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WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump's proposal that the former members of the House Jan. 6 committee be put in jail was resisted Tuesday by Rep. Bennie Thompson, the chair of the now-defunct committee. The Mississippi Democrat told reporters on Capitol Hill that the proposal is "absolutely wrong" and that the committee accomplished nothing "that violates the law." "Just because you disagree with the work of the committee," Thompson stated, there's no justification "to threaten those members of the committee with jail, so obviously that s his opinion." I'm at ease with the idea that, as members of Congress, we were carrying out our duties. As long as we carry out our duties, we have certain assurances, and I'm eager to enforce them," he continued. Representative Pete Aguilar, D-Calif....

A long time ago, I was employed as a retail employee in a sizable physical Lego store. Many of the numerous consumers that entered were searching for Lego presents to give to their loved ones. Regardless of who entered the store, we were able to locate a Lego kit that would suit their desires as a gift. This is due to Lego's extensive selection, which includes freeform brick sets, Disney Princess playboxes, copies of famous buildings, and much more. I've produced numerous gift guides for NBC Select since my time at the Lego shop ended years ago, and I've used both of those experiences to locate Lego gifts for a wide range of people of all ages. SKIP AHEAD: Top Lego presents for 2024 | Lego accessories for gifts | Why rely on NBC Select? Our top picks Best toddler Lego se...

Overnight, a wildfire in Malibu, California, spread to over 2,000 acres, forcing Pepperdine University to temporarily implement a shelter-in-place strategy and evacuate its students. The Los Angeles County Fire Department reports that the Franklin Fire started in the Malibu Canyon region just before 11 p.m. local time on Monday (2 a.m. ET on Tuesday). The fire breaks out while a number of Southern California regions are under red flag warnings due to low humidity, strong Santa Ana winds, and dry vegetation that makes them vulnerable to severe wildfires. The fire had spread to 2,200 acres and was completely uncontrolled by Tuesday morning at around 7 a.m. local time. The city of Malibu reports that the fire has extended across the Pacific Coast Highway, often referred to as Highway 1, in th...

Waiters and table bussers are still coming out ahead, but diners are reducing their gratuities. According to data released Tuesday by private-sector payroll processor ADP, base wages—the amount that employees are paid directly by their employers, before tips—rose 66% between January 2019 and September of this year. Gratuities increased by just 23%. Nearly 100,000 tip earners at full-service restaurants around the country had their paychecks examined for this study. As of September, the median hourly wage and tip income for restaurant employees was $23.88, which is a 28% increase since January 2019. The data indicates that these workers' overall income growth outpaced inflation by 3 percentage points, despite tips behind it by 2 percentage points, because consumer prices increased by 25% ov...

According to a new report by the department's internal watchdog, the Trump Justice Department secretly collected the phone and text message logs of 43 congressional staffers and two members of Congress in 2017 and 2018 in an effort to look into classified information leaks. This was a much more extensive investigation than was previously known. The DOJ did not act with political intent, according to Inspector General Michael Horowitz's report, but it did not adequately consider the constitutional separation of powers when it seized the communications records of lawmakers and staffers and subjected them to criminal investigations solely because their employment permitted them to access state secrets. Using subpoenas and other legal procedures, prosecutors were able to get the records from t...

In order to achieve its $1 billion profit growth target by 2027, Alaska Air Group intends to capitalize on the surge in demand for upscale travel. Less than a year after signing the agreement, Alaska concluded its $1.9 billion acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines in September, granting it access to wide-body aircraft including the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A330 as well as Pacific routes. The two brands function independently. On Hawaiian's Airbus A330-200s, the airline will begin nonstop service between its home hub of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and Tokyo's Narita International Airport in May. In October, it will begin service between Seattle and Seoul, South Korea's Incheon International Airport, Alaska announced Tuesday. Fares for the latter route will go on sale in early 20...

We don't always know the answers, but we have some folks on speed dial who do, so we're presenting to you our series FYI, in which experts discuss things like whether lip balm is terrible and how often to wash your hair. The black plastic spatula in the drawer in your kitchen? Maybe it's time to throw it out. There has been a lot of talk lately concerning the risks associated with using black plastic cooking tools, such as spoons and spatulas. The main argument is that using black plastic to stir food in pots and pans over heat might cause toxins to be released into your meal, which you will then consume. The use of unregulated recycled plastics in these cooking utensils may be the primary issue, according to one study. As a result, you might be purchasing things that contain flame retarda...

Overnight, a wildfire in Malibu, California, spread to over 2,000 acres, forcing Pepperdine University to evacuate and implement a six-hour shelter-in-place policy. The Los Angeles County Fire Department reports that the Franklin Fire started in the Malibu Canyon region at approximately 11 p.m. local time on Monday (2 a.m. ET on Tuesday). The fire breaks out while a number of Southern California regions are under red flag warnings due to low humidity, strong Santa Ana winds, and dry vegetation that makes them vulnerable to severe wildfires. The fire had spread to 2,200 acres and was completely uncontrolled by Tuesday morning at around 7 a.m. local time. At 3 a.m. local time, the city of Malibu reported that the fire had moved south down the Pacific Coast Highway (also called Highway 1) in ...

The Summary This was the Arctic s second-hottest year on record, according to a new NOAA report. The tundra has become a source of emissions, rather than a carbon sink, the authors said. The Arctic is heating up far faster than places at lower altitudes as melting ice reflects less radiation back to space. It was merely the second-hottest year on record in the Arctic. Concerningly, when permafrost melts and releases methane, the tundra in the area has changed from being a carbon sink to a source of emissions. This will just increase the quantity of gases that trap heat into the atmosphere, which will lead to additional warming. In the region of the world where global warming is most severe, the results, which were released Tuesday in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric A...

According to Dr. Carl Fichtenbaum, a clinical medicine professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, wearing a face mask in public is one of the greatest methods to prevent contracting and transmitting diseases including COVID-19, the flu, RSV, and the common cold. It can be difficult to decide which kind to use, though; you can use a respirator like a N95 or KN95, a disposable mask, or a reusable cloth mask. According to Dr. Sharon Nachman, head of the pediatric infectious diseases division at Stony Brook Children's Hospital, the best mask is ultimately the one you choose to wear. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the best protection is provided by a respirator. However, she asserts that donning a throwaway mask is preferable to doing nothing at...