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Republican lawmakers are grilling former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith at a congressional hearing that’s expected to focus fresh attention on two criminal investigations that shadowed Donald Trump during his 2024 presidential campaign. Smith testified behind closed doors last month but returned to the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday for a public hearing likely to divide along starkly partisan lines between Republican lawmakers looking to undermine the former Justice Department official and Democrats hoping to elicit new and damaging testimony about Trump’s conduct. Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee said the criminal investigations into Trump were “always about politics” as he opened the hearing. “Maybe for them,” retorted Rep. Jamie Raskin, the panel’s top Democrat, during his own opening statement. “But for us, it’s all about the rule of law.” Republicans loyal to the president have been investigating Smith’s cases, which accused Trump of conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election after he lost to Democrat Joe Biden, and of keeping classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. Smith told lawmakers that he stood behind his decision as special counsel to bring charges against Trump in separate cases that accused the Republican of conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election after he lost to Democrat Joe Biden and hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, after he left the White House. He said that, as special counsel, he had “followed Justice Department policies, observed legal requirements and took actions based on the fact and the law.” Donald Trump Jan 1 Capitol riot ‘does not happen' without Trump, Jack Smith told Congress Trump Administration Dec 17, 2025 Jack Smith tells lawmakers there's ‘proof beyond a reasonable doubt' of Trump's ‘criminal scheme' “Our investigation developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in criminal activity,” Smith said. “If asked whether to prosecute a former president based on the same facts today, I would do so regardless of whether that president was a Republican or a Democrat.” “No one should be above the law in our country, and the law required that he be held to account. So that is what I did,” he said. Smith was appointed in 2022 by Biden’s Justice Department to oversee investigations into Trump, who has denied any wrongdoing. Both investigations produced indictments against Trump, but the cases were abandoned by Smith and his team after Trump won back the White House because of longstanding Justice Department legal opinions that say sitting presidents cannot be indicted. Smith was summoned to the hearing by Jordan, who on Thursday advanced a talking point frequently advanced by Trump that the investigation was driven by a desire to derail Trump’s candidacy. “We should never forget what took place, what they did to the guy we the people elected twice,” Jordan said. Smith vigorously rejected those suggestions and said the evidence placed Trump’s actions squarely at the heart of a criminal conspiracy to undo the 2020 election. “The evidence here made clear that President Trump was by a large measure the most culpable and most responsible person in this conspiracy,” Smith said. “These crimes were committed for his benefit. The attack that happened at the Capitol, part of this case, does not happen without him. The other co-conspirators were doing this for his benefit.” From the start, Republicans sought to portray Smith as an overly aggressive hard-charging prosecutor who had to be “reined in” by higher-ups and the courts as he pursued Trump during his campaign. Rep. Kevin Kiley, a Republican from California, portrayed Smith as an overly aggressive prosecutor who did not show the same “humility and restraint” shown by other past special counsels. Kiley accused Smith…

A New Hampshire man was taken into custody on Wednesday after an hours-long standoff with police. Around 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, state police troopers responded to a home on Battle Street in Webster in an effort to serve a resident with a domestic violence protection order. The order was for 48-year-old James Carpentier, of Webster, who was inside a camper located on the property at the time. When a trooper knocked on the camper door, Carpentier became uncooperative and made statements indicating that he had a gun. He refused to come out of the camper, resulting in an hours-long standoff with police. During this time, additional law enforcement agencies responded to the scene, along with the New Hampshire State Police SWAT Unit, and a portion of Battle Street was closed for public safety reasons. After extended negotiations, state police were ultimately able to convince Carpentier to surrender peacefully and exit the camper. Carpentier was taken into custody and charged with obstructing government administration and resisting arrest. The incident remains under investigation, state police said.

And the 2026 Oscar nominees are…. Nominations for the 98th Academy Awards were announced live Thursday morning from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Science’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Los Angeles by actors Lewis Pullman and Danielle Brooks. While horror films have traditionally been left out of the Oscars, Ryan Coogler’s vampire tale “Sinners” made history with 16 nominations, including Directing, Best Picture and Best Actor for Michael B. Jordan, his first Oscar nomination. No movie has ever landed more than 14 nominations — something achieved only by “All About Eve,” “Titanic” and “La La Land.” Paul Thomas Anderson’s father-daughter revolutionary saga “One Battle After Another,” trailed in second with 13 nominations. This year, the Academy is recognizing casting directors for the first time, adding the new category last year. The last time a competitive category was added was in 2001, with best animated film. The Oscars will take place on March 15 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles and will be televised live on ABC and Hulu at 7 p.m. ET on ABC. Conan O’Brien is returning as host. See the full list below: Best Actor Timothée Chalamet, “Marty Supreme”Leonardo DiCaprio, “One Battle After Another”Ethan Hawke, “Blue Moon”Michael B. Jordan, “Sinners”Wagner Moura, “The Secret Agent” Best Actress Jessie Buckley, “Hamnet”Rose Byrne, “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You”Kate Hudson, “Song Sung Blue”Renate Reinsve, “Sentimental Value”Emma Stone, “Bugonia” Best Director Chloé Zhao, “Hamnet”Josh Safdie, “Marty Supreme”Paul Thomas Anderson, “One Battle After Another”Joachim Trier, “Sentimental Value”Ryan Coogler, “Sinners” Best Cinematography “Sinners”“One Battle After Another”“Train Dreams”“Frankenstein”“Marty Supreme” Best Picture “Bugonia”“F1”“Frankenstein”“Hamnet”“Marty Supreme”“One Battle After Another”“The Secret Agent”“Sentimental Value”“Sinners”“Train Dreams” Best Supporting Actress Elle Fanning, “Sentimental Value”Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, “Sentimental Value”Amy Madigan , “Weapons”Wunmi Mosaku, “Sinners”Teyana Taylor, “One Battle After Another” Best Supporting Actor Benicio Del Toro, “One Battle After Another”Jacob Elordi, “Frankenstein”Delroy Lindo, “Sinners”Sean Penn, “One Battle After Another”Stellan Skarsgård, “Sentimental Value” Best Makeup and Hairstyling “Frankenstein”“Kokuho”“Sinners”“The Smashing Machine”“The Ugly Stepsister” Best Original Score “Bugonia”“Frankenstein”“Hamnet”“One Battle After Another”“Sinners” Best Live Action Short Film “Butcher’s Stain”“A Friend of Dorothy”“Jane Austen’s Period Drama”“The Singers”“Two People Exchanging Saliva” Best Animated Short Film “Butterfly”“Forevergreen”“The Girl Who Cried Pearls”“Retirement Plan”“The Three Sisters” Best Adapted Screenplay “One Battle After Another”“Hamnet”“Bugonia”“Train Dreams”“Frankenstein” Best Original Screenplay “Blue Moon”“It Was Just an Accident”“Marty Supreme”“Sentimental Value”“Sinners” Best Casting Nina Gold, “Hamnet”Jennifer Venditti, “Marty Supreme”Casandra Kulukundis, “One Battle After Another”Gabriel Domingues, “The Secret Agent”Francine Maisler, “Sinners” Best Costume Design “Avatar: Fire and Ash”“Frankenstein”“Hamnet”“Marty Supreme”“Sinners” Best International Feature Film “It Was Just an Accident”“The Secret Agent”“Sentimental Value”“The Voice of Hind Rajab”“Sirat” Best Original Song “Dear Me” from “Diane Warren: Relentless”“Golden” from “KPop Demon Hunters”“I Lied to You” from “Sinners”“Sweet Dreams of Joy” from “Viva Verdi!”“Train Dreams” from “Train Dreams” Best Production Design “Frankenstein”“Hamnet”“Marty Supreme”“One Battle After Another”“Sinners” Best Documentary Feature Film “The Alabama Solution”“Come See Me in the Good Light”“Cutting Through Rocks”“Mr. Nobody Against Putin”“The Perfect Neighbor” Best Film Editing “F1”“Marty Supreme”“One Battle After Another”“Sentimental Value”“Sinners” Best Visual Effects…

All eyes are on a bigger snowstorm this weekend, but some areas of Massachusetts got up to 4 inches of snow overnight, leading to a handful of districts, including Worcester Public Schools, delaying the start of school Thursday morning. The jackpot town was Holden in Worcester County, with 4.7 inches. Many other towns in Massachusetts, Connecticut and even Maine saw up to 3 inches. Here’s a closer look at snowfall totals across the region, according to the National Weather Service and its storm spotter system: Massachusetts Holden: 4.7″ Clinton: 4.5″ Lancaster: 4.4″ Princeton: 3.9″ Sterling: 3.3″ Fitchburg: 3″ Lunenberg: 3″ Oxford: 3″ Stowe: 3″ Westborough: 2.9″ Grafton: 2.8″ Shrewsbury: 2.8″ Stow: 2.5″ West Brookfield: 2.3″ Haverhill: 2″ Methuen: 2″ Andover: 1.5″ Connecticut Straffordville: 3.4″ Maine Hope: 4″ Newburgh: 3″ Dover-Foxcroft: 2.5″

The Patriots are favored over the Broncos in this Sunday’s AFC Championship Game, but the road to Super Bowl LX won’t come without its challenges. New England will be facing off against the top-seeded Broncos in Denver, where the Pats will contend with a different time zone, a different stadium, higher altitude, and another top 5 defense. Patriots players say they are treating this like any other game, with everyone focused on doing their job. They also made sure to note they are not underestimating Jarrett Stidham, who will be in at QB for the Broncos in place of Bo Nix, who broke a bone in his right ankle late in the team’s 33-30 win against the Buffalo Bills last weekend. “I mean, he’s still a good quarterback. He can make a lot of throws, seeing what he’s done when he’s been in the games. I mean, he’s in the NFL for a reason, and they believe in him, they brought him up,” Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez said. “I think they got the best group. We’ve just seen a year up front, and we’re gonna be ready for that challenge up front,” Patriots defensive tackle Milton Williams said. Williams went on to say that this New England team has an alter ego. At home, they are the Patriots. Outside of Massachusetts, they are the warriors…the road warriors. And they look forward to going into other teams’ stadiums and silencing the fans. “Coach has always been saying, we’re warriors. So we’re trying to find that one more time and finish out strong what we’ve done this year, and we got a tough job and a tough challenge, but I think the guys will be pumped up and ready for it,” Pats quarterback Drake Maye said. This this will be a challenge come Sunday. The Broncos have led the league in sacks the past two seasons and have been in the top three for rushing defense, red zone defense and fewest points allowed. Head Coach Mike Vrabel has emphasized the keys to success this week: “Our best players have to play good. You’re going to have to be able to execute in some critical situations, some third downs, there’s going to be some third downs that we’re gonna have to convert. And then I think the turnovers and taking advantage of your scoring opportunities in the red zone.” Vrabel spoke at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, heaping praise on Broncos head coach Sean Payton, saying “His record speaks for itself… He’s a proven winner in this league.” He also spoke about Maye, saying the quarterback’s goal will be to “find as many positive plays as you can, take care of the football” and “make some big time throws” Sunday, which is similar to what the team expects from him on a regular basis. When asked about the Patriots backup quarterbacks, Vrabel had positive things to say about both Joshua Dobbs and Tommy DeVito. “Those guys have been great. They’ve been a huge support for Drake and everything we’ve done offensively and running and operating our show team.” He said some players on the Patriots are being monitored for injuries, including Christian Barmore, but he doesn’t see any limitations for the star defensive lineman ahead of Sunday’s game. Vrabel was also asked if he believes in bulletin board material, but downplayed is importance. “I’m really excited to go out there and play,” he said. “I’m just excited for these guys to be in this environment, to see all their hard work pay off and to be able to play in a game like this.” The Patriots have been practicing ahead of this big matchup, going through a full slate of first and second down plays on Wednesday. They are expected to zero in and focus on what to do on the crucial third down Thursday. The big story line going into the game is Stidham replacing Nix, though. The Patriots might not be underestimating the Broncos backup, but…