By JONATHAN J. COOPER and ALI SWENSON, Associated Press
PHOENIX (AP) — Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will speak Friday “about the present historical moment and his path forward,” his campaign announced Wednesday, fueling growing speculation that Kennedy could drop out and support Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Kennedy’s running mate openly discussed the possibility on a podcast this week, saying the campaign was considering a move to “join forces” with Trump to limit the election chance of Kamala Harris, whose Democratic convention winds up Thursday night in Chicago.
The move would have once seemed unthinkable for Kennedy, a Democrat for most of his life and — as the nephew of President John F. Kennedy and the son of Robert F. Kennedy — a member of a beloved Democratic dynasty.
Last month, during the Republican National Convention, Kennedy’s son posted and then quickly deleted a video showing a phone call between Kennedy and Trump, in which the former president appeared to try to talk Kennedy into siding with him.
Kennedy will give a speech in Phoenix, hours before Trump is scheduled to hold a rally in neighboring Glendale. A spokesperson for Kennedy, Stefanie Spear, declined to say whether he planned to drop out or why he chose Arizona for his speech.
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After leaving the Democratic primary to run as an independent, Kennedy built an unusually strong base of support for someone running without the backing of a major party. It was unclear exactly where his support was coming from, which worried Republicans and Democrats alike.
But since President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign and Democrats coalesced around Vice President Harris as their nominee, Kennedy’s rise has been stunted. It looks increasingly unlikely that he will be able to make the debate stage when Trump and Harris face off next month, a moment Kennedy counted on for momentum and legitimacy. His campaign finances have also been strained.
The news comes a little over a week since a New York judge ruled that Kennedy should not appear on the ballot in the state because he listed a “sham” address on nominating petitions. Kennedy has appealed, but has faced several similar challenges around the country.
On Wednesday, he was in a courtroom in a suburb of New York City, testifying in a trial for another ballot suit in the state, this one backed by the Democratic National Committee, that challenges the signatures collected by his campaign.
During a break in the court proceedings, Kennedy declined to answer questions from reporters about whether he was dropping out.
He’s also facing a likely legal challenge in Arizona, where last week he submitted signatures that may have been collected by a super PAC that supports him, which Kennedy’s critics say is illegal coordination between a candidate and an independent political group.
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Swenson reported from New York. Associated Press writer Cedar Attanasio contributed from Mineola, New York.
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Richard N. Velotta | Las Vegas Review-Journal (TNS)
LAS VEGAS — Harry Reid International Airport had the most flight delays of any major U.S. airport in the 2023 fiscal year, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a recent report.
The FAA, which uses data collected from air traffic controllers nationwide, said there were 29,763 flight delays at Reid that fiscal year — more than 9,500 more delays that the second-highest airport, New York’s LaGuardia International Airport. The Reid total also is more than twice the number recorded in the 2022 fiscal year and more than five times greater than the number averaged between fiscal years 2017-19.
A Reid representative said that many factors come into play for the numerous flight delays at Las Vegas’ airport, including a major runway renovation.
“It includes weather conditions, not just in Southern Nevada but across the nation that can create a domino effect with flights arriving and departing at LAS,” said Monika Bertaki, a spokeswoman for the Clark County Department of Aviation.
“Commercially, we’ve had a post-pandemic influx in air traffic at LAS, all while the number of aircraft that can take off and land with a particular configuration remains the same,” she said. “To add to that, the influx of general aviation traffic to the region during peak days and times competes for the number of departures per hour. Lastly, in the spring and summer of 2023, we completed runway improvements to reconfigure four taxiways and shift two runways. During the construction on the runways, portions were closed that reduced the number of departures and arrivals at a given hour.”
Among 30 core airports nationwide, Reid International had the worst performance involving delays of 15 minutes or more. The four worst airports behind Reid were LaGuardia (20,019 delays in fiscal 2023), Newark, New Jersey’s Liberty International (13,729 delays), San Francisco International (12,303) and Denver International (9,570).
The least number of delays in fiscal 2023: Salt Lake City International with 231 delays.
The FAA reported a total 153,312 delays among the 30 core airports.
While delays at Reid International have soared over the past year, the number of delays nationwide have declined by 50.6% from a year ago, the FAA said.
On-time performance has improved even as the number of flight operations nationwide has increased, the FAA said.
The report said the number of operations rose by 3.8% to 12.2 million. An arrival and a departure each count as an operation.
Ten U.S. airports, including Reid, have seen the number of operations grow beyond pre-pandemic 2017-19 levels. Airports that have exceeded pre-pandemic levels include Dallas-Fort Worth, Denver, Reid, New York’s John F. Kennedy, Phoenix Sky Harbor, Orlando, Honolulu, Washington’s Ronald Reagan National, and Tampa.
Reid is fifth among airport operations with 603,015 trailing Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta (762,526 operations), Chicago’s O’Hare International (716,920), Dallas-Fort Worth (675,807) and Denver (647,440).
The FAA has five categories showing the types of delays at the nation’s airports. The agency reported in fiscal 2023 that weather caused 54.5% of delays, traffic volume 21.5%, equipment 6.2%, runway issues 17.8%, and “other” 0.1%.
Reid also experienced the ninth highest number of cancellations at 3,515 in fiscal year 2023. The top airport for cancellations was Denver (6,837) followed by LaGuardia (6,672), Newark (6,440), Dallas-Fort Worth (6,043), Chicago O’Hare (5,669), Atlanta (4,138), New York JFK (4,125), Orlando (3,932) then Reid. The airport with the least number of cancellations: Honolulu (865).
MADELINE ISLAND, Wis. — England’s ancient Arthurian legend is alive and well in northern Wisconsin, albeit with a slight twist.
Those who read Le Morte d’Arthur by 16th century author Sir Thomas Malory will remember that it was prophesied King Arthur, armed with his mighty sword Excalibur, would return from the isle of Avalon at the hour of Britain’s greatest need.
The Isle of Avalon, a mythical spot in the southwest of England, is a long way from the Apostle Islands off the shore of Lake Superior. Every year, thousands of visitors flock to the 22 islands that make up Apostle Islands National Lakeshore to admire the unusual formations of craggy rocks sculpted by nature into a labyrinth of caves, delicate arches and vaulted chambers.
But it’s a safe bet that many of them are unfamiliar with the Ojibwe legend that tribal elders buried sacred scrolls somewhere inside the network of caves that would elude discovery by all but a little boy – who would presumably return one day to guide his people.
I learned the legend from Ojibwe tribal member Mike Wiggins, site director of the Madeline Island Museum, a fascinating repository of artifacts celebrating all the cultures (Ojibwe, French, English and American) who have called this largest of the Apostle Islands home.
An ambitious two-year museum exhibition, “Passages: Ojibwe Migration to the Place Where the Food Grows on the Water,” chronicles the tribe’s journey through the eyes of their ancestors.
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After getting a thorough introduction to the region by Wiggins, I went by boat to see the chiseled formations of Devil’s Island with their honeycomb of caves but, alas, found nothing to indicate the scrolls’ whereabouts.
Madeline Island Museum is only one of the 11 sites managed by the Wisconsin Historical Society.
These sites range from the first to be established (1954), Villa Louis, a fur-trader’s mansion in Prairie du Chien, to the newest addition, Black Point Estate and Gardens in Lake Geneva, a Chicago beer baron’s mansion brought under the Historical Society umbrella in 2005.
I wasn’t able to get to Villa Louis, but I did make it to Black Point, and the adage “getting there is half the fun” was never more true.
The only way for most people to get there is by boat (they do have alternate arrangements for disabled guests; you’ll soon learn why), and the 90-minute round-trip cruise took me past the palatial summer homes of early Chicago titans of industry.
When he built Black Point in 1888, Conrad Seipp wanted a private retreat where he could relax with his family. He discouraged “drop-ins” by erecting it atop a forested hill, where a determined visitor must make his/her way from the boat dock up a winding staircase of 120 steps.
It’s worth the huffing and puffing. The 8,000-square-foot mansion is a fine example of Queen Anne/Victorian-style architecture. The interior is equally impressive with features such as stained-glass windows and an exquisite blue tiled fireplace in the sitting room.
And going down is much easier than the climb up.
Raspberry School at Old World Wisconsin was built in 1896. (Rebecca Werner/Wisconsin Historical Society/TNS)
Old World Wisconsin’s 1860s Pomeranian immigrant farm. (Courtesy Wisconsin Historical Society/TNS)
Old World Wisconsin Four Mile House. The historic site is casually known as the Williamsburg of Wisconsin. (Courtesy Wisconsin Historical Society/TNS)
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Raspberry School at Old World Wisconsin was built in 1896. (Rebecca Werner/Wisconsin Historical Society/TNS)
The third stop on my historical tour was Old World Wisconsin, a collection of structures moved from their original locations throughout the state to the 600-acre site in the community of Eagle.
Adjacent to the Kettle Moraine State Forest, Old World Wisconsin was begun as part of America’s Bicentennial Project in 1976.
You’ll need comfortable shoes as touring more than 60 structures depicting 19th century rural life in the nation’s heartland requires a lot of walking.
Costumed interpreters invite visitors to shake hands with history in buildings such as Four Mile Inn, built in 1853 as a stagecoach stop and tavern; the 1876 general store which once sold everything from bolts of cloth to gunpowder (today’s visitors will have to settle for gunpowder tea), and the one-room 1900 Raspberry Schoolhouse, which, ironically was built in 1896 and could be mistaken for a “Little House on the Prairie” set.
You can learn how to make coffeecake from a recipe dating to 1883; watch a weaver at her loom at the Pomeranian Immigrant Farm, and learn the heritage of Pomeranian, Hessian, German, Scandinavian and African-American settlers in their respective villages.
You need an entire day to thoroughly explore Wisconsin’s version of Colonial Williamsburg.
History doesn’t stop here
Wisconsin is serious about its history as witness plans for the opening of the state-of-the-art History Center in the capital city of Madison in 2027. But who says history has to be just events from the distant past?
If you book a stay at the 4-Star Grand Geneva Resort & Spa, you’ll find activities ranging from golf on two championship courses to a full-service spa and elegant dining in both the Geneva Chophouse and Ristorante Brissago.
At the 4-Star Grand Geneva Resort & Spa, you’ll find activities ranging from golf on two championship courses to a full-service spa and elegant dining in both the Geneva Chophouse and Ristorante Brissago. (Travel Wisconsin/TNS)
Black Point Estate and Gardens in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, is a Chicago beer baron’s mansion brought under the Historical Society umbrella in 2005. (Courtesy Wisconsin Historical Society/TNS)
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At the 4-Star Grand Geneva Resort & Spa, you’ll find activities ranging from golf on two championship courses to a full-service spa and elegant dining in both the Geneva Chophouse and Ristorante Brissago. (Travel Wisconsin/TNS)
What you won’t find is much evidence — except for the hidden bunny logo across from the Chophouse — that the Grand Geneva now occupies what was the first Playboy Club Resort in the United States.
If you’re looking for history with a hot meal, you’ll do no better than the Duck Inn Supper Club outside Lake Geneva in the town of Delavan.
Originally built in 1920 during Prohibition, guests had to covertly “duck in” and “speak easy” to avoid detection from government officials. A trap door (still in existence) led to a basement where gambling and drinking went on, and rumor has it that Al Capone, who owned a property on Lake Geneva, was a frequent visitor.
Go ahead and order a Brandy Old-Fashioned, Wisconsin’s official state cocktail. No one will prohibit you these days.
A view of the town of Bayfield, Wisconsin, from Bayfield Harbor. The walkable town is chock full of galleries, shops and one-of-a-kind restaurants. (Sigrid Knutson/Provided photo/TNS)
OK … enough history
Even the most interesting history requires the occasional break. You’ll find no better spot to chill than the lakeside town of Bayfield, the gateway to Madeline Island. This walkable town is chock full of galleries, shops and one-of-a-kind restaurants such as the St. James Social.
Located in a newly opened boutique hotel, it lives up to its name. The art-filled lobby/restaurant, described by the owners as a social lounge, is the place to mix and mingle.
The chef’s menu, which changes weekly, offers a selection of small plates, artisan pizzas, entrees and desserts.
Passages Exhibit at Madeline Island Museum, which is a fascinating repository of artifacts celebrating all the cultures (Ojibwe, French, English and American) who have called this largest of the Apostle Islands home. (Courtesy Wisconsin Historical Society/TNS)
If you’re looking for unique lodging, no place compares to Queen’s View Bed-and-Breakfast.
Filled to the brim with antiques and collectibles, the Queen Anne-style house was built in 1892 and has a lovely porch overlooking the gardens and plunge pool, with a bird’s eye view of Lake Superior on the horizon.
You’ll feel like you’re spending “a night at the museum,” and you’ll enjoy the antics of the “assistant manager” Coco Bean, a feisty Shih Tzu/bichon mix.
With today’s move toward more authentic travel experiences, a venture into heartland history could be just the ticket.
For more information, go to wisconsinhistory.org or travelwisconsin.com.
The River Falls High School football team has never spent less time on the practice field ahead of its season opener, which is Thursday at Wisconsin Rapids, than this year.
And that’s a good thing. Because less can indeed be more if you’re working with abundance. That requires some explanation.
The Wildcats had 87 players in the high school program in Ryan Scherz’s first year as head coach in 2021. That number has ballooned to 125 this year. Fewer than 20 of those are seniors, an indication of the groundswell of participation that has been building in the younger ranks.
For that, Scherz credits the work done at the youth levels. River Falls plays small-team flag football only through the sixth grade, a switch in strategy devised by the high school coaches to promote participation. The middle school program is also growing in strength. That all funnels more and more kids to the higher grade levels.
Pictured at practice at River Falls High School on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, the River Falls football program has experienced a numbers boom in recent years, peaking at 125 players in the high school program this fall. (Jace Frederick / Pioneer Press)
Scherz then noted the strong culture built in the high school program, and added the success in recent years. Excluding the 2020 COVID year, the Wildcats have reached the playoffs in five straight seasons, its own form of promotion.
That’s a big reason why that success is seemingly building off itself. The boost in numbers is paying off in a major way specifically this season.
For the first time in Scherz’s tenure, River Falls will deploy a two-platoon system with very limited crossover between offensive and defensive personnel. Offensive players play offense, and vice versa. It’s a common approach at the largest schools, but River Falls is a Division 2 program in Wisconsin. A school that size sporting this quantity of players is a hard-earned luxury.
The Wildcats are already reaping the benefits. Senior defensive back Preston Johnson noted the sophomores on the team are progressing far more rapidly than they do in most camps. Defensively, senior lineman Lincoln McCarty said the coaching staff has been able to get more complex with schemes and responsibilities, because there’s simply more time and focus committed to that side of the ball.
In the past, a two-hour practice may have featured 50 minutes of offense and 50 minutes of defense. Now, the majority of that session is dedicated to learning and working on a player’s specific side of the ball.
That efficiency has also allowed for less time on the practice field, as things are getting picked up in short order. So players are fresher and likely more enthusiastic.
Last season, the Wildcats struggled at times to get stops. Preston Johnson noted that was often due to lapses in discipline, the volume of which everyone expects to decrease this fall. Part of that is a product of experience gained. River Falls was a young team a year ago, featuring many inexperienced sophomore and junior contributors who now sport a firm grasp of the game.
“A lot of these kids have already played a lot of football. So the Day 1 installs for them are like old hat,” Scherz said. “Now you can get to some more advanced stuff and get better at the stuff you really want to do, and that’s what I think we’ve seen for the most part over the past two and a half, three weeks.”
But the overall substitution and practice approach is also a key contributor to the team’s expected advancement.
“They can seep into the itty patches of things and get it fixed up,” McCarty said. “We’re farther ahead right now than we were last year. Study-wise, when we go through the things and study over it, they know exactly what their keys are to do. … I feel like a lot fewer small mess-ups are going to happen on defense.”
The first-team defense is also getting invaluable reps against the first-team offense on a near daily basis, which cannot happen if there’s overwhelming crossover of players between the two units.
McCarty said the Wildcats’ offense is “full of killers.” Senior tight end Eli Johnson, an Iowa commit, noted that side of the ball is indeed “looking good.” Working against that offense has forced the defense to make strides to keep pace.
“I can see the defense a little bit, and I feel like the defense is coming together nicely, too,” Eli Johnson said. “I feel like we have all the pieces.”
Pictured at practice at River Falls High School on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024, Wildcats senior tight end Eli Johnson is an Iowa commit. (Jace Frederick / Pioneer Press)
Indeed, River Falls appears to have that golden combination of depth and talent. Along with Eli Johnson, there are a number of other college-level players. Junior offensive lineman Samuel Simpson, who was all-conference as a sophomore, has offers from Kansas and Wisconsin.
“We have more speed than we’ve had in awhile,” Scherz said. “And we’re pretty big. Like (the offensive line) is big and physical and athletic.”
Preston Johnson said Scherz has told the group this is “the most talented team we’ve had since he can remember.” That has the Wildcats thinking big. The one thing missing from the program’s recently growing resume is a deep playoff run.
McCarty said many players have mentioned a “14-game season.” Game No. 14 would be the state championship.
“I think that’s obviously our goal if everybody stays locked in,” Preston Johnson said. “I think we can beat anybody in the state.”
They certainly have the numbers to do so, fulfilling the long-term vision Scherz and Co. have had for the program.
“We just want to get as many of our athletes on the field as possible, because we feel like we have a lot of good ones,” Scherz said. “Building a program with this many kids, it’s certainly a huge shift. It’s awesome. But it’s like, ‘Oh, we have way more kids.’ That means everything is a bit more. But yeah, to compete at the level we want to compete at, I think these are the kinds of numbers that we need.”
