's departure surfaced, speculation about his possible replacement ensued. During pregame coverage of Monday's wild-card round game between the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings, ESPN reported that a former Cowboys star tight end was under consideration for the head coaching position.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

"They can and will conduct a search here to try and find the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys," Adam Schefter said during ESPN's "Monday Night Countdown" broadcast.

NFL GREAT TROY AIKMAN SLAMS COWBOYS OVER MIKE MCCARTHY DEPARTURE

"Obviously it’s new, it’s just beginning. We’ll see what that brings them. A lot of names floating around out there. I think at some point in time they could have some level in the Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. Potentially even Jason Witten, an all-time franchise great. But this is very early on. Very preliminary. And we’ll see ultimately where Jerry Jones goes with his search. But the Cowboys are in the market for a new head coach."

Witten was drafted by the Cowboys in the third round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He spent all but one of his NFL seasons with the franchise. Witten initially retired after the 2017 season, and spent some time in the ESPN broadcast booth. But he ultimately returned to the Cowboys in 2019.

He remains the franchise's all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards. Witten last appeared in an NFL game with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2020.

Since parting ways with McCarthy, another former Cowboys star player has also been linked to the coaching vacancy – Deion Sanders.

Sanders, who won a Super Bowl with the Cowboys during his five-year stint with the franchise, is currently the head football coach at Colorado.

If Sanders does ultimately land in the Dallas-Forth Worth Metroplex, his arrival would fall in line with one of Jones' recent coaching hires. Jason Garrett was the Cowboys' head coach from 2010-19. He was primarily Troy Aikman's backup quarterback from 1993-99.

The Cowboys are looking to reset after finishing this past regular season with a 7-10 record. Starting quarterback Dak Prescott missed the final nine games due to a hamstring injury.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

OpenAI launches ‘Tasks’ to schedule reminders and to-do lists within ChatGPT

ChatGPT users have something new to celebrate. The popular chatbot can now handle reminders and to-do lists for you. OpenAI announced on Tuesday the launch of a new feature called ‘Tasks’, available to paid subscribers on Plus, Team, and Pro […]

The post OpenAI launches ‘Tasks’ to schedule reminders and to-do lists within ChatGPT first appeared on Tech Startups.

North Korea linked to crypto heists of over $650 million in 2024 alone

Illustration of a digital coin on fire.
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Hackers in North Korea stole a total of $659 million in crypto across several heists in 2024, according to a joint statement issued today by the US, Japan, and South Korea. The report specified five such incidents, like the $235 million theft from the Indian crypto exchange WazirX that is being newly attributed to the Lazarus Group. That organization is estimated to have stolen billions across previous attacks over the last decade, including $625 million stolen from Axie Infinity in 2022.

Of the 2024 incidents, Japan’s DMM Bitcoin suffered the biggest loss, with $308 million stolen, ultimately resulting in the exchange’s closure.

As recently as September 2024, the United States government observed aggressive targeting of the cryptocurrency industry by the DPRK with well-disguised social engineering attacks that ultimately deploy malware, such as TraderTraitor, AppleJeus and others. The Republic of Korea and Japan have observed similar trends and tactics used by the DPRK.

A warning issued by the FBI last September noted that their methods to gain access for delivering these payloads include “individualized fake scenarios,” such as enticing victims with prospective jobs and business opportunities. All three countries advised businesses in the industry to check out the latest warning to reduce their risk of “inadvertently hiring DPRK IT workers,” as described in this recent report by CoinDesk.

They’ve also used long-time common phishing tactics against employees of crypto firms, such as convincing impersonations of trusted contacts or prominent people of interest in related industries, with realistic photos and information likely lifted from public social media accounts of known connections.

'Back in Action' director recounts finishing the Netflix movie amid Jamie Foxx's sudden illness: 'A bit of a miracle'

Cameron Diaz standing next to Jamie Foxx on a movie set
Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx on the set of "Back in Action."

John Wilson/Netflix

  • Jamie Foxx suffered a stroke in April 2023 while in production on his Netflix movie "Back in Action."
  • Director Seth Gordon recounts how he continued making the movie while Foxx recovered.
  • "Back in Action," starring Foxx and Cameron Diaz, is available Friday on Netflix.

Making a movie is never an easy or predictable process. But veteran writer-director Seth Gordon could only come up with one word to describe the challenges it took to make his Netflix movie "Back in Action": "special."

Gordon was prepping for a day of shooting in Atlanta on April 12, 2023, when he received a call no director ever wants: one of his stars wouldn't be reporting to work that day. But it got worse. The star, Jamie Foxx, had collapsed the day before and was in the hospital.

"We didn't know anything," Gordon told Business Insider via Zoom from Berlin. "No details. But we simply wanted to make sure he was OK as best we could. We put that priority first."

"Back in Action" was being billed as an action comedy about two CIA spies who have gone into hiding to start a family. With star power in Foxx and Cameron Diaz, who returned to acting for her first role in eight years, it had a lot of hype. Now, it would be known as the movie Foxx was making when he mysteriously collapsed.

It would take a months before the public would hear from Foxx again, as speculation ran rampant about what had afflicted the star. Revealing the cause of his mysterious illness would take longer. In his Netflix standup special "Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was...", released in December 2024, Foxx said he suffered a brain bleed that led to a stroke that rendered him unconscious for weeks.

During that time, Gordon and the producers of "Back in Action" scrambled to continue making the movie, holding out hope that Foxx would one day return to finish it.

Gordon resumed filming with Foxx body doubles, then rewrote some scenes

Jamie Foxx at the AAFCA Special Achievement Awards luncheon on Sunday, March 3, 2024, in Los Angeles.
Jamie Foxx at the AAFCA Special Achievement Awards luncheon on Sunday, March 3, 2024, in Los Angeles.

Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

After the shock of Foxx's hospitalization wore off, Gordon had to figure out what to do with a movie that was already deep in production. A key action sequence was set to be shot the week Foxx fell ill.

Gordon said he wasn't panicked.

"From doing documentaries, I'm really used to having no idea what is actually going to happen," said Gordon, who, before making comedies like "Four Christmases" and "Horrible Bosses," made the beloved documentary "The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters."

"You do your best to guess and your best to plan and then you react to reality as it unfolds. So maybe my stomach is a little more used to that uncertainty than it should be."

With locations already locked and the rest of the cast and crew ready to go, Gordon powered through trying to shoot an exterior fight sequence sans Foxx.

"We shot part of it, what we could shoot without Jamie, which was limited," said Gordon. The shoot made headlines as pictures of Foxx's body double doing the scene alongside Diaz spread across the internet.

At that point, Gordon said he was at a loss for what would be the right way to proceed. Production was halted until he could get a better idea of Foxx's condition.

During the months-long downtime, Gordon said he began editing the movie and realized that some of the scenes they had yet to shoot were unnecessary.

"I basically reconceived a couple scenes," he said.

Now, all Gordon needed was for Foxx to get better.

Gordon never considered recasting Foxx, who finally returned to set cracking jokes

Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz in "Back in Action."
Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz in "Back in Action."

John Wilson / Netflix

Despite knowing very little about Foxx's condition, Gordon said there was never a conversation to recast the Oscar winner.

"There's no movie without him, honestly," Gordon said. "It really became putting all our eggs in the basket of praying that he got better."

Finally, all anxieties were laid to rest when Foxx showed up to see a rough assembly of some scenes in the fall of 2023.

"He was 100%," Gordon said, recalling his shock when Foxx strolled into the editing bay like he hadn't been fighting for his life mere months earlier.

"In classic Jamie style he was smooth, was cracking jokes, holding court, he was hilarious, as usual," Gordon said of their meeting.

Gordon showed Foxx the thrilling plane crash sequence that opens the movie.

"He got really excited about what he saw," he said.

The star's return was a huge boost for production morale. Then word came that filming could resume in January 2024.

"We were doing backflips and just hoping everything would remain OK," Gordon said. "Jamie went through a pretty severe thing, and the last thing in the world we would want to have happen is the stress from shooting to cause something."

Gordon thinks Foxx's recovery is a miracle, and on-set spontaneity led to even better scenes

Jamie Foxx holding a gas pump on fire
Jamie Foxx in "Back in Action."

Netflix

With the movie back on, Gordon shot the remaining scenes as well as some new ones showcasing the dynamic between spy parents Matt (Foxx) and Emily (Diaz) and their daughter Alice (McKenna Roberts), which Gordon devised during the pause in production.

In one scene, after Matt and Emily drop their kids off at school, Emily uses binoculars to spy on Alice and a boy. Matt snatches the binoculars so he can see. Then Gordon came up with an idea between takes.

"At the very last minute, I asked props if they had another pair of binoculars," he said. "I wrote it for one pair, but I thought it would be hilarious if she all of a sudden had a second pair."

They shot the next take on the fly, with Emily suddenly looking through a new pair of binoculars as Matt looks with the ones he originally took from her.

Gordon said the bit got a great reaction when they test-screened the movie. And it all came from the spontaneity created by the director's desire to be mindful of Foxx's health by keeping his workload light and not doing too many takes.

"Making movies is hard and those days can be long, so what I was trying to do was keep everything with him as brief as possible for him," Gordon said.

Looking back, Gordon is still amazed by Foxx's recovery.

"He's a bit of a miracle."

Read the original article on Business Insider

Meta could make performance-based job cuts an annual practice, leaked memo suggests

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Alex Wong via Getty Images

  • Meta may plan for annual performance-based job cuts to boost employee performance standards.
  • The strategy aims to increase non-regrettable attrition and remove the lowest performers.
  • Affected employees will still receive bonuses and stock vesting despite the layoffs.

Meta's performance-based job cuts could become an annual occurrence, according to an internal FAQ document viewed by Business Insider.

The document, shared with employees by Hillary Champion, Meta's director of people development growth programs, directly addresses whether Meta's upcoming performance-related layoffs will happen every year.

"We are committed to a culture of high performance and are trying to raise the bar by increasing our annual non-regrettable attrition and moving faster to move our lowest performers out," Champion's memo says. "We may use future performance cycles to do that."

The development comes amid an already intense review process designed to cut about 5% of Meta's workforce deemed to be its lowest performers. These cuts are set to be finalized by February 10 for US-based employees, with some international notifications occurring later.

The FAQ also reassures employees that location will not influence their ratings or termination risk and confirms that anyone impacted by the performance reviews will still receive their February 15, 2025 vesting, any due dividends, and bonuses if any are eligible.

Do you work at Meta? Contact BI reporters from a nonwork email and device at jmann@businessinsider.com and pdixit@businessinsider.com.
You can also reach them via Signal at jyotimann.11 and +1408-905-9124.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Five questions Hegseth dodged at his Defense Department confirmation hearing

Pete Hegseth, President-elect Trump's pick for secretary of Defense, dodged several questions during his often contentious Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday.

The big picture: Republicans' narrow Senate majority means they can only lose a handful of votes, and Democrats used the hearing to air Hegseth's allegations of sexual misconduct, financial mismanagement and excessive drinking and question how far he would go on Trump's behalf.


  • The former Fox News host and U.S. Army veteran, who some national security officials have cautioned may not have enough experience, traversed a tumultuous path to Tuesday's hearing.
  • He's blamed a "smear campaign" for threatening to derail his nomination but has solidified support from key members of the GOP.

Here are some of the questions Hegseth dodged during his hearing:

Will he resign if he drinks?

Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) pressed Hegseth on accusations of excessive drinking, pointing to his vow not drink on the job if confirmed.

  • He said he "absolutely" made that promise to Republican lawmakers.

Yes, but: Hegseth did not answer whether he would resign if he does drink, instead saying, "I've made this commitment on behalf of the men and women I'm serving because it's the most important deployment of my life."

Should domestic violence be disqualifying?

As part of a fiery exchange with Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Hegseth would not say whether violence against a spouse should be disqualifying for a secretary of Defense.

He repeatedly told Kaine he "absolutely" had never committed physical violence against any of his three wives.

  • He called Kaine's question "a hypothetical."

Would he use the military against Americans?

Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) pressed Hegseth on whether he'd support using the U.S. military against American citizens — and Hegseth's answer seemed inconclusive.

  • "If Donald Trump asked you to use the 82nd Airborne in law enforcement roles in Washington, D.C., would you ... convince him otherwise?" she asked.
  • "I'm not going to get ahead of conversations I would have with the president. However, there are laws and processes inside our Constitution that would be followed," Hegseth replied.

Zoom out: As part of Hirono's questioning, Hegseth did not directly answer whether he'd approve of shooting protesters in the legs, in reference to the suggestion former defense secretary Mark Esper said Trump gave him in 2020.

  • "Senator, I was in the Washington, D.C., National Guard unit that was in Lafayette Square during those events," Hegseth replied, "holding a riot shield on behalf of my country."

Would he seize Greenland by force?

Hegseth sidestepped another inquiry from Hirono, who asked whether he would comply with an order to claim Greenland or the Panama Canal by force, as Trump has threatened.

What he's saying: Hegseth applauded Trump for "never strategically tipping his hand" in response to Hirono's question, adding he would not provide details in "this public forum."

  • "That sounds to me like that you would contemplate carrying out such an order to basically invade Greenland and take over the Panama Canal," Hirono replied.

Should the U.S. follow the Geneva Conventions?

Hegseth did not appear to commit to upholding the laws of combat governed by the Geneva Conventions during questioning from Sen. Angus King (I-Maine).

What he's saying: "We have laws on the books from the Geneva Conventions into the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and then underneath that, you have layers in which standard or temporary rules of engagement are put into place," Hegseth said. "We fight enemies ... that play by no rules."

  • Pressed by King, he said, "We don't need burdensome rules of engagement that make it impossible for us to win these wars."

Zoom in: Asked if the conventions' ban on torturing prisoners still applies, Hegseth called the conventions "incredibly important" but said how wars are fought has evolved.

  • "Your position is torture is OK, is that correct?" King asked.
  • Hegseth contended that was not what he said, adding, "I've never been party to torture."
  • Later, when pressed on past comments he made seemingly endorsing waterboarding, Hegseth responded, "The law of the land is that waterboarding is not legal."

Go deeper: Scoop: Hegseth opening statement pledges Pentagon "warrior ethos"

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