Riley Gaines made an appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast Thursday and talked about her experience going against Lia Thomas at the 2022 NCAA swimming championships.
Thomas became the first transgender athlete to win a national title in NCAA women’s swimming.
Gaines has been outspoken against Thomas’ foray into women’s swimming and testified on Capitol Hill how uncomfortable it was to be around the swimmer in the locker room.
As Gaines recalled the NCAA championships on the “Joe Rogan Experience,” the podcast host asked whether Thomas “has sex with girls.”
“At the time, again, this is what I know based off what his teammates have told me and what’s really been public knowledge based off what they post and different things,” Gaines said. “At the time of the national championships, he was still dating women and active with women.
“But now, again, based off of social media, he is engaged to another man who claims to be a woman. So two men, but they call themselves lesbians.”
Gaines, who is the host of OutKick’s “Gaines for Girls” podcast and the leader of the Riley Gaines Center at the Leadership Institute, further talked about tying with Thomas in the NCAA championships and how officials refused to give her a trophy, opting to give one to the Penn swimmer instead.
Since graduating, Gaines has been outspoken in the fight for fairness in women’s sports and serves as an ambassador at the Independent Women’s Forum.
Fox News Digital contacted Thomas seeking a response to Rogan and Gaines’ comments.
Six people, including a mother and her four kids, were slaughtered in a “mass killing” inside a Canadian home overnight, cops said.
Febrio De-Zoysa, 19, allegedly used an “edged weapon” to attack the family in their Barrhaven neighborhood townhouse shortly before 11 p.m., according to Ottawa Police Chief Eric Stubbs.
Police identified the victims as 35-year-old Darshani Dilanthika Ekanyake and her young children: Inuka Wickramasinghe, 7; Ashwini Wickramasinghe, 4; Rinyana Wickramasinghe, 2; and 2-month-old Kelly Wickramasinghe
Family friend Amarakoonmubiayansela Ge Gamini Amarakoon, 40, was also killed.
One person — the husband and father of the young victims — who was found alive inside the home was rushed to hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
The family were newcomers to Canada originally from Sri Lanka, Stubbs said.
“I want to emphasize this was a senseless act of violence perpetrated on purely innocent people. I know our whole community is shocked and mourning this event,” said the police chief.
De-Zoysa was arrested at the scene without incident, cops added.
Stubbs clarified in the afternoon that the incident was not a shooting as initially believed: “This was a mass killing, not a mass shooting.”
He added that police didn’t believe it was a domestic-related incident, but did not reveal a motive
Police said De-Zoysa — who is also a Sri Lankan national and is in Canada as a student — was an acquaintance of the family and was living in the home at the time of the killings.
Cops had never dealt with either De-Zoysa or his alleged victims before being called to the murder scene.
He was charged with six counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder.
A cruise ship’s voyage to Mexico and the Bahamas turned into a rescue mission when the boat spotted a small vessel in the waves.
On Sunday, Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, the new world’s largest cruise ship that launched in January, rescued 14 people who had been stranded at sea for over a week.
Icon passenger Alessandra Amodio told PEOPLE that the cruise ship was in the midst of an eight-day Caribbean itinerary when they spotted the individuals.
“I was in the lunch buffet with my family when we heard a coded announcement over the loud speakers,” Amodio told PEOPLE, adding that the announcement came at around 3 p.m. local time. “A few minutes later people started gathering at the windows and then the captain came on and announced that they had found a distressed vessel and we would be turning around to investigate. We all rushed to the windows and in the nearish distance we could see in the waves a tiny boat waving either a large white flag or sheet.”
Shortly after, the ship turned around and pulled up next to the boat and “deployed a small zodiac-type rescue boat,” she recalls.
“Eventually we saw Royal Caribbean crew helping about two people from the distressed boat onto the rescue boat before returning to the vessel. They then made a few more trips to safely bring everyone on board.”
According to Amodio, they later found out that the passengers on the small boat had been “lost at sea for eight days.”
“We got a final announcement once they were all on board safely telling us there was 14 people on board,” she said, adding that passengers clapped and cheered upon hearing everyone had been rescued safely.
“Our first reaction was shock, I’ve been on six or so cruises and I’ve never experienced anything even close to this,” Amodio continued. “During the rescue everyone was more shocked and the general consensus was that this wasn’t something anyone ever thought would be happening. It was crazy to see, even knowing where they were in the water, once they dropped the flag, they were hard to spot. Just seeing this small boat you knew was filled with people surrounded by the vastness of the water was enough to freak you out. “
The ship was on its first full day of sailing and it was between Cozumel, Mexico and western Cuba when the incident happened.
“We weren’t told by the captain or crew what happened to them,” Amodio added of the rescued individuals.
The cruise liner, which departed from Miami, Florida, was headed to Roatán, Honduras, and Royal Caribbean’s private Bahamian island, CocoCay, during its voyage.
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Royal Caribbean told PEOPLE in a statement, “On March 3, 2024, Icon of the Seas encountered a small vessel adrift and in need of assistance. The ship’s crew immediately launched a rescue operation, safely bringing 14 people onboard. The crew provided them with medical attention, and is working closely with the U.S. Coast Guard.”
A U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson told Newsweek that the rescue occurred in Mexico’s search-and-rescue area of responsibility.
The Icon of the Seas made its maiden voyage out of South Florida in late January. The ship departed from Port Miami and docked at ports including Puerto Costa Maya in Mexico, Basseterre in St. Kitts & Nevis and Charlotte Amalie in St. Thomas.
Along with the world’s largest pool and water park at sea, Icon also boasts eight “neighborhoods” to explore and an open-air “Central Park.”
The record-breaking vessel overtook Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas, which formerly held the title of largest cruise ship in the world.
An 11-year-old boy from the United Kingdom has died after huffing toxic chemicals in a TikTok challenge known as “chroming” — and his devastated family wants the social media company shut down and all others barred from children under 16.
Tommie-Lee Gracie Billington, 11, suffered a suspected cardiac arrest at a friend’s house in Lancaster on Saturday, according to the Times of London.
He was rushed to a nearby hospital just, where he died.
“He died instantly after a sleepover at a friend’s house. The boys had tried the TikTok craze ‘chroming,’” said the boy’s grandmother, Tina Burns.
“In fact, we want to get TikTok taken down and no children to be allowed on any social media under 16 years of age. This is breaking us all but we want to help save other children’s lives and give families awareness to keep their children safe.”
TikTok has faced criticism for the prevalence of dangerous teen trends on the platform.
During a January hearing, the leaders of four prominent social media platforms — including Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook and Instagram, and Shou Chew of TikTok — were grilled by the US Senate Judiciary Committee over the safety of their platforms.
That hearing was part of a push to pass the “Kids Online Safety Act,” which would require social media companies to take aggressive actions to target dangerous and predatory behavior on their platforms.
Eight juveniles were shot at a bus stop in Philadelphia in the afternoon.
The gunfire rang out around 3 p.m. in the city’s Burholme neighborhood as students with Northeast High School were waiting for the bus.
According to Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel, eight students — between the ages of 15 and 17 — were shot when three gunmen exited a vehicle near a Dunkin’ store and opened fire.
One of the students is listed as critical at an area hospital. There was no immediate word on the conditions of the seven other victims.
Bethel says over 30 shots were fired at the scene.
Sources say police are looking for three shooters and a driver in a dark blue Hyundai Elantra with paper tags. The suspects were all wearing masks and were last seen driving over a bridge toward Cheltenham Township.
One woman who works at the nearby Quaker Diner heard the gunshots and ran out to try and help the victims. She reported seeing several juveniles wounded.
“These children are dying every day out here, somebody’s got to do something. This doesn’t happen in this neighborhood,” she said.
According to the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, a Route 18 bus and a Route 67 bus were struck by the gunfire near the scene.
The Action Cam was at the Frankford Transportation Center where one of the involved buses was cordoned off by police.
SEPTA says there have no reports of any injuries to passengers or employees.
Action News continues to follow this developing story.
This is the fourth shooting in less than a week involving a SEPTA bus.
27-year-old Sawee Kofa was shot and killed after an argument on a SEPTA bus in the city’s Oxford Circle neighborhood.
A teen was killed and four others were hurt Monday when gunfire rang out at a bus stop in the city’s Ogontz neighborhood. And on Tuesday night, police say a man was shot and killed on a Route 79 bus Tuesday night in South Philadelphia.
A preliminary crash report on a plane that crashed along I-17 in Naples and left two dead has been released.
According to the FAA, the plane, a Bombardier INC CL-600-2B16, was due to land at Naples Airport at about 3:15 p.m. after departing from Ohio State University Airport earlier that day. The plane was filled with 350 gallons of fuel before departing.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said the plane lost both engines while preparing to land at Naples Municipal Airport.
Due to the loss of both engines, the plane crashed nearly seven miles away from the Naples Airport on I-75, leaving both pilots dead, 2 passengers injured, and one person on the ground injured.
Three master warnings regarding engine oil pressures were recorded within seconds of one another. About twenty seconds later, the crew announced they lost both engines.
Before landing, the crew said to the tower controller, “We are cleared to land, but we are not going to make the runway….ah….we have lost both engines.”
Video from the crash scene shows the plane touching down first in the center lane of I-75 before crashing into the right lane. The plane continued into a grass median before colliding with a concrete sound barrier.
The NTSB said the plane was covered by dust, fire, and smoke immediately following that impact.
The report also details how the passengers onboard escaped the fiery crash.
According to a cabin attendant, she saw the emergency exits were blocked by fire and had the passengers and herself exit through the baggage compartment door in the trail section of the plane.
The pilots who were killed in the crash are identified as Edward Daniel Murphy, 50, of Oakland Park, and Ian Frederick Hofmann, 65, of Pompano Beach.
The highway was shut down for hours as a result of the crash.
A subway conductor was struck in the head with a glass bottle after pulling into a Bronx subway station.
The 38-year-old woman was in her train cabin when she was hit at the 170th Street and Jerome Avenue station in Mount Eden around at 11:50 a.m.
The suspect fled on the southbound No. 4 train platform.
The conductor reported the incident to an officer at the 149th Street station.
She was taken to Lincoln Hospital in stable condition.
No arrests have been made.
The attack follows the slashing of another MTA conductor on Thursday, Feb. 29, at the Rockaway Avenue and Fulton Street station in Brooklyn.
Earlier on Wednesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul revealed a five-point plan to bring additional state resources to bear on combatting subway crime in New York City.
The plan includes the deployment of 750 National Guard members and 250 New York State and MTA police officers into the subway system, and additional teams to handle cases involving people exhibiting signs of mental illness.
The new deployment adds to the additional 1000 NYPD officers ordered into the subway last month to conduct bag checks and follows the slashing of a conductor and other high-profile crimes.
Authorities say three trains were involved in a collision and derailment in eastern Pennsylvania on the morning that caused no reported injuries or evacuations but left some railroad cars scattered along a riverbank and at least one partially in the river.
Officials in Northampton County said the derailment was reported at about 7:15 a.m. in Lower Saucon Township along the Lehigh River. The township’s police chief, Thomas Barndt, said arriving emergency personnel found “multiple trains derailed” but no reported injuries. No hazardous materials were involved and no evacuations were ordered, he said.
The National Transportation Safety Board said preliminary information indicates an eastbound Norfolk Southern train struck another Norfolk Southern train that had stopped on the same track. Wreckage from the striking train spilled onto an adjacent track and was struck by a westbound Norfolk Southern train, the NTSB said in an email to The Associated Press.
Authorities said the collision led to the derailment of an unknown number of cars, but there were no reported injuries or release of hazardous materials. A team “comprised of experts in train operations, signals and train control, mechanical systems, and human performance” was expected to arrive later in the day, the NTSB email said.
Nancy Run Fire Company posted pictures showing a number of railroad cars scattered along the riverbank and at least one partially in the water. Local officials told reporters some ropes were used to assist some personnel to reach the roadway from the riverbank after the derailment.
Barndt said containment booms were deployed after diesel fuel spilled into the river. Norfolk Southern called it a small diesel fuel leak “common when locomotives are involved” that was contained with the booms and would be “vacuumed out.”
Norfolk Southern also said plastic pellets spilled from one car, predominantly onto the ground, and that would also be cleaned up. The company praised “the quick, professional response by local emergency agencies.”
Gary Weiland, who lives across the river in Bethlehem Township, told The (Allentown) Morning Call he initially heard what sounded like a crash, then a period of quiet followed by the sound of another crash.
“As the second one was happening, I went upstairs and looked out the window and saw a splash. I said to my wife, ‘I think a train derailed.’” Weiland said.
A woman who went missing almost two weeks ago has been found beaten to death in a Tennessee creek – in what her dad called “every parent’s worst nightmare.”
Emily Bradley, 44, was reported missing on Feb. 21, three days after she was last seen leaving her home in East Nashville — leaving behind her emotional support dog, according to friends.
Her body was discovered Saturday in Whites Creek, near Buena Vista Pike, with the cause of death listed as blunt force trauma.
“It’s every parent’s worst nightmare to outlive your children, and on top of that to find that your child has been murdered,” Bradley’s father, Nick, told WKRN of his daughter who had “a very vivacious and sparkling personality.”
“It’s just horrible,” he said.
The news merely confirmed Bradley’s parents’ fears, with her dad previously telling WKRN late last month that they had been “hoping for the best, bracing for the worst
“Her mother and I, we’re just completely distraught,” he said even before his daughter’s body was found.
Bradley was last known to have driven away from her home on Feb. 18 in her 2014 Chevrolet Cruze, which is still missing
A detective told WKRN that a license plate recognition camera picked up a hit on the gray vehicle in Hendersonville on Feb. 21. It was unclear who was driving the car at the time.
Bradley was last seen by a male companion, a lead investigator on the case told WKRN.
Bradley’s dad told the local outlet that he believes it may be a case of domestic violence, without elaborating.
Police have not suggested that as a possible motive nor identified any suspects while appealing for more information.
Her friends believed she was in danger when they found her emotional support dog alone in the abondoned, WTVF previously reported, without detailing why she needed the animal.
“When she didn’t call me on the third day, I knew she was probably no longer with us,” her dad told WKRN, saying: “Hopefully they have a suspect.
Emily was a dedicated horse rider, a lover of music and an avid dancer, according to her dad.
“She impacted people and she loved people and she carried kind of the weight of the world. She was always working on somebody else’s behalf,” he told the outlet. “She had a very full life for such a young person.
A Facebook page seeking help while she was missing has now been renamed “Emily Bradley Memorial Page.”
“My sweet Pixie friend,” one of her friends wrote. “I am at a loss of words. You were so precious to me. I will always treasure our sweet memories.”
Another friend said: “That energy you put out on the dance floor, Sometimes it was THE reason to go to a party. You’ve been taken from us too soon, but rest in heaven sweet angel. You have a very special seat up there.”
Her dad added to WKRN: “We got her back, so we have closure on this part of it, and now we move forward with closing her life down and the police move forward with trying to convict her killer
All signs point to President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump racking up enough delegates in the “Super Tuesday” contests — held in 16 states and American Samoa — to all but mathematically secure a rematch of their 2020 election fight.
For more than a year, polls have shown Americans anticipating a sequel with the kind of eagerness typically reserved for a drug-free colonoscopy. But Republicans show little interest in stripping their standard from Trump’s hands, and Biden, like most modern incumbents, faces no serious competition for his party’s nod.
Follow live Super Tuesday coverage here.
“The 2024 nominations may have unknowingly been locked up since November 2020,” Matthew Bartlett, a Republican strategist, said.
“With a former president and an incumbent president, both parties have dug in and are gearing up for a rematch which looks to be vicious, vindictive and possibly vile,” he said, noting that the winner would not be eligible to run in 2028. That “will ultimately lead to the oldest ever inaugurated president, who will serve out their lame duck term.”
Recent polls show a tight race between Trump and Biden in the national popular vote. But given Biden’s narrow electoral-vote margin in 2020 — he won by about 43,000 votes spread over three states — when he led Trump by 4.5 percentage points in popular votes, some Democrats worry that his advantage has disappeared.
Their fears were underscored last week when Bloomberg News and the Morning Consult released a battery of swing state polls showing Trump ahead of Biden in each of the key battlegrounds that are expected to collectively determine the winner.
“Biden starts in a clear deficit in nearly every battleground state and nationally,” said Chris Kofinis, a Democratic strategist who has worked on multiple presidential campaigns.
“Here is the brutal reality: the strategy Biden and Democrats have deployed to weaken Trump is simply not working, and it’s clear there needs to be real course correction both in terms of the message and the strategy,” Kofinis said. “Betting on a Trump implosion is not a strategy, and [Trump primary rival] Nikki Haley is going to find that out.”
There are signs Biden wants to alter his trajectory. He recently moved Jennifer O’Malley Dillon from her perch as a deputy chief of staff in the White House, to his campaign. She has not reclaimed her 2020 tile — “campaign manger” — but Democrats say they expect her to bring a steadying hand and the confidence of the president to the operation. Biden’s longtime political right hand, Mike Donilon, has also decamped from the White House to the campaign.
Some strategists in both parties have been surprised by Trump’s political resilience. Twice impeached by the House, Trump has been indicted in four separate cases in federal and state courts since leaving office and recently lost a civil judgment against his business that figures to cost him nearly half a billion dollars.
But his legal troubles made him demonstrably more popular with Republican voters as he portrayed himself as a victim of persecution by prosecution. A field of Republican incumbents that included Haley, two-term Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and others decompensated amid a GOP rally around its two-time nominee.
Trump entered Tuesday with a 276 to 43 lead over Haley, his lone remaining rival, in NBC News’ count of delegates to this summer’s Republican National Convention. With 865 delegates available — more than a third of the overall number headed to the convention — Trump will end the night short of the 1,215-delegate threshold that constitutes a majority. But he is expected to draw close enough that many Republicans view Haley as an afterthought.
The Trump campaign, which is set to hold a large fundraising event featuring GOP congressional leaders and headlined by Donald Trump Jr. Wednesday in Washington, has been pressing Republicans to bring the primary to a close for several weeks.
“Republican voters have delivered resounding wins for President Trump…and this race is over,” Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said. “Our focus is now on Joe Biden and the general election.”
The biggest delegate purses for both parties are in California and Texas, which Trump and Biden are expected to win handily. Biden still faces nominal opposition from Rep. Dean Phillips, who has failed to gain traction — or win any delegates — in early states on the calendar. NBC News’ tracker shows Biden with 206 delegates.
Biden was denied two delegates last month in Michigan. They were won by a ballot line for “uncommitted” that progressive voters used to register displeasure with his support for Israel in the war in the Middle East.
Like his recent predecessors, including Trump, Biden has found the presidency to be a drag on his popularity. A February Gallup survey found his approval rating at 38 percent. He hasn’t been above 50 percent in Gallup polling since June 2021.
Trump’s approval rating fell to 34 percent in his final month in the Oval Office as he tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election and his supporters stormed the Capitol to try to stop the certification of Biden’s victory. Trump’s approval never topped 49 percent in Gallup polling