(YEMASSEE, S.C.) — At least 43 primates were on the loose Thursday in a South Carolina town where authorities “strongly advised” residents to keep their doors and windows locked after the animals escaped from a research laboratory.
“At this point, none have been captured,” the Yemassee Police Department said in a statement posted on its Facebook page.
Traps were being set around the Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center in Yemassee, where the Rhesus Macaque monkeys escaped en masse around 9:45 p.m. ET on Wednesday, according to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.
Yemassee police officers were searching for the furry fugitives, which can grow to up to 21 inches tall and weigh 17 pounds, using thermal imaging cameras, according to the sheriff’s office.
“Residents are strongly advised to keep doors and windows secured to prevent these animals from entering homes,” the sheriff’s office said. “If you spot any of the escaped animals, please contact 911 immediately and refrain from approaching them.”
Police said they are working with staff of Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center to find the escapees.
“We want to assure the community that there is no health risk associated with these animals,” police said.
Representatives of the Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center could not be immediately contacted for comment.
According to its website, Alpha Genesis “provides the highest quality nonhuman primate products and bio-research services world-wide,” including serum, plasma, whole blood and tissue samples.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden said “you can’t love your country only when you win” in his first speech since Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss to former President Donald Trump in the presidential race.
“You can’t love your neighbor only when you agree,” Biden said in an address to the nation from the White House Rose Garden on Thursday.
Biden said he’s directed his administration to work with Trump’s team for a peaceful transition of power.
“Something I hope we can do, no matter who you voted for, is see each other not as adversaries, but as fellow Americans. Bring down the temperature,” Biden said.
He also stressed the integrity of the election, calling it honest, fair and transparent.
“The will of the people always prevails,” he said.
Biden praised his vice president for running “an inspiring campaign.”
“She has great character, true character. She gave her whole heart and effort, and she and her entire team should be proud of the campaign they ran,” he said.
Biden also defended some of his actions in office, saying, “We’re going to see over a trillion dollars’ worth of infrastructure work done, changing people’s lives in rural communities and communities that are in real difficulty, because it takes time to get it done.”
“We’re leaving behind the strongest economy in the world,” Biden added.
“I know people are still hurting,” he said, but added, “Together, we’ve changed America for the better.”
“Setbacks are unavoidable, but giving up is unforgivable,” Biden said in his closing message to Americans.
“We’re going to be OK, but we need to stay engaged. We need to keep going,” he added. “And above all, we need to keep the faith.”
Biden said in a statement on Wednesday that adding Harris to his 2020 Democratic ticket was the first and “best decision” he made in that campaign.
“Her story represents the best of America’s story,” Biden said, adding, “I have no doubt she’ll continue writing that story.”
His statement made no mention of Trump, the former Republican president and now president-elect, who will bookend Biden’s sole term in office.
Biden and Harris have both spoken to Trump to offer congratulations to him for winning a second term.
Harris in a speech on Wednesday conceded the race to Trump.
Harris stressed, “While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign.”
“This is not a time to throw up our hands, this is a time to roll up our sleeves. This is a time to organize, to mobilize and to stay engaged for the sake of freedom and justice and the future that we all know we can build together,” she said.
Trump won the swing states of North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin and Michigan. ABC News has not projected winners for the final two swing states, Nevada and Arizona.
Republicans also took control of the Senate. Results for the House of Representatives are not yet clear.
ABC News’ Michelle Stoddart contributed to this report.
On Thursday, Paramount+ dropped the trailer to Dear Santa, the Christmas family comedy starring Jack Black and brought to you by Peter and Bobby Farrelly, the siblings behind the smash hits Dumb and Dumber and There’s Something About Mary.
As reported, the film centers on a boy named Liam (Robert Timothy Smith) who writes to Santa for proof he exists, but, as the trailer narrates, “Liam is a crappy speller.”
To that end, his letter addressed instead to “Satan” finds its way due south of the North Pole — and the other guy in red shows up, to Liam’s surprise.
“Who did you expect?” Black says as the other guy, complete with horns on his head. “In the movies the reindeer has usually have the antlers, not you,” Liam replies.
Black’s character offers Liam three wishes in exchange for his soul — a bargain he insists genies “stole” from him. “You ain’t never had a friend like me!” Black growls happily, adding, “OK, that I may have stolen from Aladdin: Now we’re even.”
However, Liam proves “incorruptible,” even when Satan grants him riches and a bro hug from Post Malone, playing himself.
Along the way, Liam tries to get the Devil to break good: “What about doing something out of kindness?” he offers. “I don’t know what you just said — I mean I know all the words, but I just never heard them in that order,” Black retorts.
Dear Santa hits Paramount+ for free, and digital platforms for rent or purchase, on Nov. 25.
Joan Vassos‘ suitors reunited on Wednesday night for a heartfelt “Men Tell All” episode of the Golden Bachelorette.
There wasn’t a dry eye in the house as the men reminisced about their journey on the show in front of an audience and revisited some of the hilarious memories they shared.
“The bromance here was just absolutely unbelievable,” Gary said about the group of men. Host Jesse Palmer also highlighted how the men supported each other despite the fact they were all vying for the heart of Vassos.
The audience was moved to tears when Jonathan, the 61-year-old shipping consultant from Oakland, Iowa, read a sweet message that Mark left him one morning on a post-it note.
Fan favorite Charles L. also spoke about the friendship he has with all the men and how the The Golden Bachelorette experience has given him the confidence to start dating again.
“I was worried [about] what my daughters would think about me, to date again … and also I was not sure what my relatives would think about me [dating] due to my cultural background,” he said. “But the support I received, the love I received from my daughters and my family and relatives — that worry is gone.”
An audience member then suggested that Charles should be the next “Golden Bachelor.”
After Pascal‘s dramatic exit in last week’s episode, the 69-year-old salon owner from Chicago, Illinois, took the hot seat to discuss his “difficult decision” to say goodbye to her in Tahiti.
“I hope I didn’t hurt her,” Pascal said, adding, “She’s a wonderful woman and now I’m watching and I see her say that she’s not worthy of love — she’s totally wrong. I think she is worthy of love, I just wasn’t able to give her what she was looking for at the time.”
When it finally came time to talk to Vassos, Pascal said he hoped him leaving the show led to Vassos finding the right person. She said she has no hard feelings towards him, and that she wants “nothing but the best” for him.
Vassos also told all the men that she wanted to remain friends with them.
Next week, we’ll see how Vassos’ journey as the Golden Bachelorette ends in part two of the season finale, as she heads to Bora Bora with Chock and Guy.
(WASHINGTON) — The Federal Reserve on Thursday will announce its latest decision on the direction of interest rates, setting the path for borrowing costs just two days after the victory of President-Elect Donald Trump.
The Fed cut its benchmark interest rate a half of a percentage point in September, dialing back its yearslong fight against inflation and delivering relief for borrowers saddled with high costs.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), a policymaking body at the Fed, has forecast further interest rate cuts.
By the end of 2024, interest rates will fall another half of a percentage point from their current level of between 4.75% and 5%, according to FOMC projections. Interest rates will drop another percentage point over the course of 2025, the projections further indicated.
The central bank is widely expected to cut interest rates by another quarter of a percentage point when it meets on Thursday, according to the CME FedWatch Tool, a measure of market sentiment.
In recent months, the U.S. has inched closer to a “soft landing,” in which inflation returns to normal and the economy averts a recession.
Government data released last week showed robust economic growth over a recent three-month period, alongside a continued cooldown of inflation.
U.S. hiring slowed in October, but fallout from hurricanes and labor strikes likely caused an undercount of the nation’s workers, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data on Friday showed.
Since 2021, the Fed has sought to rein in inflation with elevated interest rates. Even after the Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest in September, it still stands at a historically high level.
Inflation has cooled dramatically from a peak of about 9% in 2022, hovering right near the Federal Reserve’s target rate of 2%.
The trajectory of inflation could shift in the coming months. Trump’s proposals of heightened tariffs and the mass deportation of undocumented immigrants are widely expected to raise consumer prices, experts previously told ABC News.
To be sure, the Fed says it bases its decisions on economic conditions and operates as an independent government body.
When asked previously about the 2024 election at a press conference in Washington, D.C., in December, Powell said, “We don’t think about politics.”
The election of Trump appears to have delivered a boost for the stock market. The U.S. stock market soared at the open of trading on Wednesday, just hours after Trump declared victory.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed more than 1,300 points, amounting to a nearly 3% rise in the index. The S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq each jumped more than 2%.
Shares of Tesla, the electric vehicle company headed by Trump ally Elon Musk, spiked about 14.5% in early trading on Wednesday.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden will step into the White House Rose Garden on Thursday to speak to the nation for the first time since his party’s bruising defeat at the polls on Tuesday.
The White House announced that he would give an address at 11 a.m. ET.
His address is scheduled to begin a little more than 24 hours after his twice-former opponent, Donald Trump, was projected to have won the presidency. Trump beat Vice President Kamala Harris, whom Biden endorsed in July, as he stepped aside as the party’s presumptive nominee.
Biden in a statement on Wednesday said that adding Harris to his 2020 Democratic ticket was the first and “best decision” he made in that campaign. He praised Harris, saying she had “stepped up and led a historic campaign” under extraordinary circumstances.
That statement made no mention of Trump, the former Republican president and now president-elect, who will bookend Biden’s sole term in office.
Biden and Harris have both spoken to Trump to offer congratulations to him for winning a second term. And Biden on Wednesday also spoke with Harris on the phone, the White House said.
Harris in a speech on Wednesday conceded the race to Trump.
“Sometimes the fight takes a while … The important thing is don’t ever give up,” she said, speaking at her alma mater, Howard University, in Washington, D.C.
Biden in his Wednesday statement praised Harris, saying, “Her story represents the best of America’s story.”
“And as she made clear today, I have no doubt she’ll continue writing that story,” he said, according to the White House.
ABC News’ Michelle Stoddart and Emily Shapiro contributed to this report.
Samuel L. Jackson is set to star alongside singer/actress Andra Day and Emilia Perez actor Edgar Ramirez in the action comedy The Honest Liar, according to Deadline. Jackson will play “an award-winning actor tasked with teaching rookie undercover cops how to act like criminals so they can save their own lives when on the job,” per the outlet. Filming is set to start in early 2025 …
Squid Game breakout actress Hoyeon has been tapped to star opposite The Gentlemen‘s Theo James in The Hole, according to Variety. The story follows James as “a successful professor living abroad in South Korea, who is bedridden after a devastating car accident that killed his wife,” played by Hoyeon, per the entertainment publication. His Korean mother-in-law steps in to care for him, but his road to recovery is threatened when she learns the devastating truth behind Owen and his marriage to Sandy …
Get Out‘s Lil Rel Howery is set to direct the comedy-horror film Haunted Heist, in which he’ll star opposite Girls Trip‘s Tiffany Haddish, according to Deadline. The movie follows “four estranged friends” who “reunite at what appears to be a typical house,” though one is really there to steal an antique worth a fortune and needs the others’ help, per the outlet. They have bigger problems, however, as the house ends up being “straight up haunted” …
Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead. Via Flickr
(WASHINGTON) — Moments before a convicted Jan. 6 rioter was sentenced to eight years in prison on Thursday, he sought a full pardon by claiming that Donald Trump’s victory on Election Day vindicated his actions.
Zachary Alam told the court that he wanted a new classification of pardon, which he called a “full pardon of patriotism,” for his actions on Jan. 6, 2021. That would come with monetary compensation, expungement of the charges from his criminal record and the assurance that he would never again be charged for his crimes.
Alam seemed to characterize anything less as a “second-class pardon” and implied that he would not accept it.
Although Alam did not deny his actions during the riot on the Capitol, stating, “I will 100% admit my actions were not lawful on January 6,” he also justified them by saying he was doing the right thing to protect democracy.
“True patriots do the right thing in spite of everything else,“ he claimed, adding that his fellow rioters had “fought, cried, bled and died for what is right.”
“Trump wasn’t lying,” Alam said in court, emphasizing that the American people voted for him “four years later.”
Judge Dabney Friedrich described Alam’s actions as a “full-throated” attack on the Constitution and “not the acts of a patriot.”
She called Alam one of the “most violent and aggressive” rioters that day, noting that Capitol Police officers also described him as the loudest among them.
At his trial, law enforcement officials recalled him repeatedly telling them, “I’m going to f— you up.”
Lawyers for the Justice Department, meanwhile, noted that Alam stood out on Jan. 6 “because of his actions.”
Those included knocking out the glass door of the Speaker’s Lobby and pushing up against three Capitol Police officers who were trying to keep the mob from entering the floor of the House of Representatives.
He scaled four floors of the Capitol, kicked doors and threw a velvet rope over a balcony in an attempt to hit officers below.
In the courtroom, the Justice Department asserted, “There are consequences to taking law into your own hands.”
Leaving the Capitol after Ashli Babbitt was shot, Alam shouted to fellow rioters that they “need guns.”
He then fled and tried to conceal his identity.
He was arrested about a month later.
Alam also claimed in court that the Justice Department coerced defendants into taking plea deals — an argument the judge dismissed on Thursday.
He asked if the insurgence on Jan. 6 had truly threatened democracy, observing in court that the American people had reelected Trump just 48 hours prior.
“Sometimes you have to break the rules to do the right thing,” he said.
Alam’s attorney Steven Metcalf argued that his client should serve five years in prison, including the nearly four years he had already served, along with time in a halfway house.
Metcalf noted that his client had no friends and had been in and out of solitary confinement, both for his behavior and concerns about his safety.
The attorney said in court that some people are not going to change their beliefs, but conceded that Alam “can’t choose to take things in his own hands.”
He emphasized the need for rehabilitation to help people like his client.
Alam’s attorney depicted him as a defendant who lacked a support system. At the time of the Jan. 6 riot, he was living inside a storage unit and was not close with his family, according to Metcalf. His parents never appeared in court.
He asserted that Capitol Police officers were not traumatized by Alam specifically, arguing that they were not physically hurt by him or his direct actions.
The judge challenged Metcalf’s argument, emphasizing that the Capitol Police officers stationed in the Speaker’s Lobby were the “last stand” between rioters and lawmakers.
She said Alam’s actions contributed to the trauma that those officers faced on Jan 6.
Alam said that he was willing to undergo rehabilitation, but the judge — citing his lack of remorse — instead sentenced him to over eight years in prison and three years of supervised release.
ABC News’ T. Michelle Murphy contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Vice President Kamala Harris said her heart is “full of resolve” after losing the presidential election to former President Donald Trump.
“My heart is full today — full of gratitude for the trust you have placed in me, full of love for our country and full of resolve,” Harris said Wednesday at her alma mater, Howard University, in Washington, D.C.
“The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for. But … the light of America’s promise will always burn bright as long as we never give up,” Harris said.
Harris said she told Trump on the phone Wednesday that she’ll help with a peaceful transfer of power, which got a cheer from the crowd at Howard.
“We must accept the results of this election,” the vice president said.
“A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results,” Harris said, alluding to Trump’s refusal to acknowledge his loss of the 2020 election.
Harris stressed, “While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign.”
“The fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness and the dignity of all people — a fight for the ideals at the heart of our nation — the ideals that reflect America at our best,” she said.
Harris vowed that she’ll “never give up the fight for a future … where the women of America have the freedom to make decisions about their own body.”
“We will never give up the fight to protect our schools and our streets from gun violence,” she continued. “And America, we will never give up the fight for our democracy, for the rule of law, for equal justice, and for the sacred idea that every one of us, no matter who we are or where we start out, has certain fundamental rights and freedoms that must be respected and upheld.”
She said that fight will continue “in the voting booth, in the courts, and in the public square.”
“And we will also wage it in quieter ways, in how we live our lives, by treating one another with kindness and respect, by looking in the face of a stranger and seeing a neighbor,” she said. “By always using our strength to lift people up, to fight for the dignity that all people deserve.”
To her young supporters watching, the vice president said, “It is OK to feel sad and disappointed, but please know it’s gonna be OK.”
“Sometimes the fight takes a while. … The important thing is don’t ever give up,” she said.
“This is not a time to throw up our hands, this is a time to roll up our sleeves. This is a time to organize, to mobilize and to stay engaged for the sake of freedom and justice and the future that we all know we can build together,” she said.
Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff waved to the crowd after her remarks as Harris’ running mate, an emotional Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, looked on.
Harris’ family, Walz’s family, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Harris’ campaign staff were also in attendance.
Harris’ defeat came as Trump won the swing states of Pennsylvania, Georgia and Wisconsin overnight. Trump won another swing state, Michigan, on Wednesday.
Trump’s victory underscores just how deep voters’ frustrations were surrounding inflation and immigration, Republicans’ two top issues this election cycle as polls consistently showed Americans’ unhappiness with how President Joe Biden handled them. Trump’s return to the White House also suggests that Democrats were not motivated enough by the prospect of electing the first female president and that its base’s fury over the Supreme Court’s revocation of constitutional abortion protections has waned since 2022.
Biden plans to address the nation on Thursday.
ABC News’ Fritz Farrow, Gabriella Abdul-Hakim, Will McDuffie and Tal Axelrod contributed to this report.
