[JACK AYLMER]

LONG ISLAND AUTHORITIES JUST GOT THE GREENLIGHT FROM NASSAU COUNTY TO SHOOT DOWN MYSTERIOUS DRONES. 

OFFICIALS SAYING THEY’RE NOT WAITING FOR DISASTER TO HAPPEN BEFORE TAKING ACTION.

THE AUTHORIZATION CAME THURSDAY AS THE COUNTY SHOWED OFF A NEW CUTTING-EDGE DRONE COMMAND CENTER.

THE TECH ALLOWS AUTHORITIES TO TRACK DRONES FROM MILES AWAY AND CAN INTERCEPT AND TAKE DOWN AIRCRAFT POSING A THREAT.

BUT IT STILL NEEDS APPROVAL FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. 

THAT’S WHY COUNTY OFFICIALS SAY THEY’RE TAKING PREEMPTIVE ACTION.

ASKED IF THE AUTHORIZATION VIOTATES FEDERAL LAW, NASSAU COUNTY OFFICIAL BRUCE BLAKEMAN RESPONDED:

[BRUCE BLAKEMAN]

NO, NO, WE ALWAYS HAVE THE ABILITY TO STOP A CRIME THAT COULD RESULT IN TREMENDOUS LOSS OF LIFE OR TREMENDOUS LOSS OF PROPERTY DAMAGE. 

WE HAVE THAT RIGHT. IT’S NOT SOMETHING THAT’S EXCLUSIVE TO DRONES. IT WOULD BE WITH RESPECT TO IF WE HAD TO TAKE DOWN A TRUCK THAT WAS FULL OF EXPLOSIVES. 

[JACK AYLMER]

NASSAU COUNTY POLICE COMMISSIONER PATRICK RYDER SAYS HIS OFFICERS ARE WILLING AND READY TO SHOOT, NOTING, THE DEPARTMENT’S “WORLD-RENOWNED SNIPERS.”

THE ANNOUNCEMENT FOLLOWS THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION’S EXTENSION OF ITS DRONE BAN OVER NEW JERSEY AND PARTS OF NEW YORK, INCLUDING BROOKLYN, QUEENS AND LONG ISLAND. 

NEW YORK GOVERNOR KATHY HOCHUL SAYS THE OVERFLIGHT RESTRICTION INCLUDES SOME THE STATE’S “CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE SITES,” THOUGH SHE ADDED THERE ARE CURRENTLY NO THREATS TO THESE SITES.

THE F-A-A’S NEARLY MONTHSLONG BAN ALLOWS FOR “DEADLY FORCE” TO BE USED TO BRING THE DRONES DOWN.

WHILE THE WHITE HOUSE HAS DOWNPLAYED THE DRONES AS A NON-THREAT TO PUBLIC SAFETY.

SPECULATION IS RUNNING WILD.

WITH A NEW JERSEY MAYOR CLAIMING THE DRONES ARE SNIFFING OUT RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL AND A U-S LAWMAKER RAISING CONCERNS THEY COULD BE FROM AN “IRANIAN MOTHERSHIP.” OTHERS HAVE SUGGESTED THE SIGHTINGS COULD BE FROM SPACE.

RYDER SAYS HE WANTS TO USE THE NEW TRACKING TECH TO NOT JUST TRACK DRONES BUT SHOOT THEM DOWN.

IN THE MEANTIME, HE’S NOT WAITING ON THE NEW TECH.

[PATRICK RYDER]

WE HAVE TO DO WHATEVER MEANS NECESSARY TO PROTECT THE PEOPLE OF THIS COUNTY AND WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN THAT AUTHORIZATION.

[JACK AYLMER]

FOR MORE ON THIS STORY DOWNLOAD THE STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS APP OR VISIT SAN DOT COM.

FOR STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS– I’M JACK AYLMER.

[KENNEDY FELTON]

When it comes to playing the bad guy, Billy Bob Thornton has more than a little practice.

“I can’t give you your mail if you don’t show some ID.” “Am I going to need to come back there and find it myself?”

But it turns out, the Academy Award winner has been steering clear of the villainous choice… even if it means missing out on some serious cash.

In a new episode of The Playlist’s “Bingeworthy” podcast, the acclaimed actor opens up about turning down two major villain roles.

Thornton revealed he was approached to play Norman Osborn – also known as the Green Goblin – in Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man.”

And a few years later, he was also up for the role of the villain in “Mission Impossible 3.” But Thornton made it clear – he doesn’t have much interest in those kinds of roles.

He shared, “With the Green Goblin, I didn’t feel like getting up at 4 a.m. for five or six hours of makeup… And with ‘Mission: Impossible III’… he didn’t want to be remembered for killing one key star.”

“I’m not going to be the bad guy who kills Tom Cruise. America will hate me and then the next thing you know, that’s what I’ll have to do from now on,” said Thornton.

Thornton pointed out he thinks audiences remember villains from big movies, which kind of aligns with a recent study by the University of Michigan. It found while most people do remember movie villains, they’re often notable to audiences for their more ‘redeeming’ qualities.

“You didn’t have to kill it.” “Well I didn’t have to kill it til you stood there and dared the [bleeb] thing to bite you.”

Thornton says he wants to keep his roles less predictable.

And it seems he’s pulling it off this year, starring in Taylor Sheridan’s series “Landman”. The show premiered last month and is already gaining traction. A clip from a recent episode went viral with Thornton’s character breaking down to his attorney how wind turbines – thought to be a clean energy source – depend on the oil industry.

“Do you have any idea how much diesel they have to burn to mix that much concrete or make that steel, and haul this [censor] out here, and put it together with a 450-foot crane?”

A new “Landman” drops every Sunday with the last episode of the season set to air January 12th.

[Jack]

WILD BURROS ARE BEING REMOVED FROM SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA OVER SAFETY CONCERNS.

BUT SOME LOCALS ARE PUSHING BACK AGAINST THE DECISION-

SAYING IT COULD BRING AN END TO THE BELOVED COMMUNITY PASTIME OF DONKEY WATCHING.

“We really embrace them as part of our community, and it’s kind of fun sometimes just to sit on your porch and watch the donkeys roll through.”

SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY HAS PARTNERED WITH THE ORGANIZATION PEACEFUL VALLEY DONKEY RESCUE TO TAKE THE ANIMALS OUT OF THE AREA.

OFFICIALS SAY THE GROWING BURRO POPULATION HAS REACHED UNSUSTAINABLE LEVELS, DESTROYING PRIVATE PROPERTY IN SOME NEIGHBORHOODS.

THEY’VE ALSO CAUSED OTHER ISSUES, INCLUDING CAR ACCIDENTS AND TRAFFIC DISRUPTIONS.

“People will pull over. They’ll feed them. They’ll try to interact with the donkeys. You don’t really want to do that, and because of that, they’ve gotten used to coming up to cars.”

SO FAR, 68 OF THE ANIMALS HAVE BEEN ROUNDED UP AND ARE AWAITING TRANSPORTATION TO SANCTUARIES IN ARIZONA AND TEXAS.

THE CAPTURED BURROS WILL RECEIVE MEDICAL ASSESSMENTS AND TREATMENTS FROM LEADING NATIONAL EXPERTS IN THE FIELD.

HOWEVER, WHILE THIS DONKEY RELOCATION EFFORT IS BEING CARRIED OUT OVER PUBLIC SAFETY CONCERNS-

THERE ARE RESIDENTS WHO SAY THIS WILL ALSO CREATE NEW ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS.

THEY ARGUE THE BURROS HELP CONTROL THE AREA’S OVERGROWN BRUSH- WHICH IF LEFT UNCHECKED COULD DRY OUT AND HEIGHTEN THE RISK OF WILDFIRES.

SO FAR, NEARLY FIVE THOUSAND INDIVIDUALS HAVE SIGNED A PETITION CALLING FOR SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY TO RECONSIDER ITS DECISION TO REMOVE THE WILD BURROS-

AND TERMINATE ITS CONTRACT WITH PEACEFUL VALLEY DONKEY RESCUE.

FOR STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS – I’M JACK AYLMER.

[Simone Del Rosario]

President-elect Donald Trump is threatening tariffs on another U.S. ally. This time, it’s the European Union. 

Trump said he told the EU “they must make up their tremendous deficit with the United States by the large scale purchase of our oil and gas. Otherwise, it is TARIFFS all the way!!!”

The trade gap between the U.S. and EU is $131.3 billion as of 2022, according to the U.S. Trade Representative. 

Add this tariff threat to ones Trump has already made on America’s other close trading partners, Canada, Mexico and China.

If the EU were a country, they’d be the second-largest purchaser of U.S. goods behind Canada, and the largest supplier of goods to the U.S., beating China.

In services, the EU leads on both sides as the biggest purchaser of U.S. services and biggest supplier of services to the U.S. The U.S. has a trade services surplus with the EU at $71.2 billion in 2022. 

European Commission Spokesperon Olof Gill has already responded to Trump’s quote “frequent comments” about trade between the EU and U.S. 

[Olof Gill]

We need to be very clear about the facts here. So the facts are that the EU and US have deeply integrated economies with overall balanced trade and investment. What do I mean when I say that? I mean that the EU has a substantial trade in good surplus with the US, whereas the US has a substantial trade in services surplus vis a vis the EU. And that is not always reflected in some of the types of posts you’re referencing. So what we want to get across and what we have said on numerous occasions, including from the top level, President von der Leyen down, is that we are ready to discuss with President elect Trump, how we can further strengthen and already strong relationship, including by discussing our common interests in the energy sector. And as you all know very well the EU is committed to phasing out energy imports from Russia and diversifying our sources of supply.

[Simone Del Rosario]

Remember the threat: TARIFFS all the way IF the EU doesn’t make up the trade deficit by buying oil and gas. 

The EU is already on its way. Data shows U.S. crude oil exports to Europe reached 2.2 million barrels a day over the past year as of June 2024, a 23% increase from the year before. 

That amount is more than half of all U.S. crude oil exports. 

The surge in European purchasing came when the block agreed to sanction Russia and reduce reliance on their oil back in 2022. But analysts say the EU is now close to maxing out what they can bring in as far as U.S. crude. 

The trade deficit the U.S. runs with the EU is one President-elect Trump has railed on for years. Here he is in 2018. 

[Donald Trump]
We need a reciprocal relationship, which we don’t have. The United States right now has a trade deficit with the european union of one hundred and fifty one billion dollars. it’s been unfair. and i don’t blame the chancellor and i don’t blame germany. I don’t even blame the European Union, I blame the people that preceded me for allowing this to happen.

[Simone Del Rosario]

Trump issued some targeted tariffs on European goods during his first term. It’s unclear what “tariffs all the way” would mean in a second. 

For other close U.S. trade allies Canada and Mexico, it’s been a 25% tariff threat for all imports. 

That threat has roiled Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s political future. For more on that, search Justin Trudeau for this story at SAN.com or the Straight Arrow News app. 

[Chris Francis]

FOOTBALL LEGEND HERSCHEL WALKER MIGHT HAVE A NEW JOB. ON TUESDAY, WALKER WAS NOMINIATED BY PRESIDENT-ELECT DONALD TRUMP TO BE THE U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE BAHAMAS.

TRUMP MADE THE ANNOUNCEMENT TUESDAY IN A POST ON TRUTH SOCIAL SAYING IN PART, “Herschel has spent decades serving as an Ambassador to our Nation’s youth, our men and women in the Military, and athletes at home and abroad.” DURING TRUMPS’ FIRST ADMINISTRATION WALKER SERVED AS CO-CHAIRMAN OF THE PRESIDENT’S COUNCIL ON SPORTS, FITNESS AND NUTRITION.

WALKER LED THE GEORGIA BULLDOGS TO AN UNDEFEATED SEASON AND A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP IN 1980 AND WAS THE HEISMAN TROPHY WINNER IN 1982.DURING HIS PROFESSIONAL CAREER HE PLAYED THREE SEASONS IN THE USFL, ON A TEAM OWNED BY TRUMP, THEN MORE THAN A DECADE IN THE NFL FOR FOUR DIFFERENT TEAMS.

IN 2022 WALKER, A REPUBLICAN, TRIED HIS HAND AT POLITICS. AT THE URGING OF TRUMP, HE UNSUCCESSFULLY RAN TO UNSEAT GEORGIA DEMOCRATIC SEN. RAPHAEL WARNOCK. HIS CAMPAIGN SUFFERED FROM A SLEW OF ALLEGATIONS INCLUDING CLAIMS THAT HE PAID FOR ABORTIONS FOR TWO FORMER GIRLFRIENDS DESPITE SUPPORTING A NATIONAL ABORTION BAN. HE REPEATEDLY DENIED THOSE CLAIMS, CALLING HIS ACCUSERS LIARS.

ONE BIG HURDLE WALKER WILL HAVE TO OVERCOME BEFORE HE FLIES SOUTH TO NASSAU. HE MUST BE CONFIRMED BY THE SENATE WHICH DESPITE RECEIVING FOUR PREVIOUS NOMINEES, HAS NOT CONFIRMED A U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE BAHAMAS IN OVER A DECADE.

FOR STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS, I’M CHRIS FRANCIS

[Jack]

AN ISRAELI MEDIA OUTLET REPORTS THAT ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES ARE INDISCRIMINATELY KILLING PALESTINIAN CIVILIANS IN THE GAZA STRIP. 

HAARETZ – ISRAEL’S OLDEST NEWSPAPER KNOWN FOR ITS PROGRESSIVE STANCE AND BEING AT ODDS WITH THE COUNTRY’S RIGHT WING GOVERNMENT – SAYS COMMANDERS WERE GIVEN UNPRECENTED AUTHORITY TO OPERATE IN NETZARIM CORRIDOR … LEADING TO THE KILLING OF UNARMED MEN, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN.

ANONYMOUS SOLDIERS TOLD HAARETZ THEY’RE COMING FORWARD TO LET PEOPLE KNOW “HOW THE WAR REALLY LOOKS” AFTER RECEIVING QUESTIONABLE ORDERS TO OPEN FIRE ON “ANYONE WHO ENTERS” NETZARIM … WITH A RECENTLY DISCHARGED OFFICER REPORTEDLY TELLING HAARETZ …

“WE’RE KILLING CIVILIANS THERE WHO ARE COUNTED AS TERRORISTS.” 

THE UNAMED OFFICER ALSO SHARED AN INCIDENT WHEN 200 MILITANTS WERE KILLED AND ONLY 10 WERE CONFIRMED AS KNOWN HAMAS MEMBERS.

SOLDIERS SAY THEY RECEIVED “EXPANDED POWERS” ALLOWING THEM TO BOMB BUILDINGS OR LAUNCH AIR STRIKES THAT PREVIOUSLY REQUIRED APPROVAL FROM THE ARMY’S TOP STAFF.

THE ISRAELI ARMY IS PUSHING BACK ON THE ACCUSATIONS … TELLING FRANCE NEWS AGENCY A-F-P …

“ALL STRIKES IN THE AREA OF NETZARIM ARE CONDUCTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE MANDATORY PROCEDURES AND PROTOCOLS, INCLUDING TARGETS THAT ARE STRUCK IN AN URGENT TIME FRAME DUE TO ESSENTIAL OPERATIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE GROUND FORCES FACE IMMEDIATE THREATS.”

IT WENT ON TO SAY THAT ANY INCIDENTS THAT DEVIATE I-D-F ORDERS OR ETHICAL STANDARDS ARE THOROUGHLY EXAMINED AND ADDRESSED.

HAMAS … WHOSE ATTACK ON ISRAEL IN OCTOBER 2023 IGNITED THE CURRENT WAR … ALSO REACTED TO THE HAARETZ REPORT … SAYING THAT IT’S EVIDENCE OF WAR CRIMES AND “FULL FLEDGED ETHNIC CLEANSING OPERATIONS.”

THE HAMAS RUN GAZA HEALTH MINISTRY SAYS MORE THAN 45-THOUSAND PEOPLE HAVED DIED IN GAZA SINCE THE START OF THE ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR.

FOR SAN – I’M JACK AYLMER. 

FOR ALL YOUR LATEST NEWS HEADLINES – DOWNLOAD THE STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS APP TODAY.