Max Frankel, Pulitzer Prize-Winner and Former NYT Executive Editor, Dies at 94
Frankel died Sunday in his Manhattan home, wife Joyce Purnick, herself a former reporter and editor at The Times, said.
Frankel fled Nazi Germany as a child and came to New York not knowing any English. He gravitated toward journalism, a career that would see him rise to the summit of his profession, befriending world leaders and leading the Times during eight years of great change and turmoil on the global stage.
Frankel went with Richard Nixon to China on his 1972 mission to normalize relations, and chronicled the president's meetings with Mao and Chou En-lai, along the way giving American readers a look into the lives of everyday Chinese, who had been in isolation since the Communist revolution of 1949. His 24 articles in those eight days won the 1973 Pulitzer for international reporting.
Frankel served as the Times' opinions editor and later executive editor from 1986 to 1994, a time of mostly massive growth for the storied newspaper.
More to come …
The post Max Frankel, Pulitzer Prize-Winner and Former NYT Executive Editor, Dies at 94 appeared first on TheWrap.
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USA Today
10 minutes ago
- USA Today
Will the 2026 tax season start late? IRS commissioner sparks speculation
Sure, we're in back-to-school season, but tax pros already are speculating about the potential for a delayed start for the 2026 tax season. The buzz began building after Billy Long, the new IRS commissioner, was quoted in a July 29 article in The Tax Adviser, a monthly publication of the American Institute of CPAs, as well as the Journal of Accountancy. Long said that the 2026 filing season should start around Presidents Day, which is on Monday, Feb. 16 next year. Gulp, are we talking about a potential three-week delay here? Which could mean many early filers would have to wait even longer for their tax refunds? Not so fast, says the IRS in a statement issued after Long made his comments during a Q&A session at the 2025 Tax Summit of the National Association of Enrolled Agents in Salt Lake City. We're being told that things might not be that dire after all. This year, Internal Revenue Service began accepting and processing individual federal income tax returns on Jan. 27. Kicking off the tax season on Feb. 16 would mean we're talking about a roughly three-week delay. According to the article in the Tax Adviser, Long said he pushed for an earlier date but said that IRS staff wanted more preparation time. Long claimed that he was told staff would "need every day in there. But they have this thing down." Not surprisingly, the IRS seemed to back off that claim, according to an IRS statement in an article that Politico posted online Aug. 4. Tax Notes, a publication for tax professionals, posted the same IRS statement in its story online Aug. 5 with the headline "IRS walks back commissioner's filing season prediction." What IRS says now about next year's tax season The IRS statement on the tax filing date, which I later received by email as well, didn't deny Long's comments but offered some hope if you read between the lines. 2025 tax rules: Trump's new tax deduction on auto loans has major limitations: What car buyers should know The statement, first issued July 30 according to the IRS, concluded: "The IRS looks forward to another successful tax filing season next year, and we will announce the timing of its opening in the regular course." According to the July 30 statement, "IRS Commissioner Billy Long is in his second week of a 'boots on the ground' tour of IRS facilities with visits last week in Georgia and this week in Utah." The IRS said: "Billy cares about two groups of people: his employee-partners and taxpayers. He is gathering information on what enhancements can be made to provide an exceptional taxpayer experience for the American people." No kickoff date is set in stone yet. Last year, the IRS issued a news release on Jan. 10 to state that the 2025 tax season would start on Monday, Jan. 27, 2025. When will the IRS begin accepting tax returns? It's a popular question that readers search for online as the calendar year comes closer to an end. But remember, we likely have five months to go from now before the IRS announces when the agency will begin accepting and processing more than 140 million individual income returns for the 2025 tax year. My guess? The speculation has only just begun. Fingers crossed, and it will all work out. Don't bet too heavily against the possibility for at least a few glitches along the way. Some tax professionals remain cautiously optimistic Mark Luscombe, principal analyst for Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting in Riverwoods, Illinois, told me that the good news for the IRS is that the "One Big, Beautiful Bill Act" passed in early July instead of the end of December. "This would normally give the IRS time to prepare for the filing season," Luscombe said. Yet, there are potential glitches, he said. First, the IRS is dealing with significant staff reductions. Luscombe said it's hard to know whether staff reductions affected some key positions at the IRS. But he suggested that if IRS staff at one point told the IRS commissioner that the start of the filing season would probably need to be delayed well into February, then "that is an indication that the staff is concerned about being ready in time for the start of the tax season." On top of that, Luscombe said, Congress is talking about the possibility of another tax bill this year, which could potentially hit late in the year and also affect the start of tax filing season. "If the IRS staff says they need until Presidents Day in 2026, I would take them at their word, which would also mean delayed refunds compared to other more recent years," Luscombe said. No doubt, the IRS will do all it can within its power to avoid the uproar that would take place with any Presidents Day launch. "My interpretation of last week's comments is that the IRS is concerned but still trying to avoid a long delay," said Janet Holtzblatt, senior fellow for the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center in Washington, D.C. If the launch of the filing season is delayed, she said, it will more likely be due to the 25% reduction in IRS staff than to the tax law changes and new deductions in the one big bill. "The legislation was signed on July 4, which typically would give the IRS sufficient time to implement the new legislative provisions," she said. Typically, when the IRS has had to delay the kickoff date for the tax season, she said, it has been after Congress enacts tax legislation very late in the year. Often, some delays are limited to very specific complicated provisions associated with the new tax laws. For example, she said, the American Taxpayer Relief Act was enacted on Jan. 2, 2013, and had some retroactive provisions for 2012 returns. In that case, the filing season officially began on Jan. 30, 2013, but the IRS began accepting 2012 returns in various phases as it worked quickly to update forms and instructions to reflect the new law. The tax season essentially was delayed for some filers claiming particular tax breaks on 2012 returns. In 2013, for example, the IRS began accepting tax returns on Feb. 10 from people claiming depreciation deductions. Taxpayers claiming education credits had to wait until Feb. 14. "It wasn't until March 4 that everyone could file," Holtzblatt said. The IRS had to reprogram and test its systems for tax year 2012, including all updates required by the American Taxpayer Relief Act enacted by Congress in January 2013. In recent years, Holtzblatt said, the latest opening day for tax season occurred during the pandemic. The 2021 filing season did not begin until Feb. 12. "If the filing season is delayed, refunds will also be delayed," she said. "Perhaps, the IRS can still manage to avoid long delays, but the task will be challenging with a 25% reduction in staff and a remaining workforce that may well be demoralized." We're talking about more than one big change in tax rules that will impact 2025 tax returns — a new tax deduction of up to $6,000 for those age 65 and older who qualify; a tax deduction on overtime pay; a tax deduction on the interest paid on new car loans, and more. "The fact that there are changes in the law that impact this tax year means the IRS and Treasury must work diligently to both send out appropriate guidance to taxpayers and prepare for changes to filing to accommodate those changes next spring," said Garrett Watson, director of policy analysis at the nonpartisan Tax Foundation. Once again, we don't actually know when the 2026 tax season will start. The IRS typically isn't announcing the start of filing season in the summer just days before school starts. But this summer, we all started talking about one big bill and tax breaks around the Fourth of July. So, I guess it's natural that some soon will be asking once again: When does the IRS begin accepting tax returns? Sort of like seeing artificial Christmas trees sprout up for sale in October. Contact personal finance columnist Susan Tompor: stompor@ Follow her on X @tompor.
New York Post
10 minutes ago
- New York Post
$25 million taxpayer cash handed by DHS, FEMA to groups with extremist ties: report
Taxpayer funds totalling $25 million were handed to US groups with alleged links to terror organizations or extremist ideology, a bombshell new study has found. In a twist of irony, the funds were originally allocated to help deradicalize would-be terrorists, but may have ended up in the pockets of groups that support Hamas, Hezbollah and the Iranian regime, according to the report. The Department of Homeland Security gave out the cash through its disaster relief programs, including the embattled Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), between 2013 and 2024, according to the report released by the Middle East Forum, a think tank based in Philadelphia. 5 The Department of Homeland Security granted more than $25 million to extremist groups in the US, including nonprofits that support Hamas, a new study says. AP 5 Hostage Noa Argamani being abducted by Hamas on Oct. 7th, 2023. She is one of the fortunate hostages who has been released. AP 'We've seen the left allocate billions of dollars towards the latest woke pet projects, but the Middle East Forum's study of DHS spending uncovered something far more sinister,' said Ben Baird, a project director at the Middle East Forum and co-author of the study. 'Instead of protecting the homeland, the federal government is bankrolling extremists who idolize 9/11 hijackers and sympathize with the perpetrators of the October 7 massacre in Israel. 'Taxpayer dollars meant to strengthen American security were used to undermine public safety.' The group says it is now working with DHS to 'rescind grants to extremist groups' and work on making the granting process more transparent. Under President Biden, DHS established the Faith-Based Security Advisory Council (FBSAC) that works with the secretary of DHS to help with the security and emergency preparedness of religious institutions. 'The FBSAC provides advice and recommendations to the Secretary and other senior leadership on matters related to protecting houses of worship, preparedness and enhanced coordination with the faith community,' according to a description of the council on FEMA's website. 5 The Biden administration appointed CAIR founder Nihad Awad to a FEMA agency to consult on which religious groups should get funds for security and emergency preparedness. AFP/Getty Images Among the leaders appointed as consultants to the group was Mohamed Magid — director and imam of a controversial Virginia mosque complex that was raided in a federal counterterrorism investigation in 2002, although no charges were brought. Salaam al-Marayati, founder of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, who once blamed 9/11 on Israel, was also a consultant to the group. Al-Marayati later said that his comments were taken out of context but he did not apologize for them, according to the Los Angeles Times. Neither Magid nor Al-Marayati returned a request for comment this week. Some of the groups DHS allocated money to have ties to extremists. Ones named in the report include: The Council on American Islamic Relations, which has links to extremist groups, including Hamas, received nearly $250,000 in DHS security grants to its national office in Washington as well as chapters in Miami and Los Angeles, the report says. 5 The Islamic Circle of North America has alleged links to Jamaat-e-Islam, which has been associated with terrorist attacks in Bangladesh. ICNA has denied that it works with the group. FEMA Federal prosecutors named CAIR as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 2008 Holy Land Foundation trial, the largest terrorism funding case in US history. Ghassan Elashi, one of the leaders of HLF was also a founder of CAIR Texas. He was convicted and sentenced to 65 years for funneling $12 million to Hamas. And after the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, CAIR's founder Nihad Awad said he was 'happy to see' the terrorist strikes on the country. He later said his comments were taken out of context and that he condemned the violence on October 7. CAIR's spokesman Ibrahim Hooper said 'the American Muslim community has the same right to apply for nonprofit grants as other faith communities.' He added CAIR 'condemns all forms of unjust violence, including hate crimes, terrorism, ethnic cleansing and genocide as well as all forms of bigotry, including ani-Black racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism and anti-Palestinian racism.' Elsewhere, DHS earmarked $10.3 million in disaster relief to the Islamic Circle of North America following Hurricane Harvey in 2017. The group was accused by the Middle East Forum and other think tanks that study extremism of acting as the US-based proxy for Jamaat-e-Islam, which has been linked to violence and terrorism in South Asia. ICNA has denied being a proxy for the group. The Islamic Society of Baltimore, a mosque and community center where the FBI conducted surveillance after it caught one of its members plotting to bomb an Army recruiting center in Maryland in 2010, was awarded $375,000 in DHS grants between 2017 and 2023, the report says. The group was under surveillance by the FBI for several years beginning in 2010 and was dubbed 'a breeding ground for terrorists.' The group did not return a request for comment. Mosques in Michigan and Texas that preach Iran's extreme brand of Shi'a Islam received $750,000. 5 A founder of CAIR Texas was sentenced to 65 years in federal prison for providing Hamas with more than $12 million. The terrorist group organized the October 7, 2023 attack against Israel that left 1,200 dead. The Islamic House of Wisdom, a mosque in Dearborn, received $330,000 in 2023, according to the report. The group is led by Imam Mohammed Ali Elahi, who has close ties to the Iranian regime and mourned the 2010 death of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah, Hezbollah's spiritual guide and a proponent of suicide bombing. Elahi did not return repeated requests for comment. Other groups with alleged ties to radicalism received the rest of the $25 million in grants, per Middle East Forum. 'DHS officials must be more discerning,' said the report. 'Under FEMA's latest… guidelines, grantees may use security grants to install bulletproof glass and security fencing, or even to hire armed security guards [at their US-based offices]. 'Should an insular, fundamentalist commune that expresses loyalty to Al Shabaab or Al-Qaeda receive funding for these purposes?' Since taking office, the Trump administration has fired hundreds of DHS employees in order to streamline the bureaucracy of the federal government. 'We won't rest until Congress ensures that future administrations cannot fund extremists in the name of fighting extremism,' Baird told The Post.
The Hill
10 minutes ago
- The Hill
In the room with Zelensky
NewsNation National Correspondent Robert Sherman has found himself on the front lines of some of the world's biggest stories: from Ukraine to Israel and across the United States. He shares what he's seeing on the ground. Subscribe to his newsletter: Frontlines with Robert Sherman here. I sat down at the conference room table as a technical assistant asked me what language I wanted my headset tuned to. 'English,' I replied. The man flipped through the channels on a small receiver sitting atop the table. Satisfied, he handed me the earpiece and moved on to the next person. I was one of about 20 journalists invited to meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week. I made my way over to the Presidential Palace, where my phones, wallet and practically everything else in my pockets except a notebook and pen were confiscated. The conference room table was made of wood and was light in color. The room was an off-white, adorned with golden decor and detailing. Reporters sat there quietly, flipping through their notes. Suddenly, the door opened, and in walked Zelenskyy. He put his head down and made a beeline for the open seat at the table, which was reserved for him, sat down, muttered something in Ukrainian, and immediately began ticking off battlefield assessments and statistics. 'Kharkiv, we are holding,' Zelenskyy said. 'Sumy, more or less positive. Donetsk, that's where we have problems,' he said. The night before, it was widely reported that a small unit of Russian troops had pierced the Ukrainian front. The incident was causing concern on the ground among the locals, especially considering negotiations were scheduled to soon kick off in Alaska. 'Some have already been located — partly eliminated, partly taken prisoner,' Zelenskyy said. 'The rest will also be found and destroyed in the near future.' I saw a tense leader that morning with my own two eyes. That's how many on the ground here in Ukraine feel today. Tomorrow in Alaska, two world leaders will sit down face-to-face and discuss the future of a country thousands of miles away — which will notably be absent from this round of talks. Also on the outside looking in are the Europeans. It's no surprise we saw Zelenskyy in Germany yesterday, meeting with Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and in London today with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. President Donald Trump has said he wants to sit down, face-to-face with the Russian leader to determine if he's actually serious about reaching a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine. He was asked if Russia would face any consequences if Putin doesn't agree to stop the war. 'There will be very severe consequences,' Trump said in response. However, if Friday is a success, the door is open for potentially all three heads of state to soon be together in the same room. 'If the first one goes okay, we'll have a quick second one. I would like to do it almost immediately, and we'll have a quick second meeting between President Putin and President Zelenskiy and myself, if they'd like to have me there,' Trump said. That's when the issue of territories will likely be brought up — in meeting No. 2. It's already a tense topic here, especially as Russia has already made gains in the East, and Ukraine anticipates a large-scale offensive will take hold sometime shortly after the Alaska meeting. 'Across all directions this month, they will try to demonstrate some kind of advance in order to exert political pressure on Ukraine, seeking certain concessions,' Zelenskyy said. 'And I want them to know that we understand this — and that our military will be preparing for it.' Zelenskyy told the group of reporters that, in total, he believes about 30,000 of the 53,000 estimated Russian troops in Sumy will be redeployed. Ukraine anticipates that Russia plans to send roughly 15,000 troops toward Zaporizhzhia, 7,000 to Pokrovsk, and 5,000 to Novopavlivka. In essence, the Russians believe they have found a weak spot in the Ukrainian line and intend to hit it. As the Kremlin appeared ready to up the pressure, Zelenskyy was less confident that Russia wants a deal. 'I told my colleagues, the U.S. president and our European friends, that Putin definitely does not want peace,' Zelenskyy said. 'He wants the occupation of our country. And we all really understand that. Putin will not be able to deceive anyone. We need further pressure for peace. Not only American, but also European sanctions.' That's how many feel here in Ukraine, as the bear and the eagle are set to collide Friday.
