Former US first lady Rosalynn Carter dies aged 96

Published

10 months ago

November 20, 2023

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Former US first lady Rosalynn Carter has died at the age of 96.

She died peacefully with her family by her side at her home in Plains, Georgia, according to the Carter Center, a not-for-profit organisation founded by her husband and former president Jimmy Carter, 99.

They were married for 77 years.

Mrs Carter had been suffering from dementia.

“Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished,” Mr Carter said.

“She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me.”

Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn Carter sat in on cabinet meetings and represented her husband on foreign trips.

In 1977, only months into his presidency, Mr Carter sent her to Latin America to tell dictators he was serious about denying military aid and other support to people who violated human rights.

She was known by aides, privately, as “co-president” during Mr Carter’s single term of office from 1977-1981.

At one stage, she was forced to declare: “I am not running the government.”

She chose mental health and care for the elderly as her main policy concerns. When the media did not cover her efforts as much as she would have liked, she criticised reporters for writing only about “sexy subjects”.

As honorary chairwoman of the President’s Commission on Mental Health, she testified before a senate sub-committee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel.

In 1984, she wrote in her autobiography, First Lady From Plains, that leaving Washington and returning to Georgia, after Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election, had not been easy.

“I was hesitant, not at all sure that I could be happy here after the dazzle of the White House and the years of stimulating political battles,” she said.

She added, however: “We slowly rediscovered the satisfaction of a life we had left long before.”

Mrs Carter is survived by her children Jack, Chip, Jeff, and Amy, 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

One grandson died in 2015, the Carter Center said.

Chip Carter said his mother was a “great humanitarian” who will be “sorely missed not only by our family but by the many people who have better mental health care and access to resources for caregiving today”.

US

Kendrick Lamar to headline Super Bowl halftime show after number one singles and Drake feud

Published

1 hour ago

September 9, 2024

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Kendrick Lamar to headline Super Bowl halftime show after number one singles and Drake feud

Fresh off a number-one single and a feud with Drake, Kendrick Lamar has announced he will perform at next year’s Super Bowl.

The Humble hitmaker will take to the stage during the halftime show at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on 9 February.

In a video announcing the news on YouTube, Lamar is seen standing in front of an American flag as he shoots footballs out of an automatic passing machine.

“You know it’s only one opportunity to win a championship. No round twos,” he says. “I won’t want you to miss it.

“Meet me in New Orleans. February 9, 2025. Wear your best dress, too, even if you watch it from home.”

In a statement, the 17-time Grammy award-winning rapper added: “Rap music is still the most impactful genre to date. And I’ll be there to remind the world why. They got the right one.”

Rapper Jay-Z, whose company Roc Nation works with the NFL to choose the halftime show performer, called Lamar a “once-in-a-generation artist”.

He added: “His deep love for hip-hop and culture informs his artistic vision. He has an unparalleled ability to define and influence culture globally. Kendrick’s work transcends music, and his impact will be felt for years to come.”

Lamar previously performed at the 2022 halftime show, where he joined Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, Mary J Blige, 50 Cent, Anderson .Paak, and Eminem at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.

It comes off the back of Lamar’s springtime feud with Canadian star Drake, which culminated in the release of Not Like Us on 4 May.

The diss track was the number one song in the US for two weeks and reached sixth in the UK charts.

Another of Lamar’s songs attacking Drake – a feature on Future and Metro Boomin’s Like That – spent three weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 this year.

US

Manhunt after cars shot at on Kentucky highway

Published

20 hours ago

September 8, 2024

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Manhunt after cars shot at on Kentucky highway

A manhunt is under way after at least seven people were injured when a gunman opened fire on cars on a highway in Kentucky, causing scenes described as “a madhouse”.

Police said the suspect, who remains at large, should be considered “armed and dangerous” and people have been urged to stay in their homes.

The shooting happened near the small city of London, about 75 miles (120km) south of Lexington, at about 5.30pm local time on Saturday.

Deputy Gilbert Acciardo, of Laurel County Sheriff’s Office, told a news conference on Sunday: “When our first two units got to the scene there, they said it was a madhouse – people on the sides of the road, emergency flashers going, bullet holes, windows shot out, nine vehicles shot.

“Can you imagine that? Just chaotic.”

Five people were shot and are all in a stable condition, although some have “very serious” injuries, including one person who was hit in the face, Mr Acciardo said.

Two other people were hurt in a crash caused by the shooting.

A search of a remote wooded area by officers, suspended overnight because of darkness, was to resume at daybreak on Sunday, he said.

Mr Acciardo added: “We do have the area contained right now. It’s a very fluid investigation. Our people are still on the scene. Our special response team is there. We are trying to find a shooter there.”

The sheriff’s office said a “person of interest” has been identified in connection with the shooting and warned people not to approach him.

He was named as 32-year-old Joseph A Couch.

But Mr Acciardo cautioned the authorities “have not determined that this is the individual that fired the weapon”.

In a video statement, London Mayor Randall Weddle said: “There are no deceased at this time. No one was killed from this, thankfully, but we ask that you continue to pray.”

He added: “We’re asking folks please do not go outside your home shooting because we might have first responders in that area.

“It’s important to know you are safe.

“We have multiple agencies in this community, in the city of London and in Laurel County.”

Trooper Scottie Pennington, of the Kentucky State Police, wrote on Facebook: “The suspect has not been caught at this time and we are urging people to stay inside.”

Kentucky governor Andy Beshear said in a post on the social media platform: “I am receiving initial reports from the Kentucky State Police and our Office of Homeland Security – together we are actively monitoring the situation and offering support in any way possible.

“Please pray for everyone involved.”

The highway, which was closed nine miles north of London following the shooting, reopened about three hours later, according to police.

US

Dick Cheney announces he will vote for Kamala Harris saying Donald Trump can ‘never be trusted with power again’

Published

2 days ago

September 7, 2024

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Dick Cheney announces he will vote for Kamala Harris saying Donald Trump can 'never be trusted with power again'

Former vice president and longtime Republican Dick Cheney has said he will vote for Kamala Harris in this year’s US election.

The 83-year-old issued a statement announcing he will be backing the Democratic candidate because her Republican rival Donald Trump can “never be trusted with power again”.

Mr Cheney has been an outspoken critic of Mr Trump, most notably during his daughter Liz Cheney’s unsuccessful campaign to hold on to her Wyoming seat in Congress in 2022.

Ms Cheney, who said she would be voting for Ms Harris on Wednesday, was the first to announce her father’s endorsement when she spoke to Mark Leibovich from The Atlantic magazine in an onstage interview at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin on Friday.

“Wow,” Mr Leibovich replied as the audience cheered.

In a statement issued later, Mr Cheney said that “in our nation’s 248-year history, there has never been an individual who is a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump”.

“He can never be trusted with power again,” he adds.

“As citizens, we each have a duty to put country above partisanship to defend our Constitution. That is why I will be casting my vote for Vice President Kamala Harris.”

Asked for comment after Ms Cheney announced her father’s voting intention, Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung said: “Who is Liz Cheney?”

The campaign confirmed Mr Cheung was being sarcastic by also pointing to a comment Ms Cheney posted online four years ago in which she called Ms Harris a “radical liberal”.

Mr Cheney, who served as vice president under Republican President George W Bush from 2001 to 2009, has made few if any public appearances over the past year or more.

He has dealt with heart issues since his 40s and underwent a heart transplant in 2012.

His statement on Friday was similar to a 2022 campaign ad for his daughter as she sought a fourth term as Wyoming’s lone congressperson.

In reference to the 6 January Capitol riots in 2021, he called Mr Trump a “coward” for trying to “steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him”.

The ad did little good for his daughter in a deep-red state that once held the Cheney family dear but is now thoroughly in Mr Trump’s corner.

Mr Cheney has been friends with Democrats over the years, but never supported one for president.

Both Cheneys backed Mr Trump during his successful 2016 presidential bid.

However, their support for him waned with Ms Cheney criticising Mr Trump’s foreign policy decisions while he was in office.

She later criticised him over the 6 January Capitol riots.

Meanwhile, while in office, Mr Trump had criticised the “endless wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq launched when Mr Cheney was vice president.

If either Cheney supported Mr Trump in 2020, they were quiet about it.

Several other top Republicans have also come out in support of Ms Harris ahead of this year’s election while some, including Senator Mitt Romney and former vice president Mike Pence, say they will not be voting for Mr Trump.

Of them, only Mr Romney, who is not seeking re-election, is still in office.