News - Friday, December 26, 2025

College football’s traditional bowl system is broken and in trouble. Deep trouble. And everyone knows it. The ever-increasing popularity of the expanded College Football Playoff national championship – along with winning programs declining bowl invitations – has seen to that.

Even though Vanderbilt fell a tad short of its quest to play for a national championship this season, coach Clark Lea and his 14th-ranked Commodores (10-2) are in celebratory mood heading into the Dec. 31 ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa.

And why shouldn’t they be? Unlike Notre Dame and other schools that declined bowl invitations, Lea says Vandy did not hesitate to accept the bid.

Legal Aid of East Tennessee has honored two Chattanooga attorneys whose careers reflect a deep commitment to service during its 2025 Charles W. “Buz” Dooley Pro Bono Attorneys Hall of Fame induction ceremony, held Dec. 18 at the statewide organization’s local office.

For months, the snakes kept coming.

They slithered into Soddy-Daisy Middle School through cracks and doors and aging infrastructure, startling staff and underscoring what many in the community already knew: The building was long past due for serious attention.

Hixson Middle School marked a milestone Dec. 17 as students, educators and law enforcement leaders gathered to celebrate the school’s first-ever D.A.R.E. graduation ceremony, signaling the program’s growing footprint in Hamilton County classrooms.

Erlanger Family Medicine has welcomed four new physicians to its primary care team: Dr. Sierra Armbrust, Dr. Christian Givens, Dr. Lindsay Moore and Dr. Ethan Zimmerman, expanding access to primary care services across the Tennessee Valley.

Armbrust is board-certified in family medicine and specializes in preventive and lifestyle medicine, women’s health, acute care, office-based procedures and chronic disease management. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia and her medical degree from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. She completed her residency at Floyd Medical Center in Rome, Georgia, and is accepting new patients at Erlanger Primary Care – Volkswagen Drive in Chattanooga.

EPB of Chattanooga and Vanderbilt University are establishing the Institute for Quantum Innovation, a research, innovation and graduate education center aimed at advancing quantum science and technology while strengthening Chattanooga’s role as a national hub for the emerging field.

The November housing market continues to open doors for buyers and sellers across the nation and here in the greater Chattanooga area. The National Association of Realtors reports that more homes came to market, giving buyers fresh options and sellers a chance to shine.

Let’s be honest: The word “budget” doesn’t exactly spark joy for most people. It can feel restrictive or even generate feelings of guilt about past spending choices. 

But what if budgeting could feel empowering? When done right, it’s simply about understanding your money and making sure it aligns with what truly matters to you.

After a 2024 season that failed to live up to expectations, the University of Tennessee club rugby team returned to the field this season even more determined. The seniors, especially, wanted to finish their careers on a high note and leave a legacy of success.

Chevrolet versus Ford. Regardless of the vehicle type, car shoppers often find themselves comparing choices from these iconic American brands. And if you’re thinking about buying a new three-row crossover SUV, you could very well end up cross-shopping the 2026 Chevrolet Traverse and 2026 Ford Explorer.

Paired with high-deductible health care plans, health savings accounts help ease health care costs. HSAs are a triple tax-advantaged vehicle in the tax code, allowing for pretax contributions, tax-free compounding and tax-free withdrawals for qualified medical expenses. 

Health insurance is the No. 1 deciding factor in people’s next career step, yet most with employer health insurance say it doesn’t meet their needs very well.

That’s according to a recent survey of 2,000 Americans across the country, which investigated their happiness with employer health insurance. It also looked at the essential role health insurance plays in people’s lives and how much it factors into their career decisions.

It might surprise people that my husband and I pay a financial planner, given that I spend a lot of time on financial, tax and investment planning at work. However, hiring a planner has delivered a return that can’t be quantified: peace of mind.

BALTIMORE (AP) — Kilmar Abrego Garcia can spend Christmas with his family after spending much of the year in custody.

U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, in Maryland, issued an order late on Monday requiring government attorneys to file a brief by Dec. 26 on whether they plan to take him back into immigration custody, and under what legal authority they would do so. His attorneys have until Dec. 30 to respond.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Consumers' confidence in the economy was shaken in December as Americans grew anxious about high prices and the impact of President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs.

The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell 3.8 points to 89.1 in December, the fifth straight monthly decline and approaching the 85.7 reading from April, when Trump rolled out his import taxes on U.S. trading partners. November's reading was upwardly revised to 92.9.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy grew at a surprisingly strong 4.3% annual rate in the third quarter, the most rapid expansion in two years, driven by consumers who continue to spend in the face of ongoing inflation.

U.S. gross domestic product from July through September — the economy's total output of goods and services — rose from its 3.8% growth rate in the April-June quarter, the Commerce Department said Tuesday in a report delayed by the government shutdown. Economists surveyed by the data firm FactSet forecast growth of just 3% in the period.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to allow the Trump administration to deploy National Guard troops in the Chicago area to support its immigration crackdown, a significant defeat for the president's efforts to send troops to U.S. cities.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration said on Tuesday that it will begin garnishing the wages of student loan borrowers who are in default early next year.

The department said it will send notices to approximately 1,000 borrowers the week of January 7, with more notices to come at an increasing scale each month.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has directed five large-scale wind projects under construction off the East Coast to suspend their activities for at least 90 days, according to letters from the Interior Department obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, which provide new details on the government's move to pause the offshore ventures.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department has released tens of thousands more documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, a tranche that included multiple mentions of President Donald Trump but added little new revelatory information to the long-anticipated public file on the late financier and convicted sex offender.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump said he will be extending invitations to next year's U.S.-hosted Group of 20 summit to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan as the Republican administration looks to deepen its relationship with the Central Asian nations.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Steven Stamkos scored 53 seconds into overtime to give the Nashville Predators a 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night.

Stamkos got a step on his defender as he raced down the slot, and Erik Haula found him with a pass that Stamkos deflected past goalie Filip Gustavsson.

NEW YORK (AP) — It is one of the most surprising music stories of the year. While streams of new music — releases from the last 18 months — were down from last year, one genre is on the rise: Christian and gospel music, according to industry data and analytics company Luminate's 2025 Midyear Report.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A man accused of shooting two National Guard troops near the White House has been charged in a complaint with federal firearms charges in connection with the ambush on November 26 that fatally wounded one of the West Virginia National Guard members and seriously injured the second.

NEW YORK (AP) — A coalition of 19 states and the District of Columbia on Tuesday sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, its secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and its inspector general over a declaration that could complicate access to gender-affirming care for young people.

Finances already looked tight for Jade Grant and her three children as she entered the year's final months.

"Everyone's birthday is back-to-back," the 32-year-old certified nursing assistant said. "You have holidays coming up. You have Thanksgiving. Everything is right there. And then, boom. No (food) stamps."

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell last week and remain at historically healthy levels despite some signs that the labor market is weakening.

U.S. applications for jobless claims for the week ending Dec. 20 fell by 10,000 to 214,000 from the previous week's 224,000, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. That's below the 232,000 new applications forecast of analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday it was replacing its longstanding lottery system for H-1B work visas with a new approach that prioritizes skilled, higher-paid foreign workers.

The change follows a series of actions by the Trump administration aimed at reshaping a visa program that critics say has become a pipeline for overseas workers willing to work for lower pay, but supporters say drives innovation.

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union's executive on Wednesday warned that it would take action against any "unjustified measures" after the U.S. State Department barred five Europeans it accuses of pressuring U.S. technology firms to censor or suppress American viewpoints.

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Titans rookie cornerback Marcus Harris will miss the final two games of the season with the knee injury that knocked him out of their last game, interim coach Mike McCoy said Wednesday.

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — The developers of a Virginia offshore wind project are asking a federal judge to block a Trump administration order that halted construction of their project, along with four others, over national security concerns.

Dominion Energy Virginia said in its lawsuit filed late Tuesday that the government's order is "arbitrary and capricious" and unconstitutional. The Richmond-based company is developing Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, a project it says is essential to meet dramatically growing energy needs driven by dozens of new data centers.

NEW YORK (AP) — When Cami Teacoach's son turned three she set out to find volunteer opportunities they could do together. He made Valentine cards for senior citizens. They hiked and picked up trash. He helped harvest produce at community gardens and made seed balls out of mud, throwing them into the forest to promote wildflower growth.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage ticked down modestly this week, remaining in the same narrow range of the past two months.

The average long-term mortgage rate fell to 6.18% from 6.21% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Wednesday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.85%.

GOUVERNEUR, N.Y. (AP) — Graphite mines in the United States largely closed down seven decades ago. Mining the ubiquitous mineral found in everything from nuclear reactors to pencils seemed to make little sense when it could be imported inexpensively from other nations, especially China.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that he will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida over the weekend.

Zelenskyy told journalists that the two leaders will discuss security guarantees for Ukraine during Sunday's talks, and that the 20-point plan under discussion "is about 90% ready."

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department said Wednesday that it may need a "few more weeks" to release all of its records on the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein after suddenly discovering more than a million potentially relevant documents, further delaying compliance with last Friday's congressionally mandated deadline.

NEW YORK (AP) — Days after Ghislaine Maxwell asked a judge to immediately free her from a 20-year prison sentence, the public release of grand jury transcripts from her sex trafficking case returned the spotlight to victims whose allegations helped land her behind bars.

NEW YORK (AP) — The shopping rush leading up to Christmas is over and in its place, like every year, another has begun as millions of people hunt for post-holiday deals and get in line to return gifts that didn't fit, or didn't hit quite right.

Holiday spending using cash or cards through Sunday has topped last year's haul, according to data released this week by Visa's Consulting & Analytics division and Mastercard SpendingPulse.