A suspect in the murder of the CEO of UnitedHealthcare faces murder charges. For influential seats on House committees, younger Democrats are competing with more experienced legislators. is the rationale behind the New York Mets’ $765 million payment to Juan Soto.
What to know today is as follows.
Suspect charged with murder in UnitedHealthcare CEO killing
Hours after being taken into custody in a Pennsylvania McDonald’s, the man suspected of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was charged with murder in New York. According to online court documents, Luigi Mangione, 26, was charged with one crime of murder, three counts of criminal possession of a weapon, and one count of possession of a forged instrument.
In Pennsylvania, Mangione was charged separately with three misdemeanors: tampering with documents or identification, possessing instruments of crime, and giving false identification to law enforcement, and two felonies: forgery and carrying a handgun without a license.
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About 240 miles from New York City, in Altoona, Pennsylvania, Mangione was discovered at a McDonald’s after a staff member alerted the authorities to a suspicious individual. According to authorities, Mangione carried a gun that was similar to the one used in the deadly shooting, a gun silencer, and a phony ID that bore the same name as the one the accused shooter used at a hostel in New York City. According to Jessica Tisch, commissioner of the New York Police Department, detectives also discovered a handwritten document that reflects his thought and intent. Mangione seemed to have animosity toward corporate America, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenney.
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Mangione, a Maryland native, seems to have a big online presence after graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 2020. He wrote a review of Ted Kaczynski’s book, the Unabomber Manifesto, on the book review website Goodreads. Mangione retweeted messages about artificial intelligence, masculinity, and health on X, focusing on what he perceived as the shortcomings of contemporary society.Here are some additional details we know about the suspect.
And a friend who played in the same Discord group as Mangionerecalled playing a game called Among Us,in which some players are assigned to be assassins while trying to avoid suspicion from other players. “I just thought it was really ironic that we were playing this game and there might be a real killer among us,” the companion remarked.
Younger Dems eye powerful House committee positions
Next week, a few high-profile contests will be widely followed when Democrats choose the leaders of their House committees. In the race to become the top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, Rep. Gerry Connolly, 74, is facing off against Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 35. After his campaign forced Rep. Jerry Nadler, 77, to withdraw from the contest, Rep. Jamie Raskin, 61, is set to take over as the Democratic leader on the Judiciary Committee. Raskin and Ocasio-Cortez are part of an expanding group of House Democrats challenging seasoned veterans for influential positions. The Agriculture and Natural Resources Committees are experiencing the same issue.
Although seniority has always been a major factor in choosing Democratic rank-and-file members to lead their committees, younger Democrats have learned from the Biden scandal that sometimes it’s necessary to push out their elders, as one Democrat in the Biden administration put it. Some seasoned MPs support the idea of having fresh talent in senior roles. However, one Democratic committee staffer cautioned that a surge of younger members might also overwhelm committees with institutional expertise.
More Trump transition and politics news:
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Democratic governors at an annual gathering this week in Los Angeles agree they need to shift their focus. It starts with
how they react to Trump
and his upcoming administration.
-
Trump went the more traditional route when selecting agency vet Caleb Vitello to lead Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a decision that will likely
help Trump implement his immigration agenda quickly
.
-
Republican National Committee Treasurer KC Crosbie
is running for RNC co-chair
to replace Lara Trump, who announced Sunday night she is stepping down from the post.
Regime collapse in Syria also a blow to Iran
The collapse of Bashar al-Assad s Syrian regime represents a devastating defeat for Iran, the latest in a string of setbacks that have punctured long-held assumptions in the West about Tehran s military prowess. Russia and Iran supported Syria after a huge revolt against Assad in 2011, but this time Iran was taken by surprise at a critical juncture. Its military has been depleted by Israeli air raids and its proxy forces in Lebanon decimated from fighting with Israel, current and former U.S. officials said. So when the rebels pressed ahead this time, there was no concerted effort to stop them.
The dramatic events over the weekend markeda fundamental change in the equation of the entire Middle East,a senior Biden administration official said. Iran s weakened position has challenged prevailing assumptions in Washington and other capitals about Iran s power and resilience, as well as expectations about how a direct clash between Israel and Iran would play out, former U.S. intelligence officials and experts said.
More coverage of Syria:
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Jubilant Syrians
toppled statues, honked horns, waved flags and cheered in the streets to celebrate Assad s ouster.
-
The extremist past of Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, who led the rebellion that toppled Assad s brutal regime,
casts a shadow over his future
.
-
The U.S. is engaged in efforts to bring home Austin Tice, the American journalist who disappeared 12 years ago. His family told NBC News Lester Holt that
they have renewed hope
that he will finally return home.
Read All About It
-
A lawyer for Shawn Carter, the hip-hop mogul known as Jay-Z, asked a judge to
deny a request to remain anonymous
from the woman who accused him of raping her when she was 13.
-
A jury acquitted Daniel Penny
in the chokehold death of Jordan Neely
, whose final moments on a New York City subway train were captured in a bystander video that drew national attention.
-
Disney influencer Dominique Brown died at the age of 34 after reportedly experiencing a severe allergic reaction
at a holiday brand event in Los Angeles
.
-
Polarization
is Merriam-Webster s 2024 word of the year. Several other words being considered were associated with politics.
Staff Pick:
How the New York Mets can justify a $765 million contract
Outfielder Juan Soto s 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets is set to be the most expensive in MLB history and instantly vaults him ahead of three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani as the game s highest-paid player. Yet Soto is not exactly a household name, and he hasn t even stayed on a single team for more than four full seasons. So how was he able to get this bag? A simple answer: Mets owner Steve Cohen is no ordinary owner,and his approach to the team is rare.Rob Wile, business reporter
NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified
Still have a long list of gifts to buy? NBC Select s editors put together thebest gifts for herandfor him. Plus, check out a few of thebest sales on the internet this week.
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