Former CNN analyst turned Washington Bureau Chief for The Grio, April Ryan, joined former CNN host turned MSNBC anchor Ana Cabrera on Thursday to discuss the news that Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former Marine Paul Whelan are being released from Russian prison as part of a multi-nation prisoner swap. For Ryan, the news provided an opportunity to hail President Joe Biden’s economy and Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. Cabrera asked, “April, as we await more details, just talk about the moment this is for President Biden given everything else that's been happening here at home, and as he is looking at the final months of his presidency.”     Ryan began by trying to tie the news to Democrats’ idea that democracy is on the ballot in November, “As President Biden wants to save the democracy by handing over the torch to the next generation, Kamala Harris, this is a big win for him. President Biden, personally, and for the Biden-Harris Administration. People have been very much pushing for the release of these Russian hostages, especially since the Brittney Griner release. They were like, ‘These people have been in longer,’ et cetera, et cetera, and now potentially this is happening.” Ignoring inflation, she also insisted, “This is a big deal. The president is going to leave in the next six months with a huge win. I mean, the economy is growing. He's releasing hostages that the American people have been so concerned about, and he's now passed the torch. So, he has got a very big win in this moment, when we are waiting for great news.” Donald Trump likes to view himself as a great hostage releaser as well, but for the media, the rules of how to react to prisoner swaps change based on what party controls the White House. Here is a transcript for the August 1 show: MSNBC Ana Cabrera Reports 8/1/2024 10:44 AM ET ANA CABRERA: April, as we await more details, just talk about the moment this is for President Biden given everything else that's been happening here at home, and as he is looking at the final months of his presidency. APRIL RYAN: As President Biden wants to save the democracy by handing over the torch to the next generation, Kamala Harris, this is a big win for him. President Biden, personally, and for the Biden-Harris Administration. People have been very much pushing for the release of these Russian hostages, especially since the Brittney Griner release.  They were like, “These people have been in longer,” et cetera, et cetera, and now potentially this is happening. We are waiting for confirmation on everything. Senatorial leaders as well as those on The Hill, national security, everyone is waiting for full confirmation on this, but that's what's in play. This is a big deal. The president is going to leave in the next six months with a huge win. I mean, the economy is growing. He's releasing hostages that the American people have been so concerned about, and he's now passed the torch. So, he has got a very big win in this moment, when we are waiting for great news.

A female Olympic boxer threw in the towel after just 46 seconds into her fight Thursday after determining her opponent — who's been mired in a gender controversy — was hitting her too hard.Italy's Angela Carini took a punch from Algeria's Imane Khelif in the women's 66-kilogram division — and then Carini signaled to her corner that she was done.After Carini, 25, abandoned the fight, and Khelif's hand was being raised in victory, Carini was seen breaking down in tears and falling to her knees before eventually leaving the ring.'She quit after taking one punch; she told me she didn't feel she could fight.'Carini and her coach spoke to Italian press agency ANSA after the match to explain what happened."I got into the ring to fight," Carini said. "I didn't give up, but one punch hurt too much, and so I said enough.""I'm going out with my head held high," she added.Her coach Emanuele Renzini said Carini hadn't planned ahead of time to forfeit the match."It would have been easier not to show up, because all of Italy had been asking her not to fight for days," Renzini said. "But Angela was motivated and wanted to do it."He added, "Of course, when she met her opponent at the draw, she said 'it's not fair.' But there was no premeditation here today. She quit after taking one punch; she told me she didn't feel she could fight."As Blaze News previously reported, the International Boxing Association disqualified Khelif at the 2023 world championships. IBA President Umar Kremlev said at the time that Khelif had "XY chromosomes." Males have XY chromosomes; females have XX chromosomes.But the International Olympic Committee decided to drop the IBA as a governing body in June 2023 and put the IOC's Paris 2024 Boxing Unit in charge. The Paris Boxing Unit's rules have been described as more relaxed. The Guardian reported that the IOC noted Khelif's disqualification in its internal system, saying the fighter was "disqualified just hours before her gold medal showdown against Yang Liu at the 2023 world championships in New Delhi, India, after her elevated ­levels of testosterone failed to meet the eligibility criteria."Khelif reportedly blamed a "conspiracy" against Algeria as the reason for any gender-related accusations."People have conspired against Algeria so that its flag doesn't get raised, and it doesn't win the gold medal," Khelif said.The Algerian Olympic Committee also weighed in, calling claims surrounding Khelif's gender "baseless," according to Fox News."COA strongly condemns the unethical targeting and maligning of our esteemed athlete, Imane Khelif, with baseless propaganda from certain foreign media outlets," the committee said on Wednesday. "Such attacks on her personality and dignity are deeply unfair, especially as she prepares for the pinnacle of her career at the Olympics. The COA has taken all necessary measures to protect our champion."ANSA cited a gay-centric Italian communications company that claimed Khelif actually is "intersex" and not transgender."In contrast to the reports that have been circulating, the Algerian athlete Imane Khelif is not a trans woman," said Rosario Coco of Gaynet Communications. "From the information we have about her, she is an intersex person who has always socialized as a woman and has a sporting history in women's competitions."Khelif isn't the only fighter surrounded by this type of controversy in the women's boxing category. Lin Yu‑ting of Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) will fight Uzbekistan's Sitora Turdibekova in the 57 kg round of 16 Friday.The IOC said that Lin was "stripped of her bronze medal" in 2023 at the world championships "after failing to meet eligibility requirements based on the results of a biochemical test."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The drag queen "Last Supper" scene isn’t the only thing the Olympics has done to push the LGBTQ+ globalist agenda this year. The Paris 2024 Boxing Unit, which is a newly formed International Olympic Committee, features two biological men competing against biological women. One of those boxers is Imane Khelif, a 25-year-old Algerian boxer, who was disqualified from last year’s world championships for failing gender eligibility tests. Taiwan's double world champion, Lin Yu-ting, was also disqualified after failing to meet the criteria. “Why are they allowed to compete in France?” Sara Gonzales asks, horrified after watching a video of Khelif “beating the crap out of the real woman.” The pair have been accepted into the Olympics because the world championships were organized by the International Boxing Association — which as of right before the Olympics is no longer recognized by the global event. Rather, the IOC executive board created its own governing body for boxing and established its own gender guidelines. “They want to watch men beat the s**t out of women, I guess,” Gonzales says. This is why what happened during the opening ceremony is so important. “They don’t care about the sports,” Gonzales explains. “These athletes train their whole lives for this one moment. It happens every four years, so you’re constantly one bad injury away from missing your shot, potentially forever.” “Which is why, as Americans, we used to actually love these games. It was sport, it was meritocracy, it was great storytelling. There were stakes involved; we got to know these people’s life stories. And now we’re talking about trans dudes and men beating the s**t out of women,” she continues. “Every aspect of these Olympics this year is just disgusting, and it just gets worse the more we get into it. That’s why the opening ceremony freaking mattered,” she adds. Want more from Sara Gonzales?To enjoy more of Sara's no-holds-barred take to news and culture, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

The former director of a San Francisco nonprofit was arrested Tuesday and charged with 34 felony charges over her alleged theft and misuse of taxpayer funds, according to a recent press release from the San Francisco District Attorney’s office.Kyra Worthy, 49, was previously the executive director for SF SAFE, an organization created in 1976 to aid the local police department with crime prevention and public safety services, according to its website. In January, SF SAFE fired Worthy and shut down operations after the director allegedly drained the nonprofit of all of its assets.'Cheated San Francisco communities out of valuable services ... exploited SF GATE’s employees and nonprofit partners.'Worthy is facing charges related to “misappropriation of public money, submitting fraudulent invoices to a City department, theft from SF SAFE, wage theft from its employees and failing to pay withheld employee taxes, and writing checks with insufficient funds to defraud a bank,” according to the DA office press release.“In total, Ms. Worthy is accused of illegally misusing over $700,000 during her tenure with SF SAFE,” the office added.Despite the organization receiving millions in public and private funding, Worthy’s “theft and mismanagement” caused the nonprofit to lose all of its assets, forcing its closure.Worthy was accused of using the nonprofit’s funds “for her own use,” including making payments to her landlord and hiring a home healthcare worker for her parents, totaling $98,000.“The affidavit further details how Ms. Worthy lavishly spent SF SAFE’s funds on parties, events, furniture, interior designers, and travel, even as SF SAFE was running out of money and she had stopped paying employees’ taxes,” the DA’s office stated.As a result, Worthy was accused of committing $80,000 in wage theft. In October 2023, Worthy allegedly threw a costly party with SF Safe’s funds. She was accused of spending $20,000 on desserts, $15,000 on a food truck, $20,000 on event planners, $7,000 on “mobile luxury restrooms,” and $19,000 on a petting zoo, carnival games, and other party activities. Worthy allegedly spent another $56,000 on catering and an event planner for an SF SAFE holiday party. She was also accused of spending $350,000 on “luxury gift boxes” in 2022 and 2023.A spokesperson for the San Francisco Attorney’s Office stated, “Kyra Worthy not only cheated San Francisco communities out of valuable services, but also exploited SF GATE’s employees and nonprofit partners. We are working diligently to root out this kind of corruption, and we fully support the DA’s actions to ensure accountability.”San Francisco Police Department told KRON4, “The SFPD thanks the District Attorney’s office for its thorough investigation and diligent work on this case.”Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

An alleged intruder armed with a three-foot wooden stake threw a rock at the face of a Southern California homeowner while trying to enter his residence earlier this week, police told KUSI-TV. But the homeowner grabbed a gun and shot at the alleged intruder three times, hitting him in the chest at least once, the station said. The alleged intruder was pronounced dead at the scene, KUSI added.'The suspect may have tried to enter at least one other home by throwing a rock through a sliding glass window of that residence, causing the glass to shatter.'Oceanside police responded to the home in the 4100 block of Diamond Circle just before 7:30 p.m. Monday over a report of an assault with a deadly weapon, the station said. Oceanside is about 40 minutes north of San Diego.More from KUSI:Police said the alleged intruder, armed with a rock and three-foot wooden stake, attempted to enter the residence through an open bedroom slider door connected to their backyard. A female occupant was inside the bedroom at the time.A male occupant then tried to confront the man, who proceeded to throw a rock at his face, according to Oceanside police. The homeowner then grabbed a gun and shot at the intruder three times, hitting him at least once in the chest.The station said police arrived at the scene just minutes afterward and attempted CPR on the suspect, but the alleged intruder was pronounced dead at the scene.KUSI said detectives responded and remained at the scene for several hours to investigate. The station said the names of the individuals involved haven't been disclosed. “The suspect may have tried to enter at least one other home by throwing a rock through a sliding glass window of that residence, causing the glass to shatter," Heather Mitchell with the Oceanside Police Department said in a Tuesday news release. "It was not determined if the suspect did enter the residence, and those residents were not home at the time." Oceanside homeowner shoots, kills alleged intruder: police youtu.be Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

In Episode 357 Jeff Belanger and Ray Auger hike the woods of Watertown, Connecticut, searching for one of the Leatherman’s caves. Back in the latter half of the 1800, a wandering vagabond covered in patchwork leather made an endless 365-mile circuit between the Hudson and Connecticut rivers. BECOME A LEGENDARY PATRON: https://www.patreon.com/NewEnglandLegends CREDITS: Produced and hosted by: Jeff Belanger and Ray Auger Edited by: Ray Auger Theme Music by: John Judd SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST FOR FREE: Apple Podcasts/iTunes | Spotify | Pandora | Amazon Podcasts | TuneIn | iHeartRadio JOIN OUR SUPER-SECRET: New England Legends Facebook Group

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tvOS 18 is Apple TV's upcoming software update, which will launch alongside iOS 18. Once again, 2024 looks like a packed year for Apple TV users, as Apple is working on several new functions for its set-top box. While I recently wrote about the 10 best tvOS 18 features coming to your Apple TV, there are three features that really stand out on the Apple TV with iOS 18: InSight: An Amazon Prime Video-like feature that displays timely information about actors, characters, and music from Apple TV+ movies and shows onscreen in real-time. Users can select an actor to view their background and filmography page or quickly view the song that is playing in a scene and add it to an Apple Music playlist. Enhance Dialogue: This feature is getting smarter, leveraging machine learning and computation audio to deliver greater vocal clarity over music, action, and background noise on Apple TV 4K. In addition to HomePod speakers, users can now enjoy Enhance Dialogue when listening through built-in TV or HDMI-connected speakers, AirPods, and other Bluetooth-connected devices, and when playing supported content on iPhone and iPad; Automatic subtitles: Subtitles now automatically appear at just the right moments with tvOS 18, including when the language in a show or film does not match the device language, when users mute, or when they skip back while watching something. While Enhance Dialogue is available in all streaming services, I really love the new automatic subtitles feature. It's so useful when the show briefly changes the main language or when the audio feels too low, and I have to go back to understand what was just said. Even though these features are still in beta, they've worked great for me, and they're making my experience with Apple TV+ originals even better. Fortunately, you can try tvOS 18 before it officially comes out. You just need to open the Settings App, choose Software Update, and change to the beta version. Below, you can learn more about tvOS 18 features. Don't Miss: tvOS 18: Release date, features, download, Apple TV compatibility, more The post tvOS 18 makes Apple TV app even better with these 3 new features appeared first on BGR. Today's Top Deals Today’s deals: $179 AirPods Pro 2, $40 foldable camera drone, $899 M3 MacBook Air, $16 wireless charger, more Stunning Yaber T2 Outdoor Projector has a massive 20% discount Best Apple deals for August 2024 Today’s deals: $299 Apple Watch S9, $29 Thermacell mosquito repellent, $99 TP-Link WiFi 7 router, more