Northeast
Obama continues tradition of slow-rolled political endorsements as gubernatorial elections hit fever pitch
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Former President Barack Obama officially endorsed both Democrat candidates running in the only pair of gubernatorial elections this cycle, following the tradition of the former president holding his endorsement cards close to his chest in the lead-up to elections.
“Mikie’s integrity, grit and commitment to service are what we need right now in our leaders,” Obama said in a video endorsement ad released Friday by Democratic New Jersey Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s gubernatorial campaign. “Mikie Sherrill is the right choice for your next governor.
“Mikie is a mom who will drive down costs for New Jersey families,” Obama continued in the ad. “As a federal prosecutor and former Navy helicopter pilot, she worked to keep our communities safe.”
New Jersey and Virginia are the only states holding gubernatorial elections in 2025’s off-season election year, with Sherrill and former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia as the only Democrats in the running.
OBAMA ENDORSES SPANBERGER, ATTACKS REPUBLICANS IN VIRGINIA GOVERNOR’S RACE ADS
Former President Barack Obama continued his tradition of holding official political endorsements close to the vest, endorsing the Democrats running in the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial elections. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Obama endorsed Spanberger Thursday in a pair of ads that also took aim at Republicans for “attacking abortion rights.”
“Virginia’s elections are some of the most important in the country this year. We know Republicans will keep attacking abortion rights and the rights of women. That’s why having the right governor matters, and I’m proud to endorse Abigail Spanberger,” Obama said in an ad endorsing the Virginia Democrat.
“Republican policies are raising costs on working families so (that) billionaires can get massive tax cuts,” he said in another ad endorsing Spanberger.
Following Obama’s endorsement of Spanberger, the Republican challenger in the race, current Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears’ campaign told Fox Digital Thursday, “Abigail Spanberger is scared, and it shows.”
THE ONLY GOP GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATES RUNNING IN 2025 ELECTIONS LEAN INTO TRUMP’S MAGA CAMPAIGN TACTICS
“After losing support across Virginia, she’s leaning on liberal elites to try and save her collapsing campaign,” Earle-Sears’ press secretary, Peyton Vogel, said. “This is a desperate play from a candidate who’s run out of support, out of ideas and out of time. Voters see through it, and that’s why Winsome Earle-Sears is surging.”
New Jersey Republican Jack Ciattarelli’s campaign also blasted the Obama endorsement in a comment to Fox News Digital Friday.
“If anything underscores the lack of enthusiasm around Mikie Sherrill’s arrogant, out-of-touch campaign, it’s that she thinks that endorsements by Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton actually matter to middle and working-class New Jerseyans who have been kicked in the teeth by eight years of one-party Democrat rule making our state more expensive and less safe,” Ciattarelli campaign strategist Chris Russell told Fox News Digital. “Spoiler alert: They don’t. If anything, it energizes our voters even more.”
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attended fundraising events for both Democratic gubernatorial candidates in October.
Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., and former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., launched gubernatorial bids for their respective states in the 2025 election. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
Since leaving the Oval Office, Obama typically has held his endorsement card close to his chest.
He endorsed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in June 2016 following months of signaling support for Clinton without formally offering his endorsement.
THE ONLY TWO DEMS RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR IN 2025 ARE FORMER ROOMMATES WITH MIRRORING POLITICAL CAREERS
Obama remained coy during the 2020 election about whom he would endorse, saying he would not back anyone during the primary. As Democratic contenders such as former Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders dropped out of the race, Obama officially endorsed his former vice president, Joe Biden, after he became the party’s presumptive nominee.
Obama notably got more involved with the 2020 Biden campaign in its final weeks, holding his first in-person event amid the pandemic in Pennsylvania just days before the election.
The 44th president called on Democrats to “chill out” during the 2020 primary season and wait to see which candidate would emerge successful in the primary process. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
The 44th president called on Democrats to “chill out” during the 2020 primary season and wait to see which candidate would emerge successful in the primary process.
“There will be differences, but I want us to make sure that we keep in mind that relative to the ultimate goal, which is to defeat a president and a party that has, I think, taken a sharp turn away from a lot of the core traditions and values and institutional commitments that built this country,” Obama said in 2019 at a Democrat fundraiser in California. “Compared to that goal, the differences we’re having right now are relatively minor.
“Everybody needs to chill out about the candidates,” he added, “but gin up about the prospect of rallying behind whoever emerges from this process.”
OBAMA, PELOSI, OTHER TOP DEMS RESISTED INSTANT HARRIS ENDORSEMENT CITING NEED TO ‘EARN IT,’ ‘HIKING’ EXCUSE
During the unprecedented 2024 election cycle, Obama did not offer a formal, new endorsement of Biden’s re-election run but did join him for campaign events. Biden ultimately dropped out of the race as concerns over his mental acuity and age mounted, with Obama again staying mum for days whether he would endorse then-Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s nominee.
Former President Barack Obama speaks with President-elect Donald Trump before the state funeral service for former President Jimmy Carter in Washington Jan. 9, 2025. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)
Biden dropped out of the race July 21, 2024, and endorsed Harris to run in his place that same day in a separate social media post. Obama and first lady Michelle Obama endorsed Harris in a video message July 26, 2024, as party members and political pundits awaited the Obamas’ support with bated breath.
TRUMP NOT ON BALLOT, BUT PRESIDENT FRONT AND CENTER IN 2025 ELECTIONS
Harris published a memoir, “107 Days,” in September that detailed her short 2024 campaign cycle and noted in her book that Obama did not offer an immediate endorsement, instead advising that she has to “earn” the nomination and consider the “timing” of it.
“Saddle up! Joe did what I hoped he would do. But you have to earn it,” Obama said when Harris spoke to him, according to the book. “Michelle and I are supportive but not going to put a finger on the scale right now. Let Joe have his moment. Think through timing.”
Obama also endorsed former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s failed 2021 re-election campaign at the end of October 2024, as that election began losing ground to Republican Glenn Youngkin as education issues took center stage.
The 2025 gubernatorial elections have teed up the two Democrats as potential leaders of the party if they prove fruitful in their races, following the Democrat Party’s disarray from the losses at the 2024 ballot boxes that handed President Donald Trump a victory.
Fox News Digital reached out to Obama’s office for additional comment on the gubernatorial endorsements Friday but did not immediately receive a reply.
Read the full article from Here
A 76-year-old man died on Friday after being shoved down the stairs at the 18th Street subway station in Manhattan, and the police arrested a suspect who had been arrested multiple times in recent months and had been discharged from Bellevue Hospital’s psychiatric ward just hours before.
The victim, Ross Falzone, landed on his head at the bottom of the stairs and suffered a traumatic brain injury, a fractured spine and a fractured rib after a stranger rushed forward and pushed him, the police said.
Mr. Falzone had been walking north on Seventh Avenue toward the subway station in the Chelsea neighborhood on Thursday evening, said Brad Weekes, assistant commissioner of public information for the Police Department. Walking about 30 yards behind him was the stranger, according to surveillance footage from the scene, Mr. Weekes said. As Mr. Falzone reached the station, the man rushed forward and pushed him down the stairs. He was taken to Bellevue where he died shortly before 3 a.m. on Friday.
The death sparked outrage at City Hall. Mayor Zohran Mamdani quickly called for an investigation into how Bellevue handled the discharge of the suspect and suggested that institutional problems at the hospital might have led to the random attack.
“I am horrified by the killing of Ross Falzone and the circumstances that led to it,” Mr. Mamdani said in a news release on Friday, in which he ordered “an immediate investigation on what steps should have been taken to prevent this tragedy.”
Police identified the suspect as Rhamell Burke, 32.
In the three months preceding the attack, Mr. Burke was arrested four times, Mr. Weekes said, including an arrest on Feb. 2 in connection with an assault on a Port Authority police officer.
Mr. Burke’s most recent interaction with the police began at around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, when he approached a group of N.Y.P.D. officers outside the 17th Precinct station house on East 51st Street, Mr. Weekes said. He grabbed a stick from a pile of garbage on the street and approached the officers, who told him to drop the stick. When he did, officers placed Mr. Burke in a police vehicle and drove him to Bellevue, where he was admitted to the emergency room at around 3:40 p.m., Mr. Weekes said. Mr. Burke was taken to the hospital’s Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program for evaluation and treatment, Mr. Weekes said, and was released from the hospital one hour later.
He was just a mile and a half from the hospital when he encountered Mr. Falzone at around 9:30 p.m. Thursday.
On Friday afternoon, police officers found Mr. Burke in Penn Station, where they arrested him. He was in custody on Friday evening. It was unclear Friday if Mr. Burke had a lawyer.
The mayor said he had requested help from the New York State Department of Health, which will investigate the decision to release Mr. Burke from Bellevue and conduct a review of similar cases at the hospital. The state agency also will investigate psychiatric evaluation and discharge procedures across NYC Health and Hospitals, the city’s public hospital system, according to the news release.
Mr. Falzone was a retired high school teacher who lived alone for many years in an apartment building on the Upper West Side. His friends were in shock on Friday about his death. They shared memories of an affable but private man who rarely spoke about his family or personal life.
Mr. Falzone had been recovering from a recent surgery and seemed more mobile and happy, said Marc Stager, 78, Mr. Falzone’s next-door neighbor on a tree-lined block of West 85th Street. He was known as a cheerful “yapper,” said Briel Waxman, a neighbor. He was the kind of New Yorker who enjoyed chatting with neighbors about historical details of his building and seeing performances at Lincoln Center with friends.
“He was always out and about,” said Ms. Waxman, 35, who often returned to her apartment at midnight or 1 a.m. to find Mr. Falzone arriving home at the same time. “I was like, ‘I don’t know if I’m proud of you or embarrassed of myself,’” she remembered telling him.
Mr. Falzone had wide taste in music — opera, classical, jazz, pop — and neighbors could tell he was home when they heard notes escaping from under his apartment door, Mr. Stager said.
He was “a helpless old guy,” said Mr. Stager, who added that he was “disappointed and shocked, frankly, that somebody could do such a thing” as shove such a defenseless person down the stairs.
When Ms. Waxman moved into the building five years ago, Mr. Falzone was among the first people to welcome her, she said. He once brought a package to her door that had been delivered to the wrong unit and shared that what is now a blank wall in her apartment had once been a fireplace.
Ms. Waxman sat in her living room on Friday and cried as she talked, dabbing her eyes with a tissue. She remembered Mr. Falzone as “just overall, nice, talkative, genuine human.”
Boston, MA
What we know about wrong-way driver killed in head-on collision with state trooper in Lynnfield – The Boston Globe
Court records show that Marrero was the father of three children, the oldest of whom is 17. The youngest two children, twins, are 13 years old; Marrero’s death came days before their 14th birthday.
Records in Middlesex Probate and Family Court also suggest that Marrero faced financial difficulties and personal troubles, stemming in part from a work injury that family members said caused a bout of depression and deteriorating behavior in his personal life.
For nearly a decade, Marrero worked at Dewberry, a Boston engineering consulting firm, court records show, obtaining a job as an architectural design apprentice in 2005. He left the company in 2014, according to a company spokesperson.
Throughout that time, he doubled as a bartender on the side, working at Mexican restaurants in Boston and Waltham, court records show.
A knee injury ended Marrero’s career at Dewberry, court records show, and he left the company shortly thereafter.
That injury, according to court documents, was the catalyst for what his wife described as a “major depressive episode,” which she said contributed to the strain in their marriage. The couple, who had been married for more than 20 years, separated in 2022.
Records also show that Marrero struggled with debts to family members and credit card companies. During his divorce proceedings, it was unclear how much money he was taking home in income.
Marrero briefly owned and operated a contracting business, 109 Construction, but the corporation was administratively dissolved in 2024, according to state filings.
Marrero had lived in US since at least 2001, holding legal status. He became a naturalized citizen in March 2021, court records show.
Social media posts suggest he was active in the tight-knit Venezuelan community in Massachusetts. Photos show him cheering on Venezuela at a World Baseball Classic watch party in Brighton earlier this year.
Court records appear to show Marrero’s interest in art and music, owning a Venezuelan guitar, conga drums, and several Venezuelan paintings, as well as homemade winemaking setup.
Marrero’s family could not be reached for comment. A close friend reached by the Globe declined to comment.
Trainor had just completed his shift at about 2 a.m. on Wednesday and was driving home when he responded to a report for a Jeep traveling south in the northbound lanes of Route 1, near the Lynnfield overpass.
Raised in Salem, Trainor began his public safety career as an Essex County correction officer before graduating from the State Police academy in 2023, State Police Colonel Geoffrey Noble said.
Trainor’s fiancée, Jessica D. Ostrowski, of Georgetown, posted an emotional message to social media Thursday, describing the late trooper as “my absolute best friend.”
“I am beyond proud for the amount of love you have been given by those who loved and cared about you,” she wrote.
Travis Andersen and Jeremiah Manion of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Material from previous Globe coverage was used.
Camilo Fonseca can be reached at camilo.fonseca@globe.com. Follow him on X @fonseca_esq and on Instagram @camilo_fonseca.reports.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have largely finished filling their offseason roster, adding 10 draft picks, six undrafted free agents, and a few veteran reinforcements to fill out the 90-man squad. Now Omar Khan’s attention shifts from acquiring talent to sorting through it starting this weekend with rookie minicamp. How many members of the Steelers’ 2026 draft class will survive the final cuts?
This first iteration is the time for bold predictions when we have very little information to work with. You’ll notice a couple surprises in mine. Here’s an early prediction of Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster.
Offense – 25
Quarterbacks (3) – Aaron Rodgers, Will Howard, Drew Allar
Analysis: Rodgers hasn’t signed, but the assumption has been all along that he eventually will. If he does, Mason Rudolph is as good at gone. I suppose they could stash him on the practice squad, if he’s agreeable, to have at least one veteran with starting experience. Allar is a lock, and it would be a shock if the Steelers move on from Howard after they gassed him up all offseason.
Running Backs (4) – Jaylen Warren, Rico Dowdle, Travis Homer, Riley Nowakowski (FB)
Analysis: Kaleb Johnson was drafted for Arthur Smith’s wide-zone scheme, and Smith is gone. Where will his opportunity come with Dowdle and Warren both on the roster through 2027? Johnson also serves no purpose on special teams. It’s hard to move on from a third-round pick so soon, but how do you keep him on the roster while being mindful of special teams? Homer is too important in that area as a four-unit player who can serve as a personal protector on the punt unit.
Wide Receivers (6) – DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman Jr., Germie Bernard, Ben Skowronek, Kaden Wetjen, Eli Heidenreich
Analysis: Going out on a limb here with another surprise cut of former third-round pick Roman Wilson. He was lapped on the depth chart by Marquez Valdes-Scantling late last season and Aaron Rodgers clearly didn’t trust Wilson. If Rodgers is back, Wilson is due for another year of not getting a helmet on game day. He provides nothing on special teams, so it’s hard to justify his spot. Heidenreich makes it as the team’s final seventh-round pick because he can play RB and WR (he’s listed as both on its official roster) and a whole lot of special teams. Wetjen and Heidenreich give them multiple slot options to experiment with.
Tight Ends (3) – Pat Freiermuth, Darnell Washington, Jaheim Bell
Analysis: Freiermuth and Washington are locks, but the third tight end should be one of the more interesting spots on the roster this year. The team lists Nowakowski as a fullback, though he can play both. Jaheim Bell is another versatile option who can play TE, fullback, and H-back. McCarthy’s favorite word seems to be versatility, so Bell makes sense here.
Offensive Tackles (3) – Troy Fautanu, Max Iheanachor, Dylan Cook
Analysis: Broderick Jones may contribute in 2026, but I am predicting him to start the season on the PUP list after reports of a setback with his neck injury. Fautanu, Iheanachor, and Cook are no-brainers, but will the Steelers keep a fourth pure tackle? Spencer Anderson, Gennings Dunker, and maybe even Steven Jones can play the position in a pinch, so I’ll stick with three. This would presumably go back to four if/when Jones is healthy.
Interior Offensive Linemen (6) – Zach Frazier, Mason McCormick, Gennings Dunker, Brock Hoffman, Spencer Anderson, Ryan McCollum
Analysis: Frazier, McCormick, and Dunker are set in stone. Anderson and Hoffman provide experience and familiarity with a chance to win the Week 1 starting LG job. McCollum has been solid as Frazier’s backup when needed.
Defense – 25
Defensive Ends (5) – Cameron Heyward, Derrick Harmon, Yahya Black, Esezi Otomewo, Kevin Jobity Jr.
Analysis: I have Rubio as the only draft pick not to make the 53-man roster. Otomewo was solid in limited action and has experience with the rest of the group. The last spot comes down to Rubio, Jobity, and Logan Lee. Jobity offers a little more pass-rush upside and could flash enough in camp to win a spot at the back of the depth chart.
Nose Tackles (2) – Keeanu Benton, Sebastian Joseph-Day
Analysis: Both are virtual locks and should play a large number of snaps in this defense.
Outside Linebackers (4) – T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, Nick Herbig, Jack Sawyer
Analysis: Nothing should change here from last year. It’s one of the deepest and most talented position groups on the entire roster.
Inside Linebackers (5) – Patrick Queen, Payton Wilson, Cole Holcomb, Carson Bruener, Brandon George
Analysis: Let’s include a rookie minicamp tryout player. One or two usually make the 90-man roster, and it’s not unheard of for them to also make the initial 53. George is one of the most athletic linebackers to come out of the draft in a long time. And unlike most athletic linebackers, you don’t have to sacrifice size with him standing 6032 and weighing 246 pounds. He went undrafted and was impressing in Kansas City last year before an injury derailed his rookie season. Malik Harrison was signed to be a force in the run game, but he didn’t do that very well last year. To me, he’s expendable. Bruener is a core special teamer and should be considered darn near a lock for the initial 53-man roster because of it.
Cornerbacks (5) – Joey Porter Jr., Jamel Dean, Brandin Echols, Daylen Everette, Asante Samuel Jr.
Analysis: With the addition of third-round rookie Daylen Everette, fringe guys like Cory Trice Jr. and Donte Kent should have a hard time making the roster given their extensive injury histories.
Safeties (4) – Jalen Ramsey, DeShon Elliott, Jaquan Brisker, Robert Spears-Jennings
Analysis: The top three should be considered locks, which leaves an intriguing battle between Spears-Jennings and Sebastian Castro. The upside on defense is higher for the rookie, and I think he offers enough on special teams to edge out Castro, especially with other special teams guys like Homer, Bruener, Skowronek, and Sawyer already on the roster.
Special Teams – 3
Kicker (1) – Chris Boswell
Analysis: Boswell should soon sign an extension that makes him the league’s most expensive kicker. And it’s well-deserved. This one is obvious.
Punter (1) – Cameron Johnston
Analysis: Pittsburgh’s rookie minicamp roster includes three punters, so this isn’t a shoo-in. But Johnston is the clear favorite if he can stay healthy after back-to-back injury-plagued seasons at 34 years old.
Long Snapper (1) – Christian Kuntz
Analysis: Pittsburgh has always given Kuntz competition, and this year is no different. But he is under contract through 2026 and should keep his job for at least one more season.
-
News18 minutes agoFrontier Airlines plane hits person on runway during takeoff at Denver airport
-
New York2 hours agoMan Dies in Subway Attack; Mamdani Orders Inquiry Into Suspect’s Release From Bellevue
-
Detroit, MI2 hours agoPatchy dense fog turns to stronger thunderstorms for Metro Detroit to start the weekend
-
San Francisco, CA2 hours agoWhere to watch Pittsburgh Pirates vs San Francisco Giants: TV channel, start time, streaming for May 9
-
Dallas, TX3 hours agoFC Dallas vs Real Salt Lake Preview: Lineups, Storylines & What to Watch
-
Miami, FL3 hours agoMiami Area Gets First New Manufactured Home Community in Decades
-
Boston, MA3 hours agoWhat we know about wrong-way driver killed in head-on collision with state trooper in Lynnfield – The Boston Globe
-
Denver, CO3 hours agoA Frontier plane hits a pedestrian during takeoff at Denver airport