20 Oct 2023

Rajon Rondo loves Jrue Holiday trade, discusses future plans in surprise visit to Celtics practice

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Rajon Rondo got an unusually timed phone call recently. It was around 3 a.m. His former teammate Paul Pierce was on the other line.

“He was like, ‘They want us back.’ I’m like, ‘Hello?’” Rondo said.

Pierce was talking about the Celtics, and specifically coach Joe Mazzulla, who sent out an email to all the franchise’s alumni with an open invitation to practice. Pierce and several others have already returned. Rondo got the email, and with a little nudging from Pierce, he took up the opportunity with a surprise visit to Friday’s practice at the Auerbach Center.

“You do that in a lot of college programs where alumni come back,” Rondo said. “As a pro, you don’t do it as much because guys get traded to so many different teams and it’s the NBA. So to get that email was very welcoming and humbling at the same time.”

Rondo, who played the first nine seasons of his career with the Celtics before being traded in 2015, was excited to check out the Auerbach Center for the first time. He used Friday as an opportunity to talk basketball, catch up with old friends and briefly stop by with the media to share his thoughts on these Celtics.

Rondo, like many, is very impressed with the championship favorites and was a big fan of their trade for Jrue Holiday, who he played with during his one season with the New Orleans Pelicans.

“I love the Jrue Holiday pickup,” Rondo said. “He’s one of my favorite teammates I’ve ever played with all-time and I’m excited for you guys to see what he can bring night in, night out. …

“Just his mentality, his mindset, his professional approach to the game, and just what he brings out there on the court. He does a lot of intangibles, he’s a very unselfish guy, and he’s fun to be around. But he’s a winner. He’s a competitor.”

Rondo had not been around this Celtics team long enough to compare them to the 2008 championship team, but there is another former teammate of his who’s now on the coaching staff in Sam Cassell who he thinks will be a huge benefit as they chase a title this season.

“A lot. He helped me the year we won the championship in 2008,” Rondo said. “He was a very vocal veteran for me on the team, a guy that I always still call to this day for advice. So the guys having him around is going to be big for them.”

The 37-year-old Rondo has not played in an NBA game since 2022 when he was with the Cavaliers, and while he did not admit if he was officially retired, he’s clearly transitioning into the next chapter of his life. Rondo said he’s back in school at the University of Kentucky – where he played two seasons – to pursue a degree in communications.

Rondo also said coaching is in his future, and used Friday’s visit as a chance to pick the brains of Mazzulla and the rest of his staff.

“I love teaching the game,” Rondo said. “Right now I have a young AAU program with my son’s team. I coach at that level and want to dedicate my time with him and try to get him off to the right start. My daughter is in volleyball. I’m not an expert coach in that but I do study that game as well and try to put her in the right positions to get a scholarship. So, coaching is in the future. I wanted to come here this week and learn from Joe and pick up as much knowledge as I can from him and the rest of the staff and just kind of learn.”

20 Oct 2023

DeSantis says he has no plans to visit Israel

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said on Friday he has turned down suggestions to travel to Israel, drawing a distinction between himself and blue state Democrats such as New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

During an interview with conservative media outlet Newsmax, the Republican presidential candidate said it’s not “productive” for American politicians to visit Israel in the middle of its ongoing war with Hamas. His comments came days after President Joe Biden traveled to Israel and pledged ongoing American support for the country.

“I’ve been requested to, kind of, go over there. I know Biden went,” DeSantis said. “I’m not going to go over there at this time. I think that to have politicians going over there and trying to get — I think you’re just getting in the way of what’s going on. They’ve got a job to do. Our job here in the United States is to support them.”

DeSantis noted that other governors had traveled to Israel, although he did not mention either Hochul or Newsom by name. Newsom added a Friday visit to Israel ahead of a planned trip next week to China. Hochul, who visited the country earlier this week, called her trip a “solidarity mission” that she said would show that New York “will stand with Israel, today, tomorrow and forever.”

Florida has one of the largest Jewish populations in the United States. DeSantis has been a staunch defender of Israel during his time as governor and has already twice visited the nation during the past five years. He met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a week-long international trade mission that took him across the globe.

DeSantis has called for increased sanctions against Iran in the wake of the Hamas attacks, and state legislators are poised to enact the governor’s proposal in a special session that will be held between now and the end of the year. Jeremy Redfern, a spokesperson for the governor, said that the exact date and scope of the session were “being worked out between legislative leadership and our office.”

DeSantis also last week declared a state of emergency due to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, a move that allowed him to tap into a state emergency fund that has been used to pay for charter flights from Israel. So far, chartered flights DeSantis helped organize transported more than 500 Americans back to the United States and more flights are expected over the weekend.

DeSantis has tried to draw a contrast between his efforts and those by the Biden administration, criticizing the State Department for shipping some Americans to Greece and requiring people to reimburse the federal government. His presidential campaign has even started selling t-shirts that say DeSantis Airways on them.

The Orlando Sentinel, however, reported on Friday that nearly two dozen Americans that Florida tried to evacuate were briefly stranded for a few days in Cyprus. Bryan Stern, CEO of Project Dynamo, put the blame on a vendor hired by Florida which was in a “rush to get a flight loaded and off the ground.”

20 Oct 2023

Dad of released Hamas hostage rejoices: ‘Best day of my life!’

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The “worst two weeks” of Uri Raanan’s life just turned into the “best day” he’s ever had.

His 17-year old daughter, Natalie, and his ex-wife, Judith, have both been freed from their Hamas captors and will be heading home to America soon.

“I feel wonderful!” Uri Raanan told the Herald this afternoon when reached at his home in Illinois. “I’m in tears. I just got off the phone with the president and the governor … and I talked to my daughter.”

The 72-year-old father said his daughter is “OK” and “didn’t say much” but will be home within a week.

The mother and daughter were in Israel celebrating a grandmother’s 85th birthday when they were taken hostage Oct. 7 in the Hamas terror attack. Multiple reports state the two were released today — the first hostages to gain freedom.

Uri Raanan said President Biden called him to break the news to him that his ex-wife and daughter were free. He said Biden was gracious and as equally hopeful as the dad that this could be a break in the terror over an estimated 200 hostages in the hands of Hamas.

“I’ve been waiting for this for two weeks,” Uri Raanan said. “I’m finally going to sleep good tonight. I really appreciate the president’s effort.”

He said it was “the worst two weeks of my life and today is the best day I ever had.”

Uri Raanan was reached by the Herald on his cellphone at his home in Illinois. He said Gov.  JB Pritzker had also shared the news of the release.

Another relative, who asked not to be named, told the Herald she is “beyond relieved,” adding she too is praying this is a break in the hostage stalemate.

“Oh my God,” she said when the Herald broke the news of the release of Judith and Natalie. “I’m elated. There’s hope there’s an end to this.”

The Jerusalem Post is reporting the mother and daughter were released on “humanitarian grounds” because the mother is in poor health. The paper added the Red Cross has also confirmed their release.

The Post added the Hostages and Missing Families Forum cautioned that the Raanan’s are just two of the more than 200 hostages being held by Hamas.

“The continued holding of hostages is a war crime,” a statement by the headquarters said. “Many leaders in Arab states have tremendous influence over its leaders and must act to immediately release all the hostages and missing held in Gaza. We call on world leaders and the international community to exert their full power in order to act for the release of all the hostages and missing.”

This is a developing story …

20 Oct 2023

Wealthy self-funder Perry Johnson suspends presidential campaign

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Businessperson Perry Johnson has dropped out of the race for the GOP nomination for president, ending a mostly self-funded campaign.

Johnson is the third candidate to drop out of the race following Miami Mayor Francis Suarez and former Rep. Will Hurd.

The announcement comes after the RNC didn’t qualify Johnson for the first debate in August and the second debate in September. Johnson appeared to qualify for the first debate, but the RNC deemed the qualifying polls ineligible. He was unlikely to make it to the third debate, which had much higher thresholds.

“I must admit, the corruption among leaders at the RNC during this process was appalling,” Johnson said in a statement Friday. “Not only was the debate process set up to keep outsiders off the stage and without a voice, but when we did meet their arbitrary metrics, corrupt leaders used their authoritarian power to kick me off the stage at 11 p.m. the Monday before the debate, despite our team working with Fox News all weekend on logistics.”

“With no opportunity to share my vision on the debate stage, I have decided at this time, suspending my campaign is the right thing to do,” Johnson continued.

While Johnson has suspended his campaign, he plans to keep a small political team on staff “in the event the dynamics of the race change.”

Johnson engaged in a number of gimmicks to pull in the number of donors debate qualifications required. Johnson offered donors a $10 gas gift card in exchange for a $1 donation for the first debate. The candidate also organized a “Big and Rich” concert for anyone who donated $1 to his campaign. After the RNC announced that Johnson had not qualified for the debate, Johnson started the Defend Them PAC to defend those “who are facing politically motivated charges stemming from the 2020 elections.” Johnson vowed to personally match up to $1 million.

Johnson, 75, announced his candidacy in March and touted his plan to cut federal spending by 2 percent every year if elected. Johnson largely self-funded his campaign, lending his campaign $8.4 million so far, according to campaign finance documents filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Throughout the campaign, Johnson appeared heavily on Newsmax, but very little on national news outlets. Johnson had a recurring reality show called “Backstage Pass” that aired on Newsmax every Sunday night. The show chronicled the everyday life of what it’s like to run for president.

Johnson has never held a public office before. He ran for Michigan governor in 2022 but was deemed by the state’s elections bureau to have filed thousands of fraudulent nominating signatures.

The businessperson gained a majority of his wealth when he founded Perry Johnson Registers in 1994. The company audits and certifies other firms as meeting international standards for quality management systems.