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MELBOURNE, Australia — Novak Djokovic refused to let anything stop his pursuit of a record 25th Grand Slam trophy in the Australian Open quarterfinals. Not a problem with his left leg. Not an early deficit. And not the kid across the net, Carlos Alcaraz, who was making things difficult and eyeing his own bit of history.Djokovic overcame it all, just as he has so often along the way to so many triumphs, moving into the semifinals at Melbourne Park for the 12th time with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Alcaraz in a scintillating showdown Tuesday night between a…

With heavy winds contributing to small blazes elsewhere in Southern California, fire crews battling the Palisades and Eaton fires were able to make small gains in containment overnight into Tuesday morning, Jan. 21.The Palisades fire was 63% contained, while firefighters inched further on the Eaton fire, achieving 89% containment, according to Cal Fire.Crews battling both fires continued to address hot spots within the fires’ perimeters, officials said.Thousands of structures sit in ruins in Altadena, CA, on Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025. The Eaton Fire, fueled by intense Santa Ana Winds, ripped through beginning on the evening of Jan. 7. Fires across…

“How expensive?” tracks measurements of California’s totally unaffordable housing market.Buzz: San Bernardino County house hunters face potential house payments more than double from five years ago.Source: My trusty spreadsheet tracked this yardstick of affordability by looking at its 37-year history of CoreLogic homebuying stats through November and swings in the 30-year fixed mortgage rate from Freddie Mac. Estimated payments were calculated by combining a month’s median sales price and mortgage rate.The painA typical San Bernardino County buyer in November got a $3,390 monthly payment, assuming a 20% downpayment. That’s the No. 3 highest since 1988, 6% below a year ago…

INGLEWOOD — As the Clippers work their way through six games in nine days, it would be tempting to dial back minutes and rest the starters. Save the stars for the marquee games and give bench players an occasion to play.But that isn’t always an option.On Monday, the Clippers needed every single minute by every single available player and that still wasn’t enough as the Chicago Bulls ran away with a surprising 112-99 victory on the second night of a back-to-back at the Intuit Dome.The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for the Clippers (24-18), who were outscored 36-16 in…

President-elect Donald Trump’s sentence of “unconditional release” for violating a New York law that prohibits falsification of business records entails neither jail nor probation. But unless Trump successfully challenges his 34 felony convictions on appeal, he will suffer a lifelong penalty that should trouble civil libertarians across the political spectrum.Because Trump’s convictions involved crimes that were notionally punishable by more than a year of incarceration, they made him subject to a federal law that bars him from possessing firearms. That law is unfair, illogical and constitutionally dubious because it deprives Americans of their Second Amendment rights even when they have…

By THOMAS BEAUMONT and JONATHAN J. COOPERThe Department of Government Efficiency’s first order of business was itself: It’s now down to one leader.Vivek Ramaswamy is no longer part of the commission that President Donald Trump championed, officials confirmed hours after the Republican took office Monday, and that leaves billionaire Elon Musk to run the cost-cutting operation alone.Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur who sought the GOP nomination for president in 2024, has signaled plans to run for governor of Ohio next year. A native of Cincinnati, Ramaswamy, 39, had shown interest in Vice President JD Vance’s recently vacated Senate seat before Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine chose Lt. Gov. Jon Husted as…

LOS ANGELES — On a night when the Kings honored first responders in a moving ceremony before the game, the brave men and women on hand hardly needed to spring into action as the Pittsburgh Penguins extinguished what little fire the hosts showed, 5-1, on Monday at Crypto.com Arena, snapping the Kings’ nine-game home win streak.Kevin Hayes, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Cody Glass and Anthony Beauvillier scored a goal apiece for Pittsburgh. Beauvillier, Crosby and Hayes each added an assist. Alex Nedeljkovic turned away 25 shots.Adrian Kempe scored the Kings’ lone goal, with a two-man advantage. David Rittich had 27…

The Federal Reserve’s premature victory lap over inflation reveals a worrisome misunderstanding of the predicament we still find ourselves in. Unprecedented government spending and debt, combined with mounting fears that the debt can’t (or won’t) be repaid, played a misunderstood role in inflation’s rise several years ago. As such, fiscal policy must be part of the solution.Otherwise, expect the recent acceleration of inflation to stick around or get worse, bringing trouble for the new administration.The pressure on the Fed to declare the race over and continue lowering interest rates is real. It would be a mistake to cave any further.…

It was 3:30 a.m., the temperature hovering around 13 degrees Fahrenheit.Brian Hall was in line with his son, Patton, for inauguration festivities at the Capitol One Arena early Monday morning, Jan. 20, some 500 people back, by his estimate.The Halls, who had traveled to Washington, D.C., from Lake Arrowhead for President Donald Trump’s second inauguration, had missed the president’s rally at the indoor venue the previous day. They weren’t going to miss Monday’s events. “It’s the most MAGA rally of all time,” Hall said later Monday afternoon from his seats just behind the stage in the arena, as tech billionaire…

By ERIC OLSON AP College Football WriterATLANTA — Will Howard transferred to Ohio State to win a national championship, and he reached that goal by playing the best football of his career throughout the Buckeyes’ four games in the College Football Playoff.He was never better than in the first half and at the end of Ohio State’s 34-23 victory over Notre Dame on Monday night.Howard connected on his first 13 passes to set the record for consecutive completions in a CFP title game. And on third-and-11 after the Fighting Irish had pulled within eight points, he lofted a pass to…