Gizelle Bryant & Ashley Darby React To Karen Huger DUI Sentence

Karen Huger is trading her Grande Dame title for that of an inmate. Earlier this week, a Maryland judge handed the ‘Real Housewives of Potomac’ her two-year sentence for drunk driving in March 2024 and crashing her luxury car into a street sight. The 61-year-old lucked out with one suspended year, but she still has to spend at least one year locked up. This week, her OG ‘RHOP’ co-stars Ashley Darby and Gizelle Bryant have weighed in on Karen’s life update.

RELATED: Not The Grande Dame! ‘RHOP’ Star Karen Huger Is Sentenced To Jail Time For DUI (UPDATE)

Ashley Darby Says She Cried Over Karen Huger’s Sentence

Darby spoke on Karen’s situation during a sit-down on the Tamron Hall show. Ashley, who has been on ‘Real Housewives of Potomac’ with Huger since season one, admitted that she shed tears over her on-and-off again friend.

“I really do encourage everyone to keep Karen in your prayers; I really care about her,” Ashley said. She learned about Karen’s sentence while traveling to appear on the show. “And I cried like a baby.” 

Gizelle Bryant Speaks Out, Too! 

Bryant didn’t say whether she cried like Ashley Darby did but revealed feeling “shook.” However, she spoke about the situation at a ’21 Shady Questions’ event on Wednesday, the same day Karen Huger was sentenced.

“I do not have her wigs. I am concerned. In all seriousness, I am concerned for her safety. Karen ain’t cut out for jail,” Bryant told the audience, per U.S. Weekly. Adding, “I pray that she’s OK and that the Lord is with her.” 

More Details About Karen’s DUI Conviction 

As mentioned, Karen’s DUI incident developed into a conviction, particularly in light of her being a repeat offender. According to local prosecutors, Karen Huger had been arrested at least three other times for related cases. Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Terrence McGann highlighted that past, too.

“Can we believe that she’s only driven while intoxicated four times in the last 17 years, or is it more likely that she’s been very lucky and her inebriation has gone undetected?” the judge reportedly said, per Page Six.

Meanwhile, Montgomery County State Attorney John McCarthy also reassured the public that the 61-year-old wasn’t given special treatment in her prosecution.

“We prosecute thousands of D.U.I. cases every year and take them seriously,” Attorney John McCarthy said. “This defendant’s case was not handled any differently based on the facts and her traffic history. We encourage the public to always drive sober and practice safety on the roads.”

In December, after her conviction, a video surfaced of Karen Huger’s drunken interactions with the police who pulled her over. Her legal team pushed for rehab instead of jail time, but that didn’t work, even with the brief stint she did. Huger has been in custody since her sentencing, at which she was remanded.

RELATED: Say WHAT!? Atlanta Police Accuse Lil Baby Of Allegedly Influencing Shooting Linked To Teen Murders (VIDEO)

What Do You Think Roomies?

Delusional Mike Johnson Claims Protesters At GOP City Halls Are Democratic Crops

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Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has a problem. The American people across party lines don’t want Republicans to gut Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy.

Constituents have been showing up at House Republican town halls and voicing their displeasure. The situation has gotten so bad that House Republican leadership is telling its members not to hold town halls.

CNN’s Kaitlin Collins interviewed Johnson and this was their exchange:

COLLINS: As you have seen through this, and we’ve seen the blowback that some Republicans in your caucus are getting, when they go back home to their districts, worried about these cuts, or worried about what DOGE is doing. Do you have concerns that that’s anything that Democrats will be able to use to run against those Republicans–

JOHNSON: No, because the–

COLLINS: –in the midterms.

JOHNSON: No, I don’t. Because the videos you saw of the town halls were for paid protesters in many of those places. These are Democrats who went to the events early, and filled up the seats. If you had — if the videos had panned outside the building–

COLLINS: You can’t argue they were all paid protesters, though, Mr. Speaker.

JOHNSON: Many of them were. I don’t know, we–

COLLINS: One of your — a Republican acknowledged–

JOHNSON: Yes.

COLLINS: –they were his constituents.

JOHNSON: One Republican acknowledged they were his constituents. That’s fantastic, OK.

But they had Democrats come and fill the seats early, all right? This is an old playbook that they pulled out and ran, and it made it look like that what is happening in Washington is unpopular.

But I’m going to tell you, Kaitlan, the American people are behind what’s happening.

Video:

Mike Johnson’s delusional answer is a textbook example of how House majorities are lost.

Voters are telling House Republicans don’t do this. We don’t want Medicaid cuts, and Speaker Johnson responded by saying that the protesters don’t count because they are paid Democratic plants.

Kaitlin Collins, as usual dropped the ball by not asking Johnson what evidence did he have that protesters were Democrats.

Republicans are on their way to disaster. They are ignoring the warnings, and if they continue to do so, voters will punish them the first opportunity they get.

What do you think about Johnson’s claim that the protesters are plants? Share your opinion in the comments below.

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FDA cancels vaccine advisory assembly for selecting flu pictures

FILE PHOTO: The headquarters of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is seen in Silver Spring, Maryland November 4, 2009. 

Jason Reed | Reuters

A crucial March meeting of vaccine advisors to the Food and Drug Administration has been canceled without explanation, a member of the advisory panel told CNBC on Wednesday. 

The meeting of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, or VRBPAC, is held every March to select flu strains for shots released in the upcoming fall and winter. 

But Dr. Paul Offit, a member of that panel, told CNBC that he received an email at 4:18 p.m. ET on Wednesday saying that the upcoming March 13 meeting is canceled. He said there was no indication of whether it will be rescheduled.

“Who canceled this meeting? Why did they cancel the meeting? Will manufacturers now turn to the World Health Organization to determine strains for this year’s influenza vaccines?” Offit told CNBC. 

The Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The canceled meeting comes as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who now leads HHS, makes early moves that could affect vaccination uptake and policy in the U.S. Kennedy has a lengthy track record of being a vaccine skeptic. 

It also comes amid a particularly brutal flu season in the U.S. CDC data shows the flu has caused up to an estimated 910,000 hospitalizations since October, which puts the season on track to be the most severe in at least a decade.

Earlier this month, a separate meeting of advisors who help the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention make recommendations for vaccines was postponed to “accommodate public comment in advance of the meeting,” several news outlets reported. It is also unclear if that meeting will be rescheduled. 

Kennedy also said last week that he will review the childhood vaccine schedule despite earlier pledges not to do so. He promised that a new “Make America Healthy Again” commission would investigate vaccines, pesticides and antidepressants to see if they have contributed to a rise of chronic illness in the U.S.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is weighing pulling funding for Moderna’s bird flu vaccine, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.

The country is grappling with a record-breaking bird flu outbreak that’s impacted dozens of cattle herds along with poultry flocks, which has sent egg prices skyrocketing. Its rapid spread in animals has raised concerns about broader spread to humans.”

Elon Musk threatens federal staff with firing

CEO of Tesla and SpaceX Elon Musk speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the Gaylord National Resort Hotel And Convention Center on Feb. 20, 2025 in Oxon Hill, Maryland.

Andrew Harnik | Getty Images

DOGE chief Elon Musk doubled down Monday night on his threat to fire federal employees who fail to submit a list of five or so of their workplace accomplishments over the past week.

“Subject to the discretion of the President, they will be given another chance,” Musk said about those workers in a post on his social media site X.

“Failure to respond a second time will result in termination,” wrote Musk, whom President Donald Trump has tasked with slashing federal government spending and employee headcount.

The Tesla CEO’s renewed warning came hours after the Office of Personnel Management contradicted his initial threat, telling top human resources officers at departments across the government “that employee responses to the OPM email” demanding the accomplishment tally “is voluntary.”

OPM on Saturday sent out a blast email across the government, telling workers to submit that list by Monday night. That email did not say that employees — who do not work for OPM — had the option of not complying.

Musk on Saturday tweeted about OPM’s email, writing: “Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation.”

In an X post on Monday, Musk wrote, “The email request was utterly trivial, as the standard for passing the test was to type some words and press send!”

“Yet so many failed even that inane test, urged on in some cases by their managers,” wrote Musk, whose worker- and cost-cutting effort is known as the Department of Government Efficiency.

“Have you ever witnessed such INCOMPETENCE and CONTEMPT for how YOUR TAXES are being spent?”

A newly amended lawsuit filed over the weekend cited Musk’s first threat.

The filing in San Francisco federal court noted widespread confusion and controversy over whether employees must respond to OPM’s email demand.

Some major departments, including the Pentagon, told their employees to hold off on responding to OPM’s demand.

Others, including the Department of Health and Human Services and its Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services subsidiary, told their workers to comply.

The lawsuit was first filed Wednesday by a group of unions representing federal workers against OPM and acting OPM director Charles Ezell.

The suit asks a judge to enjoin OPM from terminating “tens of thousands of federal employees in contravention of federal constitutional and statutory law.

OPM on Feb 13 ordered federal agencies “across the government to effectively eliminate the category of probationary employee, by terminating tens of thousands of federal employees en masse,” the suit noted

The suit was amended after OPM in its email implemented a “new mandatory reporting program for all federal employees, the complaint said.

Read more CNBC politics coverage

OPM’s email carried the title, “What did you do last week?”

Please reply to this email with approx. 5 bullets of what you accomplished last week and cc your manager,” the email said. “Deadline is this Monday at 11:59 EST.”

Before Saturday, federal workers were not required to submit any reports on their work to OPM, the suit notes.

The amended lawsuit says that before Saturday, “no notice was published, in the Federal Register or anywhere else, regarding any OPM program, rule, policy, or regulation requiring all federal employees to provide a report regarding their work to OPM.”

OPM “has not complied with any procedural requirements … with respect to this new program,” the suit alleges.

And, the suit, noted, after OPM sent out the blast email to federal workers on Saturday, “at least some federal agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, began telling their employees not to respond to this OPM surprise request.”

In addition to the FBI, the Justice Department, the Defense Department, the State Department, and national intelligence agencies have instructed their employees not to immediately respond to OPM’s email.

But the Transportation Department has told employees to respond, according to an email obtained by NBC News on Monday.

“Please also ensure that you exclude classified information, links, and attachments,” the email says.

A judge has scheduled a hearing for Thursday afternoon on the unions’ request for a temporary restraining order blocking the mass terminations.

Musk’s threats to terminate workers who fail to comply was condemned by Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, one of the unions suing OPM.

“Once again, Elon Musk and the Trump Administration have shown their utter disdain for federal employees and the critical services they provide to the American people,” Kelley said in a statement.

“It is cruel and disrespectful to hundreds of thousands of veterans who are wearing their second uniform in the civil service to be forced to justify their job duties to this out-of-touch, privileged, unelected billionaire who has never performed one single hour of honest public service in his life,” Kelley said.

Germans head to the polls in crucial election with far-right good points anticipated

The German parliament convenes for its last regular session before the general election.

Michael Kappeler | Picture Alliance | Getty Images

Germans headed to the polls on Sunday to vote in the 2025 federal election, which is all but guaranteed to result in a new chancellor taking over from Olaf Scholz to lead Europe’s largest economy.

The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its affiliate the Christian Social Union (CSU) have been polling in first place in the lead-up to the election, putting their lead candidate Friedrich Merz in line for chancellorship.

The far-right Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD) is expected to come second in line, ahead of Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Greens, which have also been part of the most recent ruling coalition that collapsed late last year.

This marks a shift from the 2021 election, when the SPD came out on top, followed by the CDU/CSU. The AfD clinched fourth place at the time.

Germans will cast two votes at the polls, one to directly elect a member of parliament to represent their constituency and one for a party list. The second vote will determine the proportional make-up of the German Parliament, the Bundestag, with parties sending their candidates to Berlin to ensure representation.

There is also a 5% threshold that parties need to meet to deploy delegates to the Bundestag. Several of the smaller parties, including The Left, the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW), have long been polling around this mark, with The Left picking up slightly in recent days.

Coalition building

Attention will shift to the coalition building process after the vote. It is rare for a German party to obtain an absolute majority, and whichever group secures the largest number of seats in parliament usually still has to find governance partners to secure a ruling majority.

This process can take weeks or even months — parties hold extensive negotiations before then inking a coalition agreement detailing their joint policy positions and plans.

“Latest polls indicate that the Conservatives (CDU/CSU) will receive the highest share of votes, but they will need one or two (unlikely) coalition partners, likely the SPD and/or the Greens,” Deutsche Bank analysts said in a note earlier this week.

All major parties have said that they will not enter a coalition with the far-right AfD. The party’s result will still be watched closely due to its growth in popularity, despite a string of controversies and investigations into its conduct, which have also triggered nationwide protests.

The smaller parties will also be in focus this election — their entry into parliament could influence whether a third coalition partner is needed to form a majority government. They could also be key if the new government wants to make any changes to the constitution, which require the support of a two-thirds majority that the smaller parties could effectively block from happening.

Early elections

The election is taking place several months earlier than originally planned due to the break-up of the so-called traffic light coalition — which was comprised of Scholz’ SPD, the Green party and the FDP — in November. The alliance had been in power since taking over from long-standing chancellor Angela Merkel in 2021.

Months of political wrangling and disagreements within the coalition about economic, fiscal and budget policy ultimately led to the government’s collapse, as Scholz fired former Finance Minister Christian Lindner.

Steps were then taken to trigger a snap election — which has only happened three other times in Germany’s history. Scholz first had to call for a confidence vote in himself in the country’s parliament, before suggesting the the latter’s dissolution to German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

The head of state then disbanded the lower house of parliament, setting the Sunday election date.

Treasury units new deadline for companies to report possession info

People take pictures of the U.S. Treasury Department building in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 6, 2025.

Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images

The Treasury Department has set a new deadline of March 21 for millions of businesses to fulfill a new reporting requirement on “beneficial ownership information,” after a court order allowed the federal agency to start enforcing the measure.

The Corporate Transparency Act, which Congress enacted in 2021, requires small businesses to disclose the identity of people who directly or indirectly own or control the company. The measure aims to prevent criminals from hiding illicit activity conducted through shell companies or opaque ownership structures, according to the Treasury.

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Businesses have suffered a degree of whiplash from the on-again-off-again deadlines to file BOI reports. A string of court orders had prevented the Treasury from enforcing the measure, only to then see courts strike down those rulings.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas on Feb. 18 lifted a nationwide injunction that had prevented the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, known as FinCEN, which is part of the Treasury, from enforcing the Corporate Transparency Act.

Room for more delays?

The BOI reporting measure applies to about 32.6 million businesses, including certain corporations, limited liability companies and others, according to federal estimates.

Businesses and owners that do not comply with reporting rules are potentially subject to civil penalties of up to $591 a day, adjusted for inflation. They could also face up to $10,000 in criminal fines and up to two years in prison.

FinCEN left the possibility of further delays on the table even as it extended its previous reporting deadline by 30 days.

“FinCEN will provide an update before then of any further modification of this deadline, recognizing that reporting companies may need additional time to comply with their BOI reporting obligations once this update is provided,” according to a Feb. 18 FinCEN notice.

FinCEN also said it would prioritize enforcement for businesses that “pose the most significant national security risks.”

Bachelor’s Kelsey A. Particulars Dad’s Romance With Barbara Alyn Woods

Jenn Tran & Devin Strader

Status: Split

 

During the season 21 finale of The Bachelorette, it looked like The Bachelor alum Jenn Tran was finally getting her happy ending with her final pick Devin Strader. But Jenn, 26, revealed on After the Final Rose back in September that Devin, 28, gave her the cold shoulder as soon as the cameras stopped rolling.

 

“He was making bold proclamations of love and then suddenly the next day he was like, nothing and he denied ever being in love,” Jenn told host Jesse Palmer during the Sept. 3 episode. “All the promises he had made to me, all of the love that he had wanted to give to me wasn’t there anymore.”

 

Drama continued to play out when Devin shared a 13-minute video recounting his side of the story to Instagram, where in addition to taking “accountability” he shared insight into why he ended the relationship in a 15-minute phone call.

 

While Jenn alleged he dumped her during the call in August, he claimed that Jenn demanded to know what was wrong as he tried to find a way to break the news in person.

 

“I didn’t really know what else to do,” he explained, noting he had been waiting to tell her in person. “She kind of forced my hand.”

 

Since then, Jenn waltzed over to Dancing With the Stars and possibly into the heart of her partner Sasha Farber as they have continued to spark romance rumors since their Oct. 29 elimination.

Hims & Hers shares fall after FDA says semaglutide not in scarcity

Shares of Hims & Hers Health closed down around 26% on Friday after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that the shortage of semaglutide injection products has been resolved.

Semaglutide is the active ingredient in Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight loss drug Wegovy and diabetes treatment Ozempic. Those medications are part of a class of drugs called GLP-1s, and demand for the treatments has exploded in recent years. As a result, digital health companies such as Hims & Hers have been prescribing compounded semaglutide as an alternative for patients who are navigating volatile supply hurdles and insurance obstacles.

Compounded drugs are custom-made alternatives to brand-name drugs designed to meet a specific patient’s needs, and compounders are allowed to produce them when brand-name treatments are in shortage. The FDA doesn’t review the safety and efficacy of compounded products.

Hims & Hers began offering compounded semaglutide to patients in May, and it owns compounding pharmacies that produce the medications.

Compounded medications are typically much cheaper than their branded counterparts. Hims & Hers sells compounded semaglutide for less than $200 per month, while Ozempic and Wegovy both cost around $1,000 per month without insurance.

The FDA said Friday that it will start taking action against compounders for violations in the next 60 to 90 days, depending on the type of facility, in order to “avoid unnecessary disruption to patient treatment.”

“Now that the FDA has determined the drug shortage for semaglutide has been resolved, we will continue to offer access to personalized treatments as allowed by law to meet patient needs,” Hims & Hers CEO Andrew Dudum posted Friday on X. “We’re also closely monitoring potential future shortages, as Novo Nordisk stated two weeks ago that it would continue to have ‘capacity limitations’ and ‘expected continued periodic supply constraints and related drug shortage notifications.'”

Him & Hers’ weight loss offerings have been a massive hit with investors. Shares of the company climbed more than 200% last year, and the stock is already up more than 100% this year despite Friday’s move.

Even before it added compounded GLP-1s to its portfolio, the company said in its 2023 fourth-quarter earnings call that it expects its weight loss program to bring in more than $100 million in revenue by the end of 2025.

Despite the turbulent regulatory landscape, Hims & Hers has showed no signs of slowing down.

On Friday, the company announced it has acquired a U.S.-based peptide facility that will “further verticalize the company’s long-term ability to deliver personalized medications.” Hims & Hers will explore advances across metabolic optimization, recovery science, biological resistances, cognitive performance and preventative health through the acquisition, the company said.

That move comes just days after Hims & Hers also bought Trybe Labs, the New Jersey-based at-home lab testing facility. Trybe Labs will allow Hims & Hers to perform at-home blood draws and more comprehensive pretreatment testing.

Hims & Hers did not disclose the terms of either deal.

WATCH: Hims & Hers Super Bowl ad sparks controversy

U.S. fund KKR makes £four billion management-buyout bid for Thames Water

Thames Water utility van in the Cty of London on 3rd December 2024 in London, United Kingdom. Thames Water Utilities Ltd is a large private utility company responsible for the water supply and waste water treatment in most of Greater London and surrounding areas in England. (photo by Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images)

Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty Images

Private equity investor KKR & Co. is offering about £4 billion ($5 billion) to take control of the U.K.’s struggling Thames Water utility in a management-led buyout, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Thames, Britain’s largest water utility serving some 16 million customers in London and the Thames River valley, is saddled with ballooning debt and has warned it will run out of cash by March 24. Privatized by the Thatcher government in 1989, Thames last summer began the process of raising additional capital, culminating in an announcement last week that it had received buyout proposals from a “number of parties.” Thames said it was studying each bid.

Thames Water needs to restructure its debt and capital structure as part of a broad turnaround, and would benefit from a single active owner, a source familiar with the matter told CNBC. Thames owed about £16 billion in debt as of last September.

KKR’s involvement would comprise a £4 billion management-buyout submission that would not result in the sale of assets or a breakup of the utility, the source said.

Thames Water and KKR declined comment.

Bloomberg reported earlier Wednesday that KKR was offering to inject nearly £4 billion into Thames Water for a majority stake.

KKR is a longtime investor in the U.K., having funneled more than £20 billion into the country since 1996. The private equity firm launched a platform for infrastructure investments in 2008, seeking investments with a long-term investment horizon.

The U.K.’s high court on Tuesday approved £3 billion in emergency funding for Thames Water from existing shareholders, allowing the utility breathing room to restructure its debts and secure new investors.

Thames Water is part of a group of companies known as the Kemble Water Group that are owned by a consortium of institutional shareholders – mostly pension funds and sovereign wealth funds. The biggest shareholder is the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, one of Canada’s largest pensions.

The crisis-plagued utility has faced criticism for a sharp increase in sewage discharge into Britain’s waterways, including the 215 mile-long Thames, which flows through the nation’s capital.

– CNBC’s Jenni Reid and Sawdah Bhaimiya contributed to this report.

A Dozen Home Republicans Are Opposing Medicaid Cuts

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In an interesting turn of events, the House Republican budget resolution is in trouble because of Medicaid, and not for the reason you might think. The issue is that a dozen House Republicans don’t want to go along with the deep cuts to the program in Speaker Johnson’s budget.

Politico reported:

Speaker Mike Johnson is staring down at least a dozen Republican holdouts on the budget blueprint he wants to put on the House floor in the coming days — and he can only afford to lose one member and still approve the resolution along party lines.

Johnson and his whip team are using the current week-long recess to ramp up engagement with undecided Republicans, including seven members — if not more — who have raised serious concerns about deep cuts to Medicaid in the House GOP budget resolution.

….

The vulnerable incumbents wary of slashing Medicaid services include Reps. David Valadao of California, Nicole Malliotakis of New York, Don Bacon of Nebraska, Rob Bresnahan of Pennsylvania and others from redder districts. They were generally blindsided by the deeper level of proposed cuts, a Republican said, as that possibility never came up in earlier discussions with GOP leaders.

The problem for Republicans is that without steep cuts to Medicaid, they can’t find the money to pay for Trump’s tax cuts for the rich.

House Republicans know that voting for Medicaid cuts in swing districts would equal kissing their seats goodbye in 2026.

This is where the House Democratic refusal to help Republicans with anything that would assist Trump in cutting taxes for the rich comes in handy.

Republicans have to pass their budget resolution on their own because Democrats have refused to help them.

Vulnerable House Republicans aren’t going to give up their seats to appease a lame-duck one-term president.

Mike Johnson’s budget looks dead in the water, which will give Democrats even more power to stop Trump’s agenda and save Medicaid.

What do you think about the idea that it might be House Republicans who save Medicaid? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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