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Jordan Chiles is doubling down on her efforts to reclaim her Olympic medal that was stripped after a controversial ruling saying, "that bronze medal was given to me in the right way." The 23-year-old gymnast told NBC’s “TODAY” show Monday how it had "honestly been a very difficult time" since the Olympics wrapped, as she and her lawyers have pursued legal avenues to have her medal officially returned. While Chiles said she still physically has the medal, the official results show that she finished in 5th. “It's hard to tell yourself everything is going to be fine when we literally didn’t do anything wrong. Everything was in the time that it needed to be," Chiles said in her first live TV interview on the ordeal. “For them to come back and say it was four secon...

President-elect Donald Trump has tapped House Republican Conference chair and longtime ally Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., to serve as ambassador to the United Nations, a Trump transition official confirmed to NBC News on Monday. The nomination is Trump's first Cabinet pick for his second term in the White House. “I am honored to nominate Chairwoman Elise Stefanik to serve in my Cabinet as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Elise is an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter,” Trump told the New York Post, which received a statement from the president-elect. The news was first reported by CNN . NBC News has reached out to Stefanik's office for comment. Stefanik, 40, has been a staunch defender of Israel in its response to Hamas' Oct. 7 attacks as well...

Trump critics fear he may enter office looking for retribution. An historic drought is fueling a rare November wildfire in the Northeast. And a dramatic comeback on “Sunday Night Football.” Here’s what to know today. Trump critics worry he’ll target them for retribution Olivia Troye, a former Trump administration official who denounced him in a speech at the Democratic convention in August, was boarding a plane recently when a passenger looked at her and said: “Your days are numbered.” Not wanting to escalate a bad situation, she said nothing, but the troubling encounter is emblematic of the hostility she’s faced as a recognizable and vocal critic of Trump. “I’m worried that I’ll be targeted by him and a lot of people in his circle,” Troye said in an interview. “They ...

Firefighters from coast to coast are battling wildfires even as the country begins to prepare for the holiday season, with fires in New Jersey covering thousands of acres in tinderbox conditions created by a historic drought. In California, the so-called Mountain Fire in Ventura County has grown to 20,000 acres, or 31 square miles, and was only 26% contained Sunday night, the Ventura County Fire Department said in an update. Threats remains there to critical infrastructure, highways and communities as the fire "continues to creep and smolder in steep rugged terrain," a public information officer said. The blazes in the Northeast have claimed at least one life: Dariel Vasquez, an 18-year-old New York Parks employee, was killed Saturday by a falling tree while battling a fire in...

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Sunday that his country has defeated Hezbollah and that eliminating its leader Hassan Nasrallah was the crowning achievement. “Now it is our job to continue to put pressure in order to bring about the fruits of that victory,” Katz said during a ceremony at Israel’s foreign ministry. Katz said Israel is not interested in meddling in internal Lebanese politics as Israel has “learned our lessons,” but that he hoped an international coalition would capitalize on this opportunity politically and that Lebanon would join other countries in normalizing relations with Israel . Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's spokesperson said Monday that the Israeli leader did approve the pager attacks that dealt a deadly blow to...

TOKYO — Lawmakers in Japan voted Monday to retain the embattled Shigeru Ishiba as prime minister despite his long-governing party’s di s mal s howing in parliamentary elections last month. Ishiba, 67, became prime minister of the key U.S. ally on Oct. 1 shortly after winning the leadership race for the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has governed Japan almost uninterrupted since the end of World War II. But his future in the role was in question after the party suffered its worst election defeat in more than a decade, losing support from voters angry about corruption scandals and the rising cost of living. That left the LDP without a parliamentary majority, but Ishiba was nonetheless able to retain his hold on power and will rule w...

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James recorded his second straight triple-double, and Anthony Davis scored 22 points before leaving with an eye injury in the third quarter of the Los Angeles Lakers ‘ 123-103 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night. Davis was hit in the face by Jakob Poeltl’s off hand while he blocked the Toronto center’s dunk attempt with 5:16 left in the third quarter. The nine-time All-Star, who began the night leading the NBA in scoring, was ruled out after he went to the locker room. James had 19 points, a season-high 16 assists and 10 rebounds in his third triple-double already this season and the 115th of his matchless 22-year career. Austin Reaves scored 27 points for the Lakers, who improved to 5-0 at home. Los Angeles also beat Toronto for the s...

British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has pulled his new children’s book from shelves, saying he was “devastated” by the offense he caused following criticism that the book stereotyped Indigenous Australians . The book, “Billy and the Epic Escape,” was first published in May and drew outrage in Australia where Indigenous leaders described it as trivializing the community's history and diversity as well as perpetuating harmful stereotypes against them. The book’s publisher Penguin Random House U.K. said it was withdrawing the book from sale. “It is clear that our publishing standards fell short on this occasion, and we must learn from that and take decisive action,” the publisher said Monday in an emailed statement. Oliver, who was in Australia promoting his c...

Pop megastar Taylor Swift was the big winner at the MTV Europe Music Awards on Sunday, picking up four trophies at the Manchester ceremony in England, which included a tribute to late singer Liam Payne. Swift, who had led nominations with seven nods, won best artist, best video for her collaboration with Post Malone “Fortnight”, best live and best U.S. act. Currently in North America for her Eras tour, she thanked fans via a video message. “The fact that you have honored the tour, everything that’s happened with the album this year, the video, it’s just unbelievable,” said Swift, who released her latest album “The Tortured Poets Department” in April. South African singer Tyla followed with three prizes — best Afrobeats, best R&B and best African act. The aw...

Dutch police said they took away more than 300 pro-Palestinian protesters who ignored a ban on demonstrations in Amsterdam on Sunday and detained 50 more following clashes involving Israeli soccer fans last week. Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in the capital’s Dam Square, chanting “Free Palestine” and “Amsterdam says no to genocide,” in reference to the Gaza war. Israel denies allegations of genocide in its more than year-long offensive against Palestinian militant group Hamas . After a local court ratified the city council’s ban, police moved in, instructing protesters to leave and rounding up more than 100 of them. Police said they removed 340 people from the protest area by putting them on buses and dropping them off on the outskirts of the city. Anoth...