Northeast

Moral 'failures' of academic leaders wouldn't have seen accountability if not for Congress: Stefanik

Published

2 years ago

January 5, 2024

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Moral 'failures' of academic leaders wouldn't have seen accountability if not for Congress: Stefanik

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House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., responded Tuesday to Harvard President Claudine Gay’s resignation, telling Fox News the “failure of leadership” by Gay and now-former University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill would not have been met with accountability if not for Congress.

Stefanik’s stern questioning last month of Magill, Gay and Massachusetts Institute of Technology President Sally Kornbluth on the subject of virulent antisemitism on campus has been credited for leading to the resignations of Magill and Gay, who stepped down Tuesday.

Stefanik told “America Reports” all three women offered “morally bankrupt” testimony in response to what she called an extremely simple question – whether calling for Jewish genocide violates academic codes of conduct at each institution.

Each collegiate leader offered a different version of “it depends on the context,” Stefanik recounted, saying that as a Harvard graduate herself, she recognized Gay’s failure of leadership from the start.

HARVARD PRESIDENT CLAUDINE GAY RESIGNS

“We have seen… from Claudine Gay a failure of moral leadership, but also a failure of academic integrity, which is a cornerstone of any higher education institution,” she said. “So I called for her resignation as I did for all three [presidents] because of their abject failure in that congressional testimony and their failure to protect Jewish students.”

“This is long overdue. It should not have taken the Harvard Corporation Board this long to demand her resignation.”

She said members of Harvard’s corporation are also “complicit” in covering up Gay’s reported repeated plagiarism; separate from her controversial House testimony – connecting the sudden scrutiny of her past written works with the fallout from her disastrous hearing performance.

HARVARD PRESIDENT CLAUDINE GAY FACES SIX NEW PLAGIARISM CHARGES: REPORT

“You have to remember, she was selected as president of Harvard in a shorter executive search than any other previous president. And they should have found out that there were 50 credible allegations of plagiarism and the fact that the Harvard Corporation, we now know, knew about that before the congressional hearing and tried to cover it up and threatened media outlets to sue them is a disgrace,” Stefanik added.

“When you are a board of any university, you need to make sure that your president, your faculty and your students uphold the rigors of academic integrity…”

“So this accountability would not have happened were it not for the very clear moral questions at the hearing.”

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In her resignation letter, Gay said it has been “distressing” to have people doubt her commitment to confronting hate and “upholding scholarly rigor,” claiming she has been since subjected to “threats fueled by racial animus.”

Prominent Harvard alumni Alan Dershowitz and billionaire hedgefunder Bill Ackman have been noted critics of Gay in the time since her testimony to Stefanik.

Dershowitz offered repeated criticism on Fox News, while Ackman was notably vociferous on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Gay did have a few defenders following her resignation, including Al Sharpton. The MSNBC host reportedly wrote that his organization plans to picket outside Ackman’s offices, according to CNN.

In regard to Harvard’s future, Stefanik said the college should prove it will have a new direction of leadership protecting Jewish students facing threats and assaults.

“This congressional investigation is not going to stop because of the resignation of these university presidents. There are deep institutional rots in these formerly prestigious universities, whether it’s their DEI offices or whether it’s the antisemitism that we see raging on college campuses,” she said.

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Boston, MA

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Published

38 minutes ago

January 9, 2026

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Pittsburg, PA

Hemingway’s Cafe in Oakland closing after more than four decades

Published

1 hour ago

January 9, 2026

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Hemingway’s Cafe in Oakland closing after more than four decades

January 9, 2026 / 6:04 AM EST
/ CBS Pittsburgh

A longtime staple near Pitt’s campus is closing its doors after more than four decades of business in Oakland.

Hemingway’s Cafe announced Thursday that it will be closing for good in May after more than 40 years along Forbes Avenue in the heart of Oakland.

“Since opening in 1983, Hemingway’s has been more than just a bar – it’s been a home, a meeting place, and an Oakland staple for generations of students, alumni, locals, and friends at the heart of the University of Pittsburgh,” the bar said.

Hemingway’s Cafe in Oakland has announced it will be closing for good in May after more than four decades of business near the University of Pittsburgh’s campus.

KDKA Photojournalist Brian Smithmyer

The bar said while they are sad to be closing, they’re also grateful for the decades of memories, laughter, friendship, and traditions over the years.

“Thank you for making Hemingway’s what it has been for over four decades,” the bar said.

A final closing date for Hemingway’s hasn’t been announced.

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Connecticut

Opinion: Three things CT must do to up its food game

Published

3 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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Opinion: Three things CT must do to up its food game

If you grew up in North Carolina, you don’t just eat fast food — you inherit it. The first time I walked into a Connecticut drive-thru, I realized something that shocked my younger self: I missed home because I missed the food. Connecticut may pride itself on being the Pizza Capital of the United States, but for anyone raised in the South, that crown doesn’t solve the state’s biggest problem — it lacks the fast-food culture that keeps everyday meals fun, comforting and quick.

Before Nutmeggers fire their ovens to defend New Haven, let me acknowledge the obvious: Connecticut has world-class pizza. The state is so proud of it that the governor’s office issued a press release doubling down on the title, even noting that there are 1,376 pizza restaurants statewide and 63 in New Haven alone.

And yes, the pies are incredible. Many are handmade, cooked in old ovens and worth the wait.

But that’s the point: You have to wait. A lot.

Most weekends, you’ll stand in line at Pepe’s longer than it takes to drive from New Britain to Hartford. Connecticut pizza may be extraordinary, but it’s not fast food. And it can’t replace what the South does best: comfort meals you can get in minutes.

As a North Carolina native now living in Connecticut, here are three things this state needs to truly level up its food game:

A legendary fast-food chain — ideally Bojangles.

Southerners don’t go to Bojangles. We return to it. It’s fried chicken that tastes like home, biscuits you can’t replicate, and seasoned fries that make road trips worth it.

Connecticut may not realize it, but people here miss it too. Some residents literally drive from Connecticut to North Carolina just for Bojangles, as shown in this Reddit thread from transplanted Southerners longing for a “Bojangles fix.” Another Reddit post raves about trying Bojangles for the first time.

Even YouTube creators have jumped in, praising the chain with videos like this review of its famous chicken and biscuits.

There’s also a full breakdown of the chain’s significance in “The Untold Truth of Bojangles,” which you can read here. For an outside perspective, a Connecticut-based writer included Bojangles in a ranking of the best Southern chains.

And recently, Bojangles made business news when reports suggested the company is up for sale — a reminder of how culturally important it is to its fans.

Bottom line: Bojangles has more than 800 locations across 17 states, a loyal fan base and a flavor profile the Northeast simply doesn’t match.

More variety. The South’s fast-food universe is huge.

A writer who lived in both New England and the South described the contrast clearly in this Business Insider piece: “The fast-food options are seemingly endless in the South.”

North Carolina has Cook Out, Zaxby’s, Biscuitville, Smithfield’s Chicken ’N Bar-B-Q, and more. Connecticut has far fewer regional chains, meaning fewer signature flavors and fewer low-cost comfort foods. It’s not just about fried chicken — it’s about choice.

A stronger culture of quick, flavorful meals.

Fast food in N.C. isn’t just food — it’s rhythm. It’s grabbing a Cajun Filet Biscuit before school, hitting Cook Out after a late game or stopping at Bojangles on road trips because you know exactly what that first bite will taste like. Connecticut leans heavily on sit-down meals and pizza culture. Great traditions, but not always practical for families, students or workers looking for fast, inexpensive meals on the go.

The Counterargument: But Connecticut Has Pizza.

True — Connecticut has some of the best pizza in the country, and locals love it fiercely. But pizza isn’t filling the same role Bojangles does in North Carolina. It’s not a drive-thru meal; it’s not a cultural touchstone, and it doesn’t come with a sweet tea strong enough to fix a bad day. Pizza can be phenomenal while still leaving a gap in the food landscape.

The Solution

It’s time for Connecticut to welcome a major Southern chain, ideally Bojangles, and embrace the culture that comes with it. Even a single location would bring new flavors, new customers, new jobs and maybe even a new sense of identity around quick comfort food. Connecticut doesn’t have to stop loving pizza. But it can expand its palate — and its drive-thru options.

Because here’s the truth that no Connecticut resident wants to hear from a Southerner: Your pizza is amazing. But you have no idea how good life can be with a Bo-Berry Biscuit.

Max Frazier is a sophomore, a Blue Devils basketball player and a proud North Carolinian studying communication at Central Connecticut State University.

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