(NOTE LANGUAGE) Following a headline-making interview with U.K. newspaper The Sunday Times, Matt Damon has issued a statement denying he ever used a gay slur.
In the article, Damon explained that he quoted a line from his film Stuck on You — itself derided at the time for poking fun of conjoined twins — which used the word “f**” — as “a joke.”
What resulted, Damon said, was a “long, beautiful treatise” from his daughter explaining how the word was hurtful.
In a statement to Variety, the Oscar winner explained, “During a recent interview, I recalled a discussion I had with my daughter where I attempted to contextualize for her the progress that has been made — though by no means completed — since I was growing up in Boston and, as a child, heard the word ‘f**’ used on the street before I knew what it even referred to.”
He continued, “I explained that that word was used constantly and casually and was even a line of dialogue in a movie of mine as recently as 2003.”
Damon said that his daughter, “in turn, expressed incredulity that there could ever have been a time where that word was used unthinkingly.” He added, “To my admiration and pride, she was extremely articulate about the extent to which that word would have been painful to someone in the LGBTQ+ community.”
To Variety, Damon clarified, “I not only agreed with her but thrilled at her passion, values and desire for social justice.” The Stillwater star then insisted, “I have never called anyone ‘f*****’ in my personal life and this conversation with my daughter was not a personal awakening. I do not use slurs of any kind.”
The Bordelon family officially returns to OWN next month.
In a season six trailer for Queen Sugar, the network revealed that the Bordelon family-drama will return on September 7 at 8 p.m. ET. As seen in the new promo, every member of the family will have new challenges to face that could change the course of their lives. In addition to series regulars Kofi Siriboe, Bianca Lawson, Rutina Wesley and Dawn-Lyen Gardner, the upcoming season will feature newcomers including Tammy Townsend, Paula Jai Parker, Marquis Rodriguez and McKinley Freeman, who will all appear in recurring roles.
In other news, Kerry Washington has been tapped to produce and star in a Netflix film adaptation of Diane Cardwell‘s memoir Rockaway, Deadline has learned. Washington will play Cardwell, a Manhattan journalist who “unexpectedly discovers the transcendent power of surfing, while working on a routine assignment.” Her new interest now makes her want to focus on a “life of romance and self-discovery in eclectic Rockaway Beach.” Other casting details have yet to be announced.
Finally, The Craft alum Rachel True has joined Bruce Davison and Emmy winner Keith David in the upcoming supernatural thriller The Last Call, Variety reports. She will play Dr. Amara Rowen, a documentary filmmaker who is contacted by the survivors of a cult after a mass suicide. During the investigation of the of the cult’s founder, “she and the surviving members are being hunted and killed, which could lead to a changing reality.” The Last Call begins production in Morristown, N.J. on August 9.
(WASHINGTON) — Customs and Border Protection encountered more than 200,000 individuals at the southern border in July, reaching a number not seen in two decades, according to preliminary figures reference by a senior Department of Homeland Security official in a court filing Monday.
In the first 29 days of July, CBP encountered an average of 6,779 individuals per day, including 616 unaccompanied children and 2,583 individuals in family units. Overall, the agency encountered a “record” 19,000 unaccompanied minors during that period and the second-highest number of family unit encounters, at around 80,000, Assistant Secretary for Border and Immigration Policy at the DHS David Shahoulian said in the filing.
The number of individuals encountered at the border is the highest since fiscal year 2000, according to CBP records. Unauthorized migrants encountered by CBP in the border region are arrested and detained for processing. So far this year, the majority have been expelled under Title 42, a decades-old section of the public health code implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic, but more than 300,000 have been remanded to Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody or released with future court dates.
Border crossings have been increasing, rising every month since October 2020. Last month, 188,829 migrants attempted to cross the border, according to CBP, reaching 210,000 encounters with individuals at the southern border in July. By comparison, in July 2019, CBP encountered 81,000 individuals attempting to cross the border, and in July 2020, the number was 40,000.
The filing came in response to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy groups seeking to overturn the Title 42 restrictions along the southern border. The Trump-era measure currently restricts anyone coming into the country due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The coalition of advocacy groups fighting Title 42 expulsions argue the measure illegally restricts access to asylum opportunities for those fleeing violence and persecution. Immigration officials have acknowledged the rapid nature of the expulsions — with some carried out in less than 24 hours.
While Shahoulian suggested the number of border crossers were unique individuals, typically when CBP reports encounters it includes those who have made multiple crossing attempts. In June, for example, about a third of migrants arrested at the border had attempted to cross at least once before in 2021.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Monday — the same day the ACLU renewed its lawsuit — that it would extend Title 42, continuing to cite concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.
The CDC order, which does exempt unaccompanied minors, “temporarily suspends the introduction of certain noncitizens based on the Director’s determination that introduction of such noncitizens” through the Mexico or Canada border “creates a serious danger of the introduction of COVID-19 into the United States,” the agency said in a press release Monday.
Homeland Security Secretary Aljeandro Mayorkas told reporters at a news conference in Mexico City in June that Title 42 is “not a tool of immigration policy.”
But Shahoulian, in the court filing, said that CBP has “limited capacity to hold and process families, and the current migrant surge and ongoing pandemic have only compounded these issues.”
He said the delta variant of COVID-19 has made the situation at the border more complicated because of the speed in which it spreads.
“The rates at which encountered noncitizens are testing positive for COVID-19 have increased significantly in recent weeks,” he said.
He added that lifting the Title 42 restrictions now would be a danger to not only migrants, but also to DHS employees.
“And although the rate of infection among CBP officers had been declining, this rate recently began increasing again, even though the percentage of officers and agents who have been fully vaccinated has grown significantly since January. This has led to increasing numbers of CBP personnel being isolated and hospitalized,” he said.
The extension of Title 42 was cheered by Republicans who have maintained there is a crisis along the southern border due to the influx of migrants coming into the country.
“Good news: Title 42 authority has been extended,” former Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf tweeted on Tuesday. “Absolutely needed to address COVID and the border crisis that is growing worse every month.”
The Biden administration has made other efforts to reduce the number of migrants under Homeland Security custody. Since the beginning of this year, it has worked to set up emergency shelters for unaccompanied minors, and employees from across the federal government have been sent on temporary assignments to staff immigration facilities.
Authorities at the border even started releasing a growing number of migrants into the interior of the U.S. without court dates, ABC News reported earlier this year.
(CHEYENNE, Wyo.) — An Illinois woman is facing federal charges for allegedly disturbing wildlife in Yellowstone National Park after a video surfaced of her attempting to get an up-close cellphone photo of a momma grizzly bear and her three cubs.
Bob Murray, the U.S. attorney for the district of Wyoming, announced on Monday that charges have been filed against 25-year-old Samantha R. Dehring of Carol Stream, Illinois.
Dehring is ordered to appear before a magistrate judge in Mammoth Hot Spring, Wyoming, on Aug. 26 to answer to charges of willfully remaining, approaching and photographing wildlife within 100 yards. She is also charged with one count of feeding, touching, teasing, frightening or intentionally disturbing wildlife.
If convicted, she could be sentenced to up to a year in prison and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine, Murray said in a statement.
The allegations marked the latest in a series of incidents of Yellowstone visitors behaving badly, including a man authorities say was arrested for taunting a bison and two men charged with “thermal trespassing” for breaching barriers to take up-close photos of the park’s famed Old Faithful geyser.
Attempts by ABC News to reach Dehring for comment were not successful.
With the help of tourists who witnessed and video-recorded Dehring’s close encounter with a grizzly bear family, U.S. Park Police managed to identify her and track her down, Murray said.
The incident unfolded on May 10, in the Roaring Mountain area of Yellowstone, Murray said.
“While other visitors slowly backed off and got into their vehicles, Dehring remained,” Murray said.
A video shot by a tourist showed Dehring standing roughly 15 feet from a grizzly bear taking a photo of the animal with her cellphone. She backed away only after the bear briefly charged at her and then retreated. Other bears nearby appeared to be startled by the encounter and ran into the forest.
Murray said U.S. Park Rangers from Yellowstone provided the results of their investigation to U.S. Rangers in the area where Dehring lives and they served her in person with the violation notices.
Todd Williamson/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
Garth Brooks may be hitting pause on his Stadium Tour.
A representative for Garth shared in a statement on Tuesday that following his upcoming sold-out shows at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, on August 7 and at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska, on August 14, there will be a three-week window where shows will not be scheduled to give the team time to assess how to proceed in regards to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, ticket sales for the show scheduled in Seattle on September 4 will be halted.
“It breaks my heart to see city after city go on sale and then have to ask those sweet people and the venues to reschedule,” Garth says in a statement. “We have a three week window coming up where we, as a group, will assess the remainder of the stadium tour this year. It’s humbling to see people put this much faith in you as an artist, and it kills me to think I am letting them down.”
In recent weeks, cases of COVID-19 have increased across the country as the Delta variant continues to spread. The CDC is now recommending that people who are fully vaccinated wear masks indoors in public places in areas of high transmission.
Massive walk-in closets, a screening room, arcade machines, a pool, a guest house, magnificent art and hundreds of pairs of sneakers: These are just some of the things you’ll see in Architectural Digest‘s new video that takes you inside the Los Angeles mansion of Adam Levine and his wife, Behati Prinsloo.
“We love that it’s one story, super-cozy,” Adam gushes of the couple’s beautiful home, which is the definition of understated luxury, with its neutral-toned, chic, modern-yet-comfortable design. “We didn’t want a palatial McMansion. That’s just not who we are.”
During their house tour, we see that Adam, a massive sneakerhead, keeps a pair of original Air Jordan 1s on display in a glass box in the kitchen. His immense closet, which he says was inspired by Kanye West‘s, holds the rest of his enormous sneaker collection, plus “sweats and t-shirts…’cause that’s all I ever wear,” he notes.
Adam also shows off a huge painting in the kitchen by Sage Vaughan, which he adapted for the cover art of Maroon 5‘s new album, JORDI, and the room where he recorded most of the album during lockdown. We also see that he hides his Grammys and other awards in a case off to the side in his downstairs screening room. “I keep them here so they’re not too showy-offy,” he explains.
A wall of what Adam calls “some of my favorite people” includes framed photographs of Kurt Cobain, Pearl Jam, Miles Davis with Steve McQueen, Bob Dylan and The Beatles.
Adam ends the tour by saying, “Thank you, we had a wonderful time showing you our house…But now, please, get the f*** out.”
The mansion, previously owned by Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner, reportedly cost $32 million.
For the first time ever, the Miss Black USA Pageant will be broadcast live. The organization announced on Tuesday that FOX SOUL will air the upcoming 35th annual Miss Black USA Pageant on Sunday, August 8 at 6 p.m. ET.
Miss Black USA, which celebrates the achievements of young women, is the first and largest scholarship pageant for women of color, awarding over $500,000 in scholarships. Founded in 1987, the pageant was designed to empower women to “own their power” and define their “own standard of beauty” while celebrating their authentic selves, according to the organization.
”The pageant allows for Black women to have a platform to showcase the power and beauty of being unapologetically Black,” said Karen Arrington, CEO & Founder of Miss Black USA, Inc. “Our organization is highly respected and has redefined what it means to be a courageous, compassionate, and confident woman of color. We are proud that FOX SOUL is airing the Miss Black USA Pageant for the very first time, emphasizing their commitment to the community.”
For more about this year’s pageant and contestants, visit MissBlackUSA.org.
(WASHINGTON) — Top members of the Department of Justice last year rebuffed another DOJ official who asked them to urge officials in Georgia to investigate and perhaps overturn President Joe Biden’s victory in the state — long a bitter point of contention for former President Donald Trump and his team — before the results were certified by Congress, emails reviewed by ABC News show.
The emails, dated Dec. 28, 2020, show the former acting head of DOJ’s civil division, Jeffrey Clark, circulating a draft letter — which he wanted then-acting attorney general Jeffrey Rosen and acting deputy attorney general Richard Donoghue to sign off on — urging Georgia’s governor and other top officials to convene the state legislature into a special session so lawmakers could investigate claims of voter fraud.
“The Department of Justice is investigating various irregularities in the 2020 election for President of the United States,” the draft letter said. “The Department will update you as we are able on investigatory progress, but at this time we have identified significant concerns that may have impacted the outcome of the election in multiple States, including the State of Georgia.”
The draft letter states: “While the Department of Justice believe[s] the Governor of Georgia should immediately call a special session to consider this important and urgent matter, if he declines to do so, we share with you our view that the Georgia General Assembly has implied authority under the Constitution of the United States to call itself into special session for [t]he limited purpose of considering issues pertaining to the appointment of Presidential Electors.”
The vote count in Georgia became a flashpoint for Trump and his allies and Trump at one point falsely claimed that it was “not possible” for him to have lost the state.
But to date, the Justice Department has uncovered no evidence of widespread voter fraud that would tip the results of the presidential election. Attorney General William Barr also announced in December that the department had “not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome of the election.” A statewide audit in Georgia last year also affirmed that Biden was the winner.
The emails were provided by the DOJ to the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating efforts to overturn the election results. And they come as the DOJ investigator general looks at whether any officials in the department sought to overturn the outcome of the election.
Last week the Department of Justice sent letters to six former Trump DOJ officials telling them that they can participate in Congress’ investigation into the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. One of those letters was to former Associate Deputy AG Patrick Hovakimian, who sources said sat for a transcribed interview Tuesday morning with the House Oversight Committee. Hovakimian is copied on the emails referenced above.
Notes from Donoghue released last week appeared to show that Trump tried to pressure the DOJ to assert that there was significant fraud in the election.
ABC News has requested comment from Clark but has not yet received a response. A spokesperson for the House Oversight Committee did not immediately respond to request for comment, nor did an attorney for Donoghue.
Clark attached the draft letter in an email to Rosen and Donoghue telling them “I think we should get it out as soon as possible.”
“Personally, I see no valid downsides to sending out the letter,” Clark wrote. “I put it together quickly and would want to do a formal cite check before sending but I don’t think we should let unnecessary moss grow on this.”
Clark separately asked for Rosen and Donoghue to authorize them to receive a classified briefing led by then-Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe the next day related to “foreign election interference issues,” while referencing an unspecified theory about hackers having evidence that a Dominion voting machine “accessed the Internet through a smart thermostat with a net connection trail leading back to China.”
Donoghue responded a little more than an hour later shooting down Clark’s request to sign on to the draft letter.
“There is no chance that I would sign this letter or anything remotely like this,” Donoghue said. “While it maybe true that the Department ‘is investigating various irregularities in the 2020 election for President’ (something we typically would not state publicly) the investigations that I am aware of relate to suspicions of misconduct that are of such a small scale that they simply would not impact the outcome of the Presidential Election.”
Donoghue closed his email response by stating that, while he was available to speak to Clark directly about his request, “from where I stand, this is not even within the realm of possibility.”
Donoghue cited former Attorney General William Barr’s previous statements that the department had no indication fraud had impacted the election to a significant degree, and that no information had surfaced since Barr’s departure that changed that assessment.
“Given that,” he said, “I cannot imagine a scenario in which the Department would recommend that a State assemble its legislature to determine whether already-certified election results should somehow be overriden by legislative action.”
He added that the draft letter’s statement that DOJ would update lawmakers on the investigatory progress was “dubious as we do not typically update non-law enforcement personnel on the progress of any investigations.”
Later that evening, Rosen responded as well, telling both Clark and Donoghue, “I confirmed again today that I am not prepared to sign such a letter.”
The New York Times reported in January about Clark appealing to Donoghue and Rosen to co-sign the draft letter.
In the days after the exchange, as ABC News has previously confirmed, both Rosen and Donoghue thwarted an attempt by Clark to have Trump appoint him acting attorney general.
Nas has unveiled the track list for the sequel to his Hit-Boy produced album, King’s Disease, dropping this Friday. Co-executive-produced by Nas, King’s Disease II features A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, West Coast artists YG and Blxst, and music veterans like Charlie Wilson.
Nas reunites with Lauryn Hill on a track titled “Nobody.” It marks the long-awaited reunion between the New York emcee and the former Fugees singer, who sang vocals on Nas’ 1996 track, “If I Ruled the World (Imagine That),” from It Was Written.
Meanwhile, Eminem and legendary rap duo EPMD will join Nas on “EMPD 2.” The original “EMPD” arrived on the soundtrack to the film Judas and the Black Messiah, from director Shaka King.
(WASHINGTON) — A Pentagon police officer was attacked during a shooting and stabbing incident at the Pentagon Transit Center earlier Tuesday, Department of Defense officials have confirmed.
Chief Woodrow Kusse, who leads the Pentagon Force Protection Agency, joined Pentagon spokesman John Kirby at an afternoon press briefing to address the incident, but he would not provide details about casualties.
“This morning at about 10:37 a.m., a Pentagon police officer was attacked on the Metro Bus platform. Gunfire was exchanged. And there were — there were several casualties. The incident is over, the scene is secure and — most importantly — there’s no continuing threat to our community,” he said.
“The scene is safe and secure,” he added. “There were a number of people that fled and there were some erroneous reports.”
The FBI is leading the investigation into the attack.
Pressed on reports on whether an officer died, he said he couldn’t release those details as the investigation is ongoing.
“I don’t want to compromise the integrity of that process right now,” he said.
“I’m not confirming or denying those particular reports right now the investigation is ongoing. And I do promise to get back as soon as possible, with further details but I can’t release those right now,” he said, pressed also on details about the assailant.
“We are not actively looking for another suspect,” Kusse added.
The Pentagon was placed on lockdown Tuesday morning after the incident at the Pentagon Transit Center involving a stabbing and a shooting, according to a separate U.S. official.
The lockdown was later lifted and the Pentagon reopened, the Pentagon Force Protection Agency said shortly after noon.
The Pentagon had no details regarding the assailant’s motivation Tuesday afternoon, but Kusse said they will review the results of the investigation before making a determination on whether security measures should change.
“Every time an incident occurs, whether it’s here or anywhere else across the nation or in the world, we do after actions on those we examine them, we look for things that we can do to improve. But right now, again, it’s still pending, we will certainly, as this investigation concludes, take another look at any measures,” he said.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. Mark Milley were not in the Pentagon at the time of the incident. They were both at the White House for their weekly meeting with President Joe Biden and they were all aware of the ongoing situation.
All of the circumstances of the shooting remain unclear while the investigation is ongoing. The Pentagon Force Protection Agency said the scene is secure but remains “an active crime scene.”
Kirby said Tuesday afternoon that Austin was back in the Pentagon and had a chance to visit the Pentagon police operations center to check in and express his gratitude for their work.
