VOL. 48 | NO. 42 | Friday, October 18, 2024
RICHARD COURTNEY: REALTY CHECK
There is an alternate universe out there that contains the planets known as Personality, Passion, Prose and Performance. This universe lost its sun last week when Jodie Barringer died.
REAL ESTATE
Top Davidson County commercial real estate sales for September 2024, as compiled by the Nashville Ledger.
The average rate on a 30-year mortgage in the U.S. rose for the third week in a row, reaching its highest level in eight weeks.
TENNESSEE TITANS
Rookie swagger is missing as quarterback struggles
Five games into learning a new system and getting used to new weapons, Will Levis and the Tennessee Titans are stuck in second gear.
When things don’t go well, frustrations that would never become public while winning can bubble to the surface.
The Titans, already struggling at 1-4, find themselves now a daunting two-game road trip at Buffalo and Detroit. It will be a big ask, but here are the Titans best hopes for pulling an upset against Buffalo.
UT SPORTS
Tennessee’s offense has hit a few rough spots over the last few weeks, with the Vols struggling to create explosive plays, stretch defenses and generate points. It’s been up to Dylan Sampson to carry a larger load, and the junior running back has answered the call.
KNOXVILLE (AP) — Who wins the latest game in the historic rivalry known as the Third Saturday of October may matter more than ever for Alabama and Tennessee.
NASHVILLE PREDATORS
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the beginning of the Nashville Predators’ 2024-25 season was seeing newly signed backup goaltender Scott Wedgewood take the ice against the Dallas Stars Oct. 10.
Little has been said about Predators defenseman Spencer Stastney thus far this season. When training camp opened in September, the team announced he was absent from camp due to personal reasons.
First period: Roman Josi’s ice time – The Predators captain has heard his name called early and often on the young season and is already logging a lot of ice time. Josi entered this season averaging just shy of 25 minutes of ice time per game for his career.
BRIEFS
A free burn permit from the Tennessee Department of Agriculture Division of Forestry is now required before burning leaves or natural vegetation, including debris generated by Hurricane Helene.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
The Ford F-150 Lightning and Tesla Cybertruck are two intriguing options for someone thinking about buying an electric pickup truck. They also couldn’t be more different.
PERSONAL FINANCE
A new survey from MarketWatch Guides finds couples in a DINK relationship (“Dual Income, No Kids”) are four times more likely than parents to say they have no financial stress. What’s more, they accumulate money at a faster rate. DINKs report saving twice as much as parents each month ($908 instead of $413).
TENNESSEE TITANS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Titans coach Brian Callahan has been on coaching staffs in their first seasons with a new NFL team and knows how challenging that can be.
COURTS
An Ohio man was arrested Tuesday on charges that he brought a massive "Trump" sign to the U.S. Capitol and joined other rioters in using it as a weapon against police officers during a mob attack.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A film production company that helped make "Blade Runner 2049" has sued Tesla and its CEO Elon Musk for using an AI-generated image resembling a scene from the science fiction movie to market Tesla's new robotaxis.
NEW YORK (AP) — Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries, his romantic partner and a third man were arrested Tuesday on charges of luring men into drug-laced, outlandish and coercive sex parties held around the world by dangling the promise of modeling for the retailer's once-defining beefcake ads.
ELECTION 2024
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Tuesday called his Democratic opponent Kamala Harris "lazy," criticizing the vice president with a word long used to demean Black people in racist terms.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Groups in Russia created and helped spread viral disinformation targeting Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz, a senior U.S. intelligence official said Tuesday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — When Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race and Kamala Harris jumped in, a cascade of Zoom meetings with hundreds of thousands of participants popped up seemingly out of nowhere and helped propel her to the Democratic nomination.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris will head to reliably Republican Texas just 10 days before Election Day in an effort to refocus her campaign against former President Donald Trump on reproductive care, which Democrats see as a make-or-break issue this year.
WASHINGTON (AP) — For the past year, Project 2025 has endured as a persistent force in the presidential election, its far-right proposals deployed by Democrats as shorthand for what Donald Trump would potentially do with a second term at the White House.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump promoted economic policy Tuesday as their best chance to win Latino voters. But their approaches are very different.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — After a month of updating Floridians on hurricanes, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is now focusing his official office on fighting an abortion rights amendment, holding a campaign-like rally at state expense two weeks before the election.
HEALTH CARE
Women living in states with abortion bans obtained the procedure in the second half of 2023 at about the same rate as before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, according to a report released Tuesday.
Surgery schedules around the country may be washed out for several more weeks while a crucial IV and sterile fluids factory remains shut down for hurricane-related damage.
A recall of hundreds of frozen waffle products and other toaster foods sold in many U.S. grocery stores has expanded because they may be contaminated with dangerous listeria bacteria, the manufacturer said Tuesday.
PERSONAL FINANCE
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. taxpayers will again see higher standard deductions for 2025, allowing them to shield more of their money from taxation on future returns.
TRANSPORTATION
Federal regulators gave a strong push to electric-powered air taxis Wednesday by issuing a final rule for operating the aircraft and how pilots will be trained to fly them.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — Shares of General Motors jumped more than 10% Tuesday after the automaker posted a third-quarter profit of $3 billion, just slightly less the same quarter a year ago. It was the stock's biggest single day surge since March of 2020.
DETROIT (AP) — U.S. sales are down and a once-reliably profitable joint venture in China is losing money, but General Motors still managed to post a third quarter profit of $3 billion Tuesday, slightly less than it made a year ago.
ENERGY
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela's top prosecutor on Monday announced the arrest of a former oil minister and accused him of working with the U.S. government to undermine the industry that drives the country's economy.
MEDIA
New York magazine and its star political reporter, Olivia Nuzzi, have decided jointly to "part ways" after reports that she had a personal digital relationship with a source while covering the 2024 campaign.
LAW ENFORCEMENT
WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI said Tuesday that it is investigating the unauthorized release of classified documents on Israel's preparation for a potential retaliatory attack on Iran.
ECONOMY
WASHINGTON (AP) — The global war against inflation has largely been won — and at surprisingly little cost to economic growth, the International Monetary Fund declared Tuesday.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes barely budged after a quiet day of mixed trading on Tuesday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal rule banning fake online reviews is now in effect.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is telling world financial leaders that the U.S. economy has grown stronger because the Biden administration rejected isolationism, offering a barely veiled criticism of former President Donald Trump's policies two weeks before the U.S. election.
MONDAY, OCTOBER 21
SEC SPORTS
Oregon became the fourth team this season to hold the No. 1 ranking in The Associated Press college football poll, moving into the top spot on Sunday for the first time in 12 years after Texas lost at home to Georgia.
Oregon took over as the No. 1 seed in The Associated Press College Football Playoff bracket projection Sunday.
TENNESSEE TITANS
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — It doesn't appear to matter who's under center for the Tennessee Titans lately — Will Levis or, in the interim, Mason Rudolph.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court rejected an appeal Monday from Michael Cohen, who wanted to hold his former boss ex-president Donald Trump liable for a jailing he said was retaliation for writing a tell-all memoir.
ELECTION 2024
McDonald's Corp. agreed to host former President Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania store over the weekend but said it isn't endorsing a candidate in the U.S. presidential race.
SWANNANOA, N.C. (AP) — Surveying storm damage in North Carolina, former President Donald Trump on Monday blasted federal emergency responders whose work has been stymied by armed harassment and a deluge of misinformation, but he said he was not concerned that the aftermath of Hurricane Helene would affect election results in the battleground state.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kamala Harris teamed up with Liz Cheney on Monday to make a bipartisan appeal to Republican voters uneasy about Donald Trump, describing the former president as a malignant force that needs to be removed from American politics.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Kamala Harris ' campaign and affiliated Democratic groups raised about $633 million for the quarter, which ended last month, pushing their total to over $1 billion while maintaining a large financial advantage over Republican candidate Donald Trump in the presidential election's final sprint.
BAKER, Nev. (AP) — Few things say America like Janille and Tom Baker's ranch, with its grazing cattle, scrub brush-dotted desert and snow-capped mountains.
FEASTERVILLE-TREVOSE, Pa. (AP) — Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump manned the fry station at a McDonald's in Pennsylvania on Sunday before staging an impromptu news conference, answering questions through the drive-thru window.
LATROBE, Pa. (AP) — Donald Trump's campaign suggested he would begin previewing his closing argument Saturday night with Election Day barely two weeks away. But the former president kicked off his rally with a detailed story about Arnold Palmer, at one point even praising the late, legendary golfer's genitalia.
One of the late golf legend Arnold Palmer's daughters calls Donald Trump's references to her father's genitalia "a poor choice of approaches" to honoring his memory, adding that she wasn't upset by the remarks.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Voters remain largely divided over whether they prefer Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Kamala Harris to handle key economic issues, although Harris earns slightly better marks on elements such as taxes for the middle class, according to a new poll.
TECHNOLOGY
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration said Tuesday that it would provide up to $325 million to Hemlock Semiconductor for a new factory, a move that could help give Democrats a political edge in the swing state of Michigan ahead of election day.
NEW YORK (AP) — New GoFundMe tools will make it easier to circulate causes across online platforms in a push to cater toward younger generations.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks edged back from their all-time highs Monday as some of the steam came out of Wall Street's long, record-breaking rally.
The Walt Disney Co. is tapping Morgan Stanley executive James Gorman to serve as its next chairman, beginning early next year. The entertainment giant also announced that it anticipates naming its new CEO in early 2026.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is "deeply concerned" about the unauthorized release of classified documents on Israel's preparation for a potential retaliatory attack on Iran, a White House spokesman said Monday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jill Biden trained her educator's eye on the White House public tour and on Monday unveiled an updated design to teach visitors more about the mansion's history and events that unfolded in some of its famous rooms.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading again to the Middle East, making his 11th trip to the region since the Gaza war erupted last year and as Israel steps up attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Millions of people with private health insurance would be able to pick up over-the-counter methods like condoms, the "morning after" pill and birth control pills for free under a new rule the White House proposed on Monday.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18
TENNESSEE TITANS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Three-time Pro Bowl safety Jamal Adams' tenure with the Tennessee Titans ended Thursday on his 29th birthday with his release after the team placed the eight-year veteran on reserve/non-football injury list last weekend.
NASHVILLE AREA
FRANKLIN (AP) — Former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and possession of a handgun after a minor collision on Thursday.
NASHVILLE PREDATORS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Brett Kulak scored twice and Connor McDavid added his first goal of the season to lead the Edmonton Oilers to a 4-2 victory over the reeling Nashville Predators on Thursday night.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — A three-judge panel on Thursday ruled that Tennessee doctors who provide emergency abortions to protect the life of the mother cannot have their medical licenses revoked or face other disciplinary actions while a lawsuit challenging the state's sweeping abortion ban continues.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The judge overseeing Donald Trump's 2020 election interference case made public Friday a heavily redacted trove of documents that provide a small glimpse into the evidence prosecutors will present if the case ever goes to trial.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge on Friday delayed an order requiring Google to open up its Android app store to more competition until an appeals court decides whether to block the shake-up because of legal questions surrounding a jury's verdict that branded Google as an illegal monopolist.
ELECTION 2024
Former President Donald Trump on Friday compared the people jailed on charges that they stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to the more than 120,000 people of Japanese origin incarcerated on U.S. soil during World War II.
PHOENIX (AP) — It was Donald Trump's mispronunciation that first caught attention.
NEW YORK (AP) — Judges seeking appointments to the federal bench. Wealthy Republicans hoping for ambassadorships. Criminals who wanted pardons.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — Kamala Harris and Donald Trump both sought support from Arab American voters Friday as they campaigned in Michigan, trying to lock down support in a battleground state that could decide the presidential race next month.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Kremlin could not have asked for better publicity at a better time when Ben Swann, a self-described independent journalist who promotes conspiracy theories, released a 12-part video series he promised would reveal dark truths about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris will make her first campaign appearances with Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, two of the most popular figures in the Democratic Party, at get-out-the-vote events this month in Georgia and Michigan.
LA CROSSE, Wis. (AP) — Joy Olson proudly wore a "Make America Joyful Again" button Thursday as she waited in line to attend a Kamala Harris rally. But that doesn't mean the 70-year-old retiree with the happiest of names wants the Democratic nominee to shy away from taking the heat to Republican Donald Trump.
NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump laced into Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats on Thursday in a pointed and at times bitter speech as he headlined the annual Al Smith charity dinner in New York.
ATLANTA (AP) — National and state Republicans on Thursday appealed a judge's ruling that said seven election rules recently passed by Georgia's State Election Board are "illegal, unconstitutional and void."
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. government's road safety agency is again investigating Tesla's "Full Self-Driving" system, this time after getting reports of crashes in low-visibility conditions, including one that killed a pedestrian.
ROME (AP) — Workers in Italy's troubled automotive sector are holding a national strike on Friday for the first time in 20 years, with a massive demonstration crossing the center of Rome.
HEALTH CARE
CVS Health CEO Karen Lynch has stepped down with company shares sinking 19% this year and the health care giant struggling on several fronts.
MEDIA
SOUTHPORT, Conn. (AP) — The Diamond Sports Group's channels will soon be branded as FanDuel Sports Network.
Netflix on Thursday reported that its subscriber growth slowed dramatically during the summer, a sign the huge gains from the video-streaming service's crackdown on freeloading viewers is tapering off.
ENERGY
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is shelling out billions of dollars for clean energy and approving major offshore wind projects as officials race to secure major climate initiatives before President Joe Biden's term comes to an end.
ECONOMY
WASHINGTON (AP) — It's a trend that has surprised many: Why, despite being squeezed by high prices, have Americans kept spending at retail stores and restaurants at a robust pace?
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose to more records and closed out their longest weekly winning streak of the year. The S&P 500 rose 0.4% Friday.
NEW YORK (AP) — American Express' third-quarter profit topped analysts' expectations as the credit card company's cardholders continue to spend, with many holding a balance.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
GENEVA (AP) — The United States is expressing disappointment over a decision by the Swiss government not to adopt all measures in the latest round of European Union sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine.
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Kamala Harris said Thursday that Israel's killing of Hamas' top leader offers "an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza," talking plainly about next steps even as the pro-Palestinian demonstrators who gathered outside her campaign event underscored the complicated politics at play.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17
REGION
NASHVILLE (AP) — Witnesses reported seeing a group of armed people harassing hurricane relief workers in a remote Tennessee community last weekend, a sheriff said Wednesday as a man in North Carolina appeared in court for allegedly threatening aid workers in that state.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government has approved nearly $2 billion in assistance across six states to help people hit hard by hurricanes Helene and Milton, the White House said Wednesday.
Monstrous hurricanes Helene and Milton caused so much complex havoc that damages are still being added up, but government and private experts say they will likely join the infamous ranks of Katrina, Sandy and Harvey as super costly $50-billion-plus killers.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — An Alabama man was arrested Thursday for his alleged role in the January hack of a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission social media account that led the price of bitcoin to spike, the Justice Department said.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A former porn shop worker who was accused by North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson of defamation has asked a court to throw out the lawsuit against him, calling the politician's allegations "bizarre" and his demand for at least $50 million in damages a violation of civil court rules.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former Long Island funeral home owner pleaded guilty on Thursday to spraying wasp killer at police officers and assaulting two journalists, including an Associated Press photographer, during a mob's riot at the U.S. Capitol nearly four years ago.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal judge overseeing the election interference case against Donald Trump directed prosecutors Wednesday to search for and provide to the former president's lawyers any Justice Department information related to a separate investigation into Mike Pence's handling of classified documents.
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A Nevada man who was arrested over the weekend with guns at a security checkpoint outside a Donald Trump rally in the southern California desert has filed a lawsuit accusing the sheriff of falsely characterizing his arrest as a thwarted assassination attempt for his own personal gain.
ELECTION 2024
NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump will trade the rally stage for comedy Thursday night as he headlines the annual Al Smith charity dinner, where he was jeered while delivering an especially pointed speech eight years ago.
MILWAUKEE (AP) — With three weeks left in the presidential campaign, Democrat Kamala Harris is spending most of her days trying to shore up support in the "blue wall" states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin as she tries to avoid a repeat of Hillary Clinton's collapse there eight years ago.
WASHINGTON CROSSING, Pa. (AP) — Surrounded by more than 100 former Republican officeholders and officials, Democrat Kamala Harris urged GOP voters on Wednesday to put "country first" and abandon Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON (AP) — As the presidential race moves into its final weeks, Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump embarked on an interview blitz that offered new details about their policy priorities and their political strategies.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris engaged in a combative interview with Fox News on Wednesday, sparring with anchor Bret Baier on immigration and shifting policy positions while asserting that if elected, she would not represent a continuation of Joe Biden's presidency.
NEW YORK (AP) — Kamala Harris ' interview with Fox News Channel's Bret Baier on Wednesday is the latest indication that Democrats during this campaign are increasingly willing to engage with a network well-stocked with supporters of opponent Donald Trump.
CHICAGO (AP) — Donald Trump has had a tough time finding a consistent message to questions about abortion and reproductive rights.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Mitch McConnell said after the 2020 election that then-President Donald Trump was "stupid as well as being ill-tempered," a "despicable human being" and a "narcissist," according to excerpts from a new biography of the Senate Republican leader that will be released this month.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Elon Musk, a tech mogul who is the world's richest person, plunged more than $70 million into helping Donald Trump and other Republicans win in November's election, making him one of the biggest donors to GOP causes this campaign season, according to campaign finance disclosures released this week.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris' campaign is dismissing accusations that she and a co-author plagiarized parts of a 2009 book on the U.S. criminal justice system as a desperate attempt by "rightwing operatives" to distract voters.
LAW ENFORCEMENT
WASHINGTON (AP) — An independent panel investigating the attempted assassination of Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally faulted the Secret Service for poor communications that day and failing to secure the building where the gunman took his shots. The review also found more systemic issues at the agency such as a failure to understand the unique risks facing Trump and a culture of doing "more with less."
MEDIA
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Just weeks before the U.S. presidential election, TikTok approved advertisements that contained election disinformation even though it has a ban on political ads, according to a report published Thursday by the nonprofit Global Witness.
Former NBC News anchor Brian Williams will be working again on election night, anchoring a live special with results and analysis to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
Meta says it has laid off some employees, including staff at WhatsApp And Instagram, to realign its resources with its "strategic goals."
ENERGY
NEW YORK (AP) — Nuclear power is garnering renewed attention amid growing demand for power and cleaner energy.
ECONOMY
WASHINGTON (AP) — Global finance leaders face a major uncertainty as they meet in Washington next week: Who will win the U.S. presidential election and shape the policies of the world's biggest economy?
NEW YORK (AP) — PPG Industries plans to lay off about 1,800 employees amid efforts to cut costs, with the paints and coatings maker also inking a deal to sell a sizeable chunk of its architectural business.
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits last week came back down to more recent ranges after a big jump the week before due to hurricanes in the Southeast.
LONDON (AP) — The European Central Bank, which sets interest rates for the 20 countries that use the euro currency, does not expect the bloc to slide into recession as it cut borrowing costs once again Thursday in the wake of recent data showing inflation across the bloc falling to its lowest level in more than three years, and economic growth waning.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks drifted around their record heights Thursday following the latest signals that the U.S. economy continues to hum.
NEW YORK (AP) — PPG Industries plans to lay off about 1,800 employees amid efforts to cut costs, with the paints and coatings maker also inking a deal to sell a sizeable chunk of its architectural business.
HELSINKI (AP) — Wireless and fixed-network equipment maker Nokia on Thursday reported better-than-expected third quarter earnings, mainly on the back of cost-cutting measures, but saw its sales dive 8% largely due to a weaker India market.
CSX's delivered 3% more shipments in the third quarter to help drive its profit 8% higher, but only modest volume growth is expected in the rest of the year as the Southeast rebuilds after two major hurricanes.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Kamala Harris said Thursday that Israel's killing of Hamas' top leader offers "an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza," talking plainly about next steps even as the pro-Palestinian demonstrators who gathered outside her campaign event underscored the complicated politics at play.
ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (AP) — President Joe Biden said Thursday that the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar by Israeli troops is a "good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world," calling it an "opportunity" to free hostages held by the militant group and end the yearlong war in Gaza.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Treasury on Thursday announced sanctions against two Chinese makers of drone engines and parts that the Biden administration said directly helped Russia build long-range attack drones used in the war in Ukraine.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has long believed diplomacy is about personal relationships — and he'll spend Friday in Berlin with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as his time in office is on the cusp of ending.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A student loan cancellation program for public workers has granted relief to more than 1 million Americans — up from just 7,000 who were approved before it was updated by the Biden administration two years ago.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden eulogized the late Ethel Kennedy in deeply personal terms at a memorial service Wednesday, hailing the wife of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy as "a hero in her own right, full of character, full of integrity and empathy" who helped him through one of the darkest periods of his life.