For more than a decade now, Hakeem has been-first unofficially, then officially-the international ambassador of the very international-minded NBA. Yet in America, Olajuwon has been one of the least visible of the league’s top stars. Certainly he was the only perennial all-star without a major shoe deal. In a league of sky-walkers and trash-talkers, quiet, devout Muslims who speak accented English tend to be peripheral. But over the past two seasons, while Michael Jordan was first chasing fungoes, then his own star, Hakeem has established himself as the game’s player; he won a league MVP, two playoff MVPs and, most important, back-to-back titles....

Let's try to make the league bigger, instead of better. If the league wants to maintain its global domination, it must focus on expanding something that already exists — the video-replay system — and nothing less. Now that the week leading up to Super Bowl XLVIII in MetLife Stadium and the game itself looks like it will go off without a hitch, weather or otherwise, Goodell made it clear the NFL is open to other such cities with outdoor stadiums getting into the mix, notably Philadelphia and Denver....

Mouth Pet: breath freshener Creap: coffee lightener My Hand: electric drills Pocari Sweat: “refreshment water” Plain White Water LeRoi: “social moisture cream” NFL Styling Grease: for hair Fish Ham: snack food “made by special Japanese techniques” Chocolate Bubble On Flavor: bubble bath Armpit: electric razor Super Black: chewing gum Blue Jeans: pork sausage Brown Gross Foam: haircoloring mousse Arm Joy: vacuum cleaner Virgin Pink Special: skin cream Miss Walk: foot deodorant...

Retailing for about $200, the Pixel Buds Pro compete directly against Sony’s Linkbuds S and play in the same space as Apple’s AirPods Pro. After spending several days with the audio product, I was less impressed than I expected to be. There’s little here that makes them feel unique or stand out above the competition. The crux of the problem is that Google’s Pixel Buds Pro are good, but not great....

There are several reasons why you may have goopy eyes. While it is normal to have a little “gunk” or eye discharge in the morning, some causes of eye discharge are more serious and may require medical attention. This article covers some of the most common causes of eye discharge and what they look like. It also discusses other related symptoms, as well as the common ways to treat these conditions....

Don Bolduc, a retired U.S. Army general running against Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan in New Hampshire, made the comments when speaking about whether abortion issues should be decided at the state or federal level during a town hall in Auburn, New Hampshire, on Wednesday night. “It belongs to the state. It belongs to these gentlemen right here, who are state legislators representing you,” Bolduc said. Bolduc motioned to Jason Osborne and Jess Edwards, two Republican state representatives who were in the room, according to HuffPost....

Any corporation that has expressed support for progressive ideals and culture, or has condemned Republican efforts to restrict voting rights in states such as Georgia, is in the GOP’s firing line. “My advice to the corporate CEOs of America is to stay out of politics,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters on Monday. “Don’t pick sides in these big fights.” Republicans are targeting large employers of their constituents, however, including in key swing states....

So when bin Laden released a tape late in the last election—in October 2004—the White House handled it delicately. In the final days of the closely fought campaign, Bush’s aides preferred to focus not on bin Laden but on how John Kerry was handling the tape. Bush challenged Kerry for what he called “Monday morning quarterbacking” on the war in Iraq, saying his criticism was “especially shameful in the light of a new tape from America’s enemy....

All 50 members of the Senate Democratic caucus voted in favor of debating the bill, including Democratic West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin. Manchin was considered a lone holdout on the sweeping federal election reform bill. Last week, he negotiated several changes to the roughly 800-page bill. “Unfortunately, my Republican colleagues refused to allow debate of this legislation despite the reasonable changes made to focus the bill on the core issues facing our democracy,” Manchin said in a statement....

Michael Thompson, the president of the East Lee County Republicans, told WINK News he has nothing against Black people and that the cartoon merely represents issues with what the BLM movement has become. The image shows a boy wearing a USA hat and T-shirt of an American flag urinating on a BLM slogan of a clenched fist along, with the words “p**s on BLM.” The cartoon was posted on August 30 on the East Lee County Republicans’ Facebook page with the caption “BLACK LIES MATTER!...

After a 14-point loss in her bid to become Michigan’s next secretary of state, Kristina Karamo—the Donald Trump-endorsed Republican who has echoed his unfounded claims of systemic fraud in the 2020 election—announced she would now be launching an effort to lead the Michigan GOP, whose leaders blamed candidates like her and far-right gubernatorial Tudor Dixon of alienating voters and sabotaging the GOP’s chances in a state President Joe Biden won by fewer than three points....

Calling into radio’s Joe Piscopo Show, the New York Republican said he agreed with those who think the $600 stimulus checks approved by lawmakers Monday aren’t enough but criticized the president for threatening to not sign the legislation. “Why didn’t the president say this before? Why did his administration say it had to be $600?” King asked. “They were the ones driving this.” The retiring congressman added: “Nancy Pelosi wanted $2,000 all along, and I’m not a Pelosi fan....

Omar, who is Muslim and represents Minnesota, has routinely faced Islamophobic and racist attacks since she became one of the first two Muslim women elected to Congress back in 2018. Memes and baseless conspiracy theories have circulated widely within right-wing circles falsely connecting her to Islamist terrorist groups and suggesting that she was somehow associated with the 9/11 terrorist attacks. “Heartbroken to learn another CP was killed while protecting the Capitol....

The hearing was conducted to discuss efforts to support European energy security related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. About 44 minutes into the nearly two-hour hearing, questioning of one government official by Republican Brian Mast led to a contentious war of words with Chairman Bill Keating. “Russians were manipulating the market and increasing prices before the invasion,” Mast said. “Why I think it’s so important…let’s all ask ourselves, what was President Biden doing while this was going on and ahead of that going on: He was cutting off U....

Gaetz said Zuckerberg “repeatedly and categorically denied” Facebook engaged in bias against conservatives or censored content supportive of President Donald Trump. However, a Project Veritas investigation revealed the “overwhelming majority” of content Facebook’s artificial intelligence filtered was in support of Trump and other Republican people and ideals. The Republican congressman sent a letter to Attorney General William Barr asking the Department of Justice to investigate Zuckerberg. The statements in question were made during a House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing and again at a joint hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee....

“There is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven and that does not meet the United States Constitution’s high bar for an impeachable offense,” the third-term senator said in a statement. A failed vote to subpoena witnesses and documents, which is expected Friday, tees up a swift and certain acquittal for the president by the GOP-controlled chamber as early as that night. A lengthy debate over witnesses is expected to occur in the afternoon....

Negotiations between Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, resumed this week, with both sides expressing optimism about a compromise, after months of deadlock. The Democrat-controlled House of Representatives postponed a vote on a new $2.2 trillion relief package on Wednesday, as Mnuchin and Pelosi agreed to negotiate further. Republicans and the White House have expressed concerns regarding the high price tag, previously putting forward significantly smaller packages....

“The party was shaken by that,” Reed, who previously served as the executive director of the Republican National Committee (RNC), told Axios in reference to GOP Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Martha McSally of Arizona and Joni Ernst of Iowa. “We’re all worried,” he added. He described the situation with the incumbent senators as “a three-alarm fire,” as there is growing concern among Republicans that their party could lose control of the Senate and the White House to Democrats in the national election next year....

The committee sent a letter to the Commission of Presidential Debates, specifically to Co-Chairmans Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr. and Kenneth Wollack, expressing frustration at the commission’s “recent performance and our concern about its continued role in hosting presidential debates.” The three-page letter shared on the GOP’s official Twitter account, written by Ronna McDaniel, Republican National Committee chairperson, says “the organization no longer provides the fair and impartial forum for presidential debates which the law requires and the American people deserve....