Three men and two women have died in a two-car crash in Co Louth on Saturday night, Irish police said.The Latest News from the UK and Around the World | Sky News
Month: November 2025
Many Labour MPs have been left shellshocked after the chaotic political self-sabotage of the past week.The Latest News from the UK and Around the World | Sky News
After a decisive election win, Zohran Mamdani will become mayor of New York on Jan. 1, 2026. His impressive grassroots campaign made big promises targeted at working-class New Yorkers: universal child care, rent freezes and faster, free buses.
Nevertheless, questions remain about whether Mamdani’s policies are economically and practically feasible.
Critics, from President Donald Trump to establishment Democrats, condemned his platform as radical and unrealistic. And The New York Times warns that Mamdani risks becoming the latest “big-city civic leader promising bold, progressive change” to “mostly deliver disappointment.” Among past offenders, it lists former New York Mayor Bill de Blasio.
But the comparison to de Blasio reveals a paradox.
As candidate for mayor in 2013, after the Occupy Wall Street movement against economic inequality, de Blasio campaigned on the core progressive tenet of tackling inequality through social welfare and the redistribution of wealth.
De Blasio’s promises – strikingly similar to Mamdani’s – included universal pre-K, rent freezes and a US$15 minimum wage. De Blasio delivered on all three.
So what was the “disappointment” the Times so confidently cites?
New Yorkers today remember de Blasio not for his policies but for his persistent unpopularity.
Over two terms, de Blasio alienated many New Yorkers and became a pariah among Democratic politicians. A committed progressive, he is perceived to have lost touch with the movements and communities that he hoped to lead.
Maybe the question is not whether Mamdani’s policies are realistic, but what it actually takes to win over citizens with a progressive vision. De Blasio himself cautions that it takes more than policy. He recently said that he “often mistook good policy for good politics, a classic progressive error.”
As a scholar of public policy, I think that policy achievements are neither self-evident nor self-sustaining. In my research on urban governance, I have found that it takes continuous political work to maintain local belief in urban progress and its leaders.
Based on an analysis of de Blasio’s two terms, I have identified three key respects in which his politics fell short.
Keep up the ground game
Many accounts of de Blasio’s unpopularity emphasize his personal flaws. Open and humorous in person, he was described by critics – and even some supporters – as stubborn, didactic and self-righteous. His designs on higher offices – first governor, then president – repeatedly backfired.
But for someone elected with the support of progressives, de Blasio’s bigger problem was losing touch with local progressive politics. He missed the rise of the anti-corporate left in Queens in 2018, led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – so much so that his team miscalculated and agreed to place an Amazon headquarters near her district.
And while de Blasio successfully ended his predecessor Mike Bloomberg’s racially discriminatory stop-and-frisk policing – feuding with the New York Police Department in the process – he later alienated progressives, including his own staff, with his tepid response to the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020.
AP Photo/Seth Wenig
The contours of progressive politics can shift under one’s feet. But as a veteran of street-level politics, Mamdani has the skills to respond to, and keep shaping, the city’s progressive movement. A dynamic “ground game” – on the model of his walk of the length of Manhattan – will likely remain as important in governing as it was in campaigning.
Protect local autonomy
In New York, hostility between the city’s mayor and the governor is a time-honored tradition. De Blasio and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo famously took hostility to the extreme.
Early in de Blasio’s first term, while seeking state funding for universal pre-K, de Blasio angered Cuomo by insisting on funding it through a tax on the city’s wealthy. Lacking necessary state approval, de Blasio eventually accepted a different state funding source. Universal pre-K became de Blasio’s cornerstone achievement, but the lasting feud with Cuomo remained a problem, even compromising the city’s plans to address the COVID-19 pandemic.
Critics also thought de Blasio could have been tougher on Big Tech. Letting a Google-backed consortium run the city’s free Wi-Fi program without meaningful oversight left the city with a privacy scandal and serious financial deficits.
In trying to attract Amazon’s headquarters, de Blasio’s administration offended New Yorkers’ sensibilities by allowing the company to bypass local development review processes. Though famously byzantine, these processes were created to ensure local control over development decisions. One could not simply bulldoze them aside.
In another case, and to his credit, de Blasio was quick to see the need to regulate Uber’s explosive growth, but it took years to overcome the company’s aggressive opposition campaign.
Though some progressives wish mayors ruled the world, U.S. cities have traditionally depended on states, the federal government and private companies for capital and resources. As I and others have shown, and de Blasio’s experiences attest, these outside players can undermine the progressive ideal of a city that seeks to redistribute economic benefit.
Mayoral powers are limited, but Mamdani can use his popularity to protect New York City’s capacity for self-government from outside interference, while cooperating strategically with the state when necessary. Gov. Kathy Hochul’s endorsement of Mamdani, driven by a shared interest in universal child care, was a start. United, they stand a better chance of defending local – city and state – autonomy against threats from President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, there is little evidence that it pays for cities to court private businesses with expensive incentives – a common but contested city practice. Instead, following mayors elsewhere, Mamdani might pressure tech companies to end union-busting practices and thereby ensure local workers’ right to organize.
AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura
Lead with the social compact
Though de Blasio delivered many progressive policies, he was unable to keep alive his campaign promise to end New York’s “tale of two cities” – the stark divide between extreme wealth and poverty.
A major, self-admitted failure was on homelessness, especially among single adults. Homelessness among this group grew despite increased spending on homeless services, creating the impression that de Blasio was insufficiently concerned with the welfare of his city’s most beleaguered residents.
Such inconsistencies loomed large in the public discussion. Over time, de Blasio’s administration could no longer convince the public that its energies were being channeled toward a coherent vision of progress.
I believe that urban governance is about clarifying the rights and responsibilities that urban residents can expect to have, what I think of as the social compact between the city and its subjects. De Blasio’s growing unpopularity weakened his ability to show that his policy achievements amounted to upholding a tacit progressive promise to guarantee basic economic rights for all.
Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo, father of losing mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo, often said: “You campaign in poetry. You govern in prose.” While campaigning, Mamdani offered a poetic vision for a new social compact in New York.
“City government’s job,” he has said, “is to make sure each New Yorker has a dignified life, not determine which New Yorkers are worthy of that dignity.”
Many commentators insist that Mamdani must now abandon poetry and deliver the policy. But that is only partly right.
New Yorkers will disagree about the details, but the election results suggest that they want to believe in the promise of a dignified life for all. Mamdani’s ability to lead New York City – and a wider post-Trump progressive movement – will be a matter of setting an example in rearticulating and reaffirming what that promise means, to him and to his city.
Nicole West Bassoff does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Politics + Society – The Conversation
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Jinger Duggar has an ominous prediction for the future.
The disturbingly anti-medicine Duggar daughter and her husband spoke about how their extended family continues to grow.
Apparently, Jim Bob is thinking about how many grandchildren he may soon have.
Jinger predicts that his grandbabies could be 100 strong one day. Jim Bob is projecting even larger numbers.
How many grandkids does Jinger Duggar think that Jim Bob will have?
On this week’s The Jinger and Jeremy Podcast episode, the eponymous hosts discussed Jana Duggar and Abbie Burnett’s shared sex reveal party.
“Today’s episode, we’ve got big news,” Jeremy told viewers. “There’s big news coming out of the Duggar sister baby world.”
He detailed: “Jana and Abbie announced the genders of their kids.”
Yes, Jana and husband Stephen Wissmann are expecting a son. John David Duggar and Abbie are expecting a daughter.
It isn’t uncommon in the Duggar world for siblings to be expecting at the same time. But for the twins to have pregnancies overlapping so closely was unusual.
“Oh yeah,” Jinger chimed in.
She predicted: “We easily could be at 100 grandkids for my parents super soon.”
Babies are cute, but when it comes to this family, the and counting (and counting on) have always been ominous.
Jinger went on to explain that “Because not all the kids are married.”
As it turns out, the family has been doing some very bleak-sounding math.
Jim Bob is expecting billions of Duggars one day
“Your dad sent this out the other day,” Jeremy Vuolo told wife Jinger Duggar, reading an email from Jim Bob.
“So this is assuming that every grandchild has five kids and then all of their grandchildren have five kids,” he read.
“So that’s assuming a lot,” he acknowledged.
“But listen to how quickly it adds up,” Jeremy continued. “In 14 generations, there could be 24 billion Duggar descendants.”
Jinger replied: “Oh my goodness. Wow.”
Math like that always sounds scary. But we should remember that it’s a numerical exercise, and not a description of human behavior.
Some of the Duggars will not have five children. And some of them will not have any children at all.
Fourteen generations would take centuries — even in a cult that marries off most of its members as young adults, before they’re actually ready for marriage or children.
Notably, centuries would also leave plenty of time for people to flee a fertility cult that wants numerous, fecund offspring and embrace families who care about people’s rights, personal growth, and happiness.
No matter what the world looks like in a couple hundred years, it will be very different from the world of today. We don’t have to fear a Duggarspawn army conquering humanity. Probably.
That dismal future is not inevitable
Just for the record, Jim Bob and Michelle do not yet have 100 grandchildren.
At the moment, the number is closer to 40. That’s nuts — that’s more than twice as many children as they had.
And it would be difficult at best for them to shower these grandchildren with equal love (and many Duggar critics do not believe that Jim Bob and Michelle are capable of earnest, healthy love).
The idea that the Duggar grandkids could more than double one day is possible. But not all of the Duggar children seems to be aiming for 5 offspring.
Yes, some are following their parents’ example. Josh, for example. But Jinger and Jeremy aren’t, and they aren’t the only Duggar couple to have a fairly traditional-looking family size.
Jinger Duggar Predicts 100 Jim Bob Grandbabies One Day Soon was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.
The Hollywood Gossip
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We have tragic news to report from the world of social media today:
Diana Areas, the famed bodybuilder and social media influencer, has passed away at the age of 39.
Authorities say Areas was found dead in her apartment complex on Thursday afternoon.
Areas had over 200,000 followers on Instagram, where she frequently posted fitness and nutrition content.
Areas was killed in tragic fall, early reports claim
Police have not yet revealed an official cause of death for Areas.
But early reports indicate that the popular influencer plunged to her death from the roof of her apartment building.
It’s unclear at this time if the fall was accidental or intentional.
We will have further updates as new information becomes available.
Diana Areas dedicated her life to helping others reach their goals
Diana dedicated her social media pages to “transforming bodies and minds” of her followers.
On her Instagram page, hundreds of followers have offered condolences to an influencer who touched so many lives during her tragically short time on earth.
“I’m sorry as we won’t have your genius anymore!” one commenter wrote (via The New York Post).
“Rest in peace, my friend. May your soul find peace there with our Father. We’re sorry we couldn’t help you,” another added.
Diana is just one of many influencers who have died young in recent months. There seems to be no apparent connection between the many tragedies that have affected social media this year.
Our thoughts go out to Diana’s loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts dial 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.
Diana Areas Cause of Death: Fitness Influencer Was 39 was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.
The Hollywood Gossip
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Thanks to his razor-sharp wit and trenchant political insights, Ben Dreyfuss has gained a large and devoted following on X (formerly Twitter).
But on Thursday night, the writer and son of screen legend Richard Dreyfuss departed from his usual lighthearted content to share a dark chapter from his family’s past.
In a series of tweets, Ben revealed that he and his siblings are estranged from their father, and the rift stems from an allegation directed toward Kevin Spacey.
As you’ll likely recall, numerous accusers have come forward with claims of being sexually assaulted by Spacey.
And in an unexpected turn of events, it seems that Spacey’s alleged crimes had a devastating effect on the Dreyfuss family.
“Everyone assumes my siblings and I are wealthy from our dad and we’re all a bit too uncomfortable to make it clear, but we have no money from my dad,” Ben wrote in tweets that have since been deleted (via USA Today).
“My dad has no money. If he did, we wouldn’t get it since we’ve been estranged ever since some complicated family drama to do with MeToo.”
Ben went on to reveal that the “complicated family drama” was directly tied to the scandal that ended Spacey’s career.
He explained that he was running his father’s Twitter account at the time, and he posted a statement about the allegations on Richard’s behalf.
“That tweet prompted someone to MeToo my dad. He blames us for that. This led to years of acrimony,” Ben continued.
Though the allegation about Spacey came as a shock to many, it’s not the first time that such a claim was made.
Writing for Buzzfeed in 2017, Harry Dreyfuss offered a detailed account of the abuse that he says took place when Spacey directed Richard Dreyfuss in a 2009 production of the play Complicit at the Old Vic Theatre in London.
“It happened one night when the three of us were alone in Kevin’s apartment rehearsing my father’s lines,” Harry wrote.
“My father didn’t see, and I didn’t tell him about the incident for many years. Instead, I spent the next nine years telling people the story at parties for laughs.”
At the time, Spacey denied any wrongdoing in a statement issued through his lawyer.
“Let me be clear, Mr. Spacey absolutely denies the allegations,” said attorney Bryan Freedman.
USA Today and other outlets say that they’ve reached out to Spacey for a comment on this week’s developments, but have received no response.
We will have further updates on this developing story as new information becomes available.
Kevin Spacey Molested Richard Dreyfuss’ Son, Alleged Victim’s Brother Claims was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.
The Hollywood Gossip
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Nina Dobrev appears to be going through it at the moment.
Two months after her unexpected breakup with Shaun White, The Vampire Diaries alum shared a social media message that seemingly alluded to the couple of five years’ broken engagement.
And her state of mind ever since it went down.
In a November 13 TikTok video set to Ariana Grande’s 2014 smash hit “Break Free,” Dobrev flipped off the camera (above) as she lip-synced, “If you want it, take it/I should have said it before.”
The 36-year-old then showed off her empty ring finger, mouthing to the words: Tried to hide it, fake it / I can’t pretend anymore.
It’s hard not to interpret this clip as someone reaching out from a dark place, especially after Dobrev wrapped up the video by scowling at the camera and flipping her middle finger again.
Not that we can blame her, of course.
“It was a mutual decision, and wasn’t an easy one, but it was made with love and a deep respect for one another,” a source told People Magazine previously of Dobrev and White going their separate ways.
Neither White nor Dobrev, who mostly kept their relationship out of the spotlight, have commented on the split. They were last seen out in public at the end of August… holding hands while running errands in Los Angeles.
We don’t know for certain when the celebrities decided to go their separate ways.
However, Dobrev walked the red carpet on September 7 at the Toronto International Film Festival without her 5-carat diamond engagement ring.
Not long before news of the pair’s split went viral, the actress shared a TikTok video in which she lip-synced to a sassy track about other women trying to “fix” a man. Interesting, huh?
“How do you sleep at night knowing people don’t like you?” Dobrev mouthed to the audio of the September 5 clip. “With no underwear, in case they wanna kiss my ass.
“What’s your advice for women trying to fix their man? Listen, Bob the Builder, he’s got 10 other women trying to fix him too, and you all look like a damn construction crew.”
As for any chatter that she’s dating Zac Efron?
After she and the High School Musical cast member were spotted vacationing with friends Miles Teller and his wife Keleigh Teller?
Dobrev told TMZ at the time that she and Efron were only friends, adding:
“I’m excited for the future and the only thing that’s guaranteed is change.”
Nina Dobrev Flips Off Camera, Says She Can’t “Fake It” After Shaun … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.
The Hollywood Gossip
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With all the recent controversy over the Epstein files, the Trump administration can scarcely afford another scandal at the moment.
So the MAGA crowd is probably not thrilled about the timing of Olivia Nuzzi’s allegations against Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
As you may recall, Nuzzi is the journalist who claimed that she had an affair with Kennedy during his 2024 presidential campaign.
Kennedy is married to actress Cheryl Hines, and Nuzzi was engaged to fellow journalist Ryan Lizza at the time.
Nuzzi was fired from New York magazine as a result of the ensuing scandal.
Her memoir, American Canto, won’t hit stores until December 2, but it’s already the talk of Washington.
The New York Times has obtained a copy of the book, and according to the newspaper’s recent profile of Nuzzi, readers looking for a salacious account of a forbidden romance will not be disappointed.
“She loved his eyes, ‘blue as the flame.’ She loved that ‘the sight of something as trivial as a rose’ could move him to tears. She loved his insatiable appetites and his ‘particular complications and particular darkness,’” reads the piece published on Friday.
“But she said ‘I love you’ only after he said it first. He called her ‘Livvy’ and wrote her poems. He said he wanted her to have his baby. He promised to take a bullet for her,” it continues.
Nuzzi also claims that Kennedy, a former heroin addict, still uses psychedelic drugs — including dimethyltryptamine, or DMT.
The potent substance is the active ingredient in the hallucinogen ayahuasca.
The fact that Kennedy is (allegedly) a user is not a total shock, as he’s espoused the use of DMT as a therapeutic tool.
“These are people who badly need some kind of therapy, nothing else is working for them,” RFK Jr. once told a House committee, according to the New York Post.
“This line of therapeutics has tremendous advantage if given in a clinical setting. And we are working very hard to make sure that that happens within 12 months.”
As for the other claims, however? Well, let’s just say RFK and his wife are accusing Nuzzi of having a very active imagination.
A spokesperson for the cabinet member insists that he “only met Olivia Nuzzi once in his life for an interview she requested, which yielded a hit piece.”
“I think you always have to consider the source, right?” Hines quipped on a recent podcast interview (via the New York Post). “So that’s where I start. And then it ends with a conversation with Bobby.”
Like many of the men in his famous family, RFK Jr. has a long history of infidelity.
His second wife accused Kennedy of being a “sexual deviant.” She took her own life not long after finding out about his many affairs.
We will have further updates on this developing story as new information becomes available.
Olivia Nuzzi Says RFK Jr. Smokes Powerful Psychedelic Drugs, Wanted Her to Have His Baby was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.
The Hollywood Gossip
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INDIANAPOLIS — President Donald Trump’s effort to force mid-decade redistricting suffered a major setback Friday, after Indiana’s GOP state Senate leader declared the chamber will not convene in December to redraw maps.
In response, Trump’s team has begun summoning Indiana lawmakers to meet with the president in the Oval Office as early as next week, according to two sources familiar with the request, including one who had fielded an invite over the phone Friday.
“Over the last several months, Senate Republicans have given very serious and thoughtful consideration to the concept of redrawing our state’s congressional maps,” Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray said in a statement, after conducting a private test vote on Friday afternoon with his caucus. “Today, I’m announcing there are not enough votes to move that idea forward, and the Senate will not reconvene in December.”
It’s a massive blow to the White House’s efforts to shore up a Republican House majority next year via redistricting, and comes from a state Trump easily won last November. It marks the fourth state where efforts have stalled despite pressure from Trump and his political team.
Bray’s announcement on Friday immediately incensed those in Trump’s orbit.
“Our party can no longer afford to harbor these gutless, self-serving traitors who stab us in the back while accomplishing absolutely nothing,” Trump ally Alex Bruesewitz said on X. “The entire MAGA movement will be mobilizing to Indiana to PRIMARY and OUST every last RINO blocking these essential reforms to RESCUE our nation, this will include the totally clueless and weak State Senate President.”
Vice President JD Vance traveled to Indiana several times and expended political capital on the Hoosier state effort, flying twice on Air Force Two here to court lawmakers, and he had welcomed Indiana lawmakers to the White House. Trump himself entertained Bray and state House Speaker Todd Huston in the Oval Office to discuss the matter in August.
Vance’s office did not immediately comment on the development.
And while Republican-backed efforts continue to stall across the country, Democrats are beginning to ramp up their efforts. After four GOP states redrew nine red-leaning seats — starting with Texas — California voters approved a ballot measure that could net Democrats five seats of their own. Virginia is poised to follow suit with two potential seats, and the party is ramping up its pressure on Maryland and Illinois.
It’s no sure thing yet — as some states are expected to move forward with redistricting in January — but the battle is looking increasingly likely to end in a draw.
GOP Gov. Mike Braun, who had called for a special session but cannot force a vote on the issue, called on the state’s Senate to “do the right thing and show up to vote for fair maps.”
“Hoosiers deserve to know where their elected officials stand on important issues,” Braun said in a statement.
One person close to the redistricting process, granted anonymity to discuss conversations that are not yet public, said that Bray’s description of the vote tally is not accurate.
“The House has the votes and the Senate is very close to having the votes,” the person said, adding that Bray “claims to be protecting his members, but the reality is that he’s hurting his members and the voters who elect them by betraying Republicans and lying to the public.”
Rep. Andre Carson (D-Ind.) — whose seat was likely to be redrawn — hailed the decision on Friday.
“Prayer, people, and partnerships power change,” Carson said. “Hoosiers do things differently. We’re about collaboration, not division. We’re about independent thinking — not taking orders from Washington. I want to thank Senator Bray and all the Republican and Democratic members of the Indiana Statehouse who held firm on Hoosier values. This is a win for all of us.”
Outside of Indiana, other GOP efforts are also struggling. In Kansas, Republican state House Speaker Dan Hawkins said earlier this month that his chamber does not have the two-thirds vote required to call a special session over Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. Hawkins responded to the disagreement in his caucus by stripping leadership posts from holdouts and has vowed to take the issue up during the January regular session.
Efforts in Nebraska and New Hampshire have also stalled, thanks to reluctant Republicans unafraid of White House threats.
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