Author: chicagoinquirer

by Mark Sherman and Jessica Gresko WASHINGTON  — Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson disclosed Wednesday that she received a $1,200 congratulatory floral display from Oprah Winfrey and $6,580 in designer clothing for a magazine photo shoot in her first months as the first Black woman on the Supreme Court. The details of gifts given to Jackson were among the reports provided by most members of the court in their annual filings, which give a partial window onto their finances. The reports were released Wednesday. But the report that was most anticipated — that of Justice Clarence Thomas, who has been under…

by Tim Reynolds MIAMI  — Lionel Messi has pulled off his latest stunning feat: He is headed to Major League Soccer, and joining Inter Miami. After months — years, even — of speculation, Messi finally revealed his decision to join a Miami franchise that has been led by another global soccer icon, David Beckham, since its inception but has yet to make any real splashes on the field. That likely will soon change. One of Inter Miami’s owners, Jorge Mas, tweeted out a photo of a darkly silhouetted Messi jersey shortly before the Argentinian great revealed his decision in interviews…

by Tim Reynolds MIAMI — The easiest way to explain what the Miami Heat are doing in the comeback department during these playoffs is simply to put up their numbers against the rest of the league. When facing a deficit of at least 12 points this postseason: — The Heat are 7-6. — The rest of the NBA is 6-59. Combined. “Biggest thing for us, we had the will and we had the belief,” Heat center Bam Adebayo said. “And we keep finding ways to win.” Doesn’t matter the opponent, either. Milwaukee, New York, Boston and now Denver in the…

by Lindsay Whitehurst WASHINGTON  — Robert Hanssen, a former FBI agent who took more than $1.4 million in cash and diamonds to trade secrets with Moscow in one of the most notorious spying cases in American history, died in prison Monday. Hanssen, 79, was found unresponsive in his cell at a federal prison in Florence, Colorado, and later pronounced dead, prison officials said. He is believed to have died of natural causes, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. The person was not authorized to publicly discuss details of Hanssen’s death and spoke to the AP on…

By Felix Onuah and Camillus Eboh ABUJA (Reuters) – Nigeria’s main labour union agreed after meeting with the government on Monday night to suspend a planned indefinite strike to protest the removal of a popular decades-old petrol subsidy, a signed resolution of the agreement showed. The government had obtained a court injunction stopping Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) from embarking on the strike from June 7, after petrol prices nearly tripled following the subsidy removal last week. Trade Union Congress (TUC) was also cited although it had not yet called for a strike. On taking office a week ago, President Bola…

by Tim Reynolds DENVER  — Staring down a 2-0 deficit in the NBA Finals, as the visitors in a hostile arena where no road team had prevailed in more than two months, the Miami Heat decided to do what they’ve done throughout the postseason. They found a way. Against all odds. Again. The Heat tied the NBA Finals and had to overcome a monster 41-point effort from Nikola Jokic to do it. Gabe Vincent scored 23 points, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo each had 21 and Heat beat the Denver Nuggets 111-108 in Game 2 on Sunday night. “Our guys…

by David Rising SINGAPORE  — U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin vowed Saturday that Washington would not stand for any “coercion and bullying” of its allies and partners by China, while assuring Beijing that the United States remains committed to maintaining the status quo on Taiwan and would prefer dialogue over conflict. Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual forum bringing together top defense officials, diplomats and leaders in Singapore, Austin lobbied for support for Washington’s vision of a “free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific within a world of rules and rights” as the best course to counter increasing Chinese assertiveness…

by Emeka Obasi LAGOS, NIGERIA: Paul Okoku bagged his first ever red card in 1980 in a match the referee apparently demobilized Bolaji Oni Babes against Enugu Black Rocks. Kayode Omotose whose team, Sparks, lost to the Lagosians earlier, sees it from another angle. Okoku told me recently from his US home that probably because the referee wanted to impress Anambra State governor, Jim Nwobodo, in that Ramat Cup grand finale, the best way was to axe the engine room of the Lagos State representatives. Omotose’s Ilorin Sparks fell to Bolaji Oni Babes in the semi finals and he believes…

by Emeka Obasi LAGOS, NIGERIA: His frame keeps many looking up as he bounces around like basketball. Jonnie Isebor started from the ground, picking ball on the tennis court before towering to a major hit in slam – dunk. As a boy, Isebor watched his elder brother,  Joe, play tennis with the high and mighty. The senior would later win gold for the University of Nigeria Nsukka ( UNN ) at the 1978 Nigerian Universities Games ( NUGA) hosted by the University of Lagos. “Family background and my big brother were a major influence. I was his perennial ball -…

by Chris Megerian WASHINGTON  — With just two days to spare, President Joe Biden signed legislation on Saturday that lifts the nation’s debt ceiling, averting an unprecedented default on the federal government’s debt. It was a decidedly low-key denouement to a monthslong drama that unnerved financial markets at home and abroad and caused anxious retirees and social service organizations to make contingency plans in case the country was unable to pay all its bills. Instead of holding a public ceremony with lawmakers from both parties — showcasing the bipartisanship that Biden had cited in an Oval Office address on Friday evening — the president signed the legislation in…