Angels’ Zach Neto reflects on a season in which he wasn’t himself early

• September 26, 2026

SEATTLE — As Angels shortstop Zach Neto looked back on a tumultuous season, he had trouble describing just what was going wrong for so much of it.

“I just wasn’t feeling myself in the box,” he said Friday. “Plain and simple. Strikeouts were the strikeouts. That had a big effect on it. I just didn’t feel comfortable in the box. That’s about as good as I can say it.”

Neto, 25, is finishing a season that, by most measures, was very good. He leads the team with a 4.9 WAR, according to Baseball-Reference. He went into Friday’s game against the Mariners with 26 home runs and 23 stolen bases, giving him a third straight 20/20 season. He has hit .238 with a .757 OPS. His OPS+ is 116, which means he was 16% better than the average major league hitter.

Between those numbers, though, are an Angels record 211 strikeouts. He also went through extended slumps through the middle of the season. His defense was sloppy at times, too.

Neto acknowledged last month that, for at least part of that time, the stress of the trade deadline was wearing on him, although he never explicitly used it as a reason for his struggles.

In August, he had a meeting with interim General Manager John Mozeliak, and that helped him turn his season around.

Neto hit .178 with a .485 OPS in the 22 games leading up to that Aug. 10 meeting, and since then he’s hit .278 with an .844 OPS.

“I was definitely frustrated going home every single night knowing that I didn’t feel like myself,” Neto said. “I feel like I let the team down. I feel like I was a very big part of what (former GM) Perry (Minasian) and (Kurt Suzuki) had going into this year, and I feel like I didn’t show that the first half of the season. It was a reality check right away and having Mo come in and just being able to sit down and talk with Zuk, talk with him and just kind of see what the problems were, how can I get back to myself.”

Neto said it wasn’t simply a matter of changing his attitude. He said he got closer to the plate. In August, he changed the way he held his bat when waiting for the pitch.

“Once I felt comfortable in the box again, I don’t care if I get four hits or no hits, I just want to feel like myself,” Neto said.

Suzuki said Neto can be a better player from the lessons he learned this season.

“I think he learned a lot in the first half,” Suzuki said. “I think he learned about himself. I think he learned how hard this league is. I think as a younger player that has had a fair amount of success his first couple years, understanding you’re going to endure some tough times. I honestly feel, and I told him this, you’re going to be better for it.”

FITNESS CHECK

Suzuki said there will be a “conversation” with Moisés Ballesteros before the winter about his conditioning. Suzuki was quick to point out that he’s already gotten into better shape since the Angels acquired him at the trade deadline.

“You see him play first base, it looks pretty good,” Suzuki said. “You watch him run the bases, it’s not bad. Behind the plate, he’s pretty athletic. But I understand, long term, catching is hard on your body. He can get himself into some good shape. You don’t have to look like a bodybuilder in the game. It’s durability stuff.”

Suzuki said they will encourage Ballesteros to get in better shape, but they don’t want to overdo it “and then all of the sudden you become not yourself.”

Ballesteros, 22, is known mostly for his bat. He would be an everyday catcher in a perfect world, but there is doubt that he could handle the position the majority of the time. Otherwise, he is the DH or first baseman.

UP NEXT

Angels (RHP Ryan Johnson, 5-9, 4.93 ERA) at Mariners (LHP Kade Anderson, 2-2, 4.18 ERA), Saturday, 6:40 p.m., ABTV, 830 AM

​ Orange County Register 

Supreme Court rejects a Trump-backed Missouri congressional map for the third time

• September 25, 2026

By DAVID A. LIEB

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Supreme Court on Friday turned away an attempt to use a new Missouri congressional map backed by President Donald Trump, putting an end to a long-running legal dispute as absentee voting is underway in the midterm elections.

The justices halted a federal appeals court ruling that would have revived the Republican-friendly map for the November elections, which will determine control of Congress. There were no noted dissents.

The Supreme Court instead let stand a decision by the Missouri Supreme Court, which ruled earlier this month that a citizen petition prevents the new map from being used unless first approved by voters in a November referendum. The decision means Missouri residents will vote under the same congressional districts used in the 2024 and 2022 elections.

“At this late date, ordering reversion to the 2025 map in the midst of an ongoing election would usher in electoral chaos,” the high court wrote in an unsigned opinion. “The District Court and Court of Appeals should not enjoin or otherwise prohibit the use of the 2022 map in the 2026 congressional election in Missouri.”

Republicans had hoped the new House map — which already was used in the August primaries — could help them win an additional seat as part of a nationwide redistricting battle pushed by Trump to gain an edge in the midterms.

The new map had targeted a district held by longtime Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver.

“I think my reelection prospects shot up significantly,” a jubilant Cleaver said after the Supreme Court ruling.

A panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had ruled Monday that switching districts between the primary and general elections would violate the U.S. Constitution. The panel directed a district judge to bar Missouri from using anything other than the new map but delayed the order’s effect until next Monday to allow time for an appeal to the Supreme Court.

The legal wrangling has caused confusion for more than a million potential Missouri voters — nearly 1 in 4 statewide — who were shifted from one district to another, resulting in different candidates on their ballots. Absentee voting began Tuesday under the 2022 congressional districts. Thousands of ballots already had been mailed, and some already have been cast.

A decision from the Supreme Court is “a big sigh of relief,” said Kansas City election director Shawn Kieffer. He added, “We just want it over, so we can do our job properly.”

Republican redistricting focused on Kansas City

Republicans currently hold six of Missouri’s eight House districts. At the urging of Trump and Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe, Missouri lawmakers last September passed revised districts that were intended to help them win seven seats in the midterms.

The redistricting significantly reshaped a Kansas City-based district held by Cleaver. It shed parts of Kansas City to neighboring districts with Republican incumbents and stretched the remainder of Cleaver’s 5th Congressional District far eastward into rural Republican areas.

The result was about 59% of potential voters were new to the district, according to an Associated Press estimate. The ripple effects also shifted some voters in most of Missouri’s other congressional districts.

Cleaver was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Republican state Sen. Rick Brattin won a six-way Republican primary under the revised districts. They remain the candidates for the general election, even though the district boundaries have reverted to their prior lines.

Cleaver said the court ruling affirms the people’s right to use to referendum petitions against state legislative actions they don’t like.

“We just received a healthy dose of encouragement that the voice of people in the United States still matters,” he said.

Brattin was a plaintiff, along with Republican Rep. Bob Onder and two other voters, in a federal lawsuit that led to the 8th Circuit’s ruling and the last two appeals to the Supreme Court. He had no immediate comment.

Missouri’s redistricting prompted a big legal fight

At least 16 lawsuits have been filed in state and federal courts related to Missouri’s congressional redistricting. The battle has been the longest and most complex among roughly a dozen states that sought to change their U.S. House districts over the past year.

Missouri’s new map survived most of the lawsuits, including ones contending that mid-decade redistricting violated the state constitution and that the new districts ran afoul of requirements to be compact. In one case, the Missouri Supreme Court allowed the new districts to be used while election officials worked to verify petition signatures seeking to put the map to a statewide vote.

Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins waited until the legal deadline on Aug. 4 — the day the new districts were used in the primaries — to reject the petition. He asserted referendum petitions aren’t allowed for congressional redistricting.

The Missouri Supreme Court ruled Sept. 3 that the referendum petition was valid. It ordered Hoskins not to use the new map and to instead use the districts adopted in 2022, after the last census. The U.S. Supreme Court let that ruling stand on Sept. 8. But minutes later, U.S. District Judge Stephen Clark issued a conflicting order in favor of the new map.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Sept. 10 blocked Clark’s order from taking effect. That day, the Missouri Supreme Court held Hoskins temporarily in contempt for telling local election authorities to use the new map after Clark’s order.

But that wasn’t the end of the matter. The 8th Circuit, hearing an appeal of Clark’s blocked order, ruled in favor of the Trump-backed map Monday. That’s what led to the latest decision from the U.S. Supreme Court.

Richard von Glahn, executive director of People Not Politicians Missouri, said the group was pressing forward with its campaign to persuade voters to permanently reject the new map in the November referendum.

“We have said from the beginning, people, not politicians will be the final deciders on this DC power grab,” he said in a statement.

Associated Press writer Lindsay Whitehurst in Washington contributed to this report.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court at https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court and redistricting at https://apnews.com/hub/redistricting.

​ Orange County Register 

UN tries to build momentum on pandemic preparedness, but hits a speed bump

• September 25, 2026

By JENNIFER PELTZ

NEW YORK (AP) — Six years after COVID-19 forced the U.N. General Assembly ‘s annual meeting of world leaders to go virtual for the first time ever, pandemics no longer dominate the conversation at the global gathering. Wars, natural disasters, geopolitical polarization and this year’s hot-button worry — artificial intelligence — have seized attention.

But the General Assembly’s leader and health officials sought Friday to make sure that the lurking possibility of another worldwide disease emergency stays on the agenda.

COVID—19 sometimes “feels like a fever dream” of lockdowns, overwhelmed hospitals, shuttered schools, economic disruption, personal tragedies and Zoom calls, General Assembly President Khalilur Rahman said as he opened a day-long meeting on pandemic preparedness, prevention and response. He recalled his own sleepless nights when his daughter, a physician, treated coronavirus patients during the crisis.

“Sometimes it is easier to pretend that it never happened,” Rahman said, but “we cannot erase COVID-19 from our memories. Quite the opposite. We have to take a hard look at that period, at where we succeeded and where we failed.”

It’s all the more important at a time when history’s fastest-growing Ebola outbreak is spreading in Congo, he noted.

Since the depths of the coronavirus pandemic, various new international funds, collaboratives, scientific programs and agreements have arisen to tackle pandemic threats better. But the international community is navigating divides about the issue — and they were clear Friday, when countries couldn’t reach consensus on a declaration that was intended to cap the special pandemic meeting.

Rahman said General Assembly members would consider the document in future.

The draft declaration, obtained by The Associated Press, reiterates an intent to scale up preparedness and improve coordination within countries and among them.

The document calls for enhancing financing, boosting lab capacity and promoting increased medication and vaccine access. Other provisions of the wide-ranging draft endorse trying to counter vaccine hesitancy and health-related misinformation, making all policies gender-equal and ensuring universal access to family planning and sexual health services by 2030.

Proponents said the proposed document would improve much-needed collaboration, risk monitoring and preparedness for a threat that doesn’t stop at any one country’s borders.

“That declaration can help the world move forward,” said former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, co-chair of Independent Panel on Pandemic Preparedness and Response, a group created after COVID-19 emerged. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a news conference that the document “includes important commitments to concrete, measurable and urgent action to address gaps.”

Countries from South Korea to Cape Verde to Guatemala expressed support for the declaration, facilitated by Armenia and Rwanda.

It’s “an expression of solidarity and international cooperation,” said Burundian Foreign Minister Edouard Bizimana, speaking on behalf of a group of African nations. A Caribbean countries’ association also backed the document.

But it fell flat with some other nations.

In statements during Friday’s multi-part meeting, the European Union said that the document didn’t do enough to foster financing accountability and efficiency, among other complaints. Germany called for a stronger focus on prevention.

The U.S. objected to mentions of “divisive ideologies” and of a prospective separate arrangement for countries to share virus samples and in turn get tests, medicines and vaccines.

That potential deal is under negotiations as a follow-on to a pandemic agreement that WHO member countries approved last year. The United States has withdrawn from the World Health Organization and wasn’t part of finalizing the pandemic treaty.

​ Orange County Register 

Alexander: Another championship, sort of, for Los Angeles

• September 25, 2026

The world according to Jim:

• All hail the Los Angeles Queens, the city’s latest champion after winning Game 5 of the inaugural Women’s Professional Baseball League championship series Tuesday.

Let’s say they earned a place in L.A. sports lore if for no other reason than beating San Francisco in the best-of-five championship series, albeit after letting a 2-0 series lead get away, and two days after getting shelled by the Firebells 17-4. Legends have been formed around here for far less.

And yes, the Queens have their own Japanese stars. Pitcher Ayami Soto hurled a seven-inning, 71-pitch shutout, the first complete-game shutout in the league’s brief history, to win Game 5. She was named the series MVP, just as countryman Yoshinobu Yamamoto was the MVP of the World Series – do we need to call it the men’s World Series? – last fall.

Also, pitcher-infielder Ayuri Shimano hit .300 with an .814 OPS in the 15-game regular season (and was 1-1 with a 5.65 ERA as a pitcher), and hit .423 with a 1.251 OPS in eight postseason games. …

• Of course, there is a catch. The fledgling women’s league and its four teams – representing New York and Boston as well as L.A. and San Francisco – played their entire eight-week schedule in Springfield, Ill. So while the Queens – who knocked off New York in the semifinal round – may have been of L.A., they never actually set foot in L.A. as a team. …

• But there are a couple of L.A. ties. Manager Eric Young Sr. had two different stints with the Dodgers in his 15-year career. Mo’ne Davis, heroine of the 2014 Little League World Series and the Queens player with the most name recognition going in, was a Dodgers’ video production intern in 2013 and has said her goal is to work in a big-league front office. Additionally, catcher Jamie Mackay hails from Laguna Beach, though she played college softball at South Carolina. …

• So where should they fly the championship pennant? City Hall? Dodger Stadium, maybe? And where would a parade take place? …

• Seriously, this first season of the WPBL was an experiment of sorts, and it was understandable for the organizers to launch with a short schedule in one city. But the league did draw significant interest, especially from those who care about women’s sports. As it grows, hopefully it will tweak the format enough so that the team that represents a city actually gets to play in that city . …

• Oh, and does this mean L.A. is ruining women’s baseball, too? …

• Elsewhere, the Sparks sent out a news release Friday saying that they had “parted ways” with coach Lynne Roberts. I suspect that was a euphemism for “fired,” so why not be honest?…

• There are two ways Saturday’s USC-Oregon game at the Coliseum could go. Either the Trojans wrest control of the West Coast from the Ducks, or Oregon reasserts its dominance over the Trojans – which could well be the beginning of the end of Lincoln Riley’s tenure.

See, when those billboards around the region went up saying “The time is now,” they weren’t referring to a 4-0 start against weaker competition and continuing doubts about the Trojans’ defense. Saturday is when USC proves it or not. …

• Of all of the tributes to longtime Lakers public address announcer Lawrence Tanter, whose classy, measured baritone announcements were so different from those of the screamers in so many other arenas, this might have been the best description of why he was the best. It came from the man himself, as posted by The Athletic’s Law Murray following Tanter’s death Wednesday:

“I think I’m different than a lot of guys in other cities because I’m not a screamer. My feeling was, years ago, that people paid money to come and see the Lakers, not to hear some clown on the PA. I use enthusiasm when the appropriate time comes, but I’m not a cheerleader and I don’t want to be.”

Isn’t that the way it should be? Rest in peace, LT. …

• This may be the best thing about sports at this moment in our existence: Artificial intelligence has no place on the field, court or ice. Human beings still maintain control between the lines. …

• Sports Illustrated published its list of the 25 greatest college football teams of all time a month ago, and USC appeared twice: The 1972 team that went 12-0 and the “leave no doubt” 2004 team, which finished 13-0 but later had its hand smacked over NCAA violations. …

• The 2005 Texas team (13-0, including a memorable Rose Bowl victory over USC) was listed 14th. And forever more, Trojans fans will wonder if the outcome in Pasadena would have been different if they’d at least had Reggie Bush on the field on fourth-and-2 with 2:09 to play. Instead, everyone in the Rose Bowl knew LenDale White was getting the ball, he got stuffed, and Vince Young then drove Texas the length of the field to win it.

Even with the result, Trojan fans would consider those the good old days. …

• A couple of weeks ago, in our commentary about the Protect College Sports Act, we again suggested a football Super League with promotion and relegation, and to go with that a re-regionalization of other sports that would get the eight teams that once made up four-fifth of the Pac-10 back together. Maybe even all 10, if Washington State and Oregon State were willing to take that chance.

We solicited possible names for a new western power conference, and the readers responded, as they always do. …

• John Fay decided that since we already have a Big Ten and a Big 12 –  and both are mathematically challenged, with 18 and 16 teams respectively, “why not a PAC 12 (fictional number) and a PAC 6 (honest number and, BTW, honest geography)?”

Joe Blair suggested “Far West Conference.” That was a Division II conference that was formed in 1925 but changed its name to Northern California Athletic Conference in 1982, so it’s available. Bob Cunningham suggested the Pacific Conference: “Geographically accurate and implies stability and strength.”

And Tom Starr came up with these possibilities: West Coast Conference (that one’s taken), West Coast Regional Conference, West Coast Super Powers, Best In The West and West Coast Power Conference.

“Doesn’t matter what it’s called,” he wrote. “We just need the old Pac-12 colleges to recreate themselves. You think the same way most of us west coast fans do.”

jalexander@scng.com

​ Orange County Register 

Galaxy look to solidify postseason aspirations

• September 25, 2026

The Galaxy say it’s not time for scoreboard watching just yet.

However, with just seven games remaining, while others have eight and the Seattle Sounders have nine, it might be getting close to it.

The Galaxy enter the week above the MLS Western Conference playoff line with 33 points. The crowd below them is rapidly approaching. There are only three points separating ninth and 14th place in the West. The Galaxy also have Saturday’s opponent, the Colorado Rapids (11-12-3, 36 points), within their sights.

“I think for us, it’s again, one game at a time,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney said. “We need to set ourselves up to win the game. These games are 90 minutes, they’re not 10 minutes. We need to be confident in what we’re doing and how we’re doing, that over the course of 90 minutes we can win.

“That’s one of the things I think was really important about Minnesota. We got ahead, we ended up behind, but we played consistently through the game.”

Trailing 2-1, Vanney subbed in Marco Reus and Joao Klauss and the Galaxy ended up winning 3-2. The victory moved the Galaxy (8-10-9, 33 points) into eighth place.

“We can’t look at the standings too much because there’s a lot of mixture of how many games every team’s played. We all play each other, so the table is going to take shape, but it’s not going to take shape until a month down the road,” Vanney said. “We have to do our own business and we got to take care of, especially the home games, we need to really take care of … the away games are opportunities, but if we can get the three points in the home games, we’re going to be in a really good position.”

Four of the Galaxy’s final seven games, including Saturday, are at home. All except two – at St. Louis CITY SC on Oct. 11 and at LAFC on Oct. 25 – are against opponents currently in the playoff crunch between eighth and 14th place.

“Colorado is a very important game for us,” Galaxy midfielder Pablo Ruiz said. “I think the confidence is great (after the win in Minnesota). A win will put us in a better position for the playoffs.”

International duty

Hirving “Chucky” Lozano will miss Saturday’s game due to his call-up to the Mexican national team. Mexico kicks off its international window trio of games Saturday against Colombia in Baltimore,.

Harbor Miller will be available Saturday, but will depart after the game to join the U.S. U-20s in Spain for a camp, starting Sunday. Academy product Enrique Martinez will join Miller.

Also headed to Spain is academy product Eric Preston, who will join the U.S. U-19s, and Vinny Garcia and Aaron Medina, who will join the U.S. U-17s.

The Galaxy will host Cruz Azul on Oct. 4 and then return to MLS play after the international break with their game in St. Louis.

COLORADO (11-12-3, 36 points) at GALAXY (8-10-9, 33 points)

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: Dignity Health Sports Park

How to watch: Apple TV

​ Orange County Register 

Chargers’ Oronde Gadsden to play enhanced role because of injuries

• September 25, 2026

EL SEGUNDO — David Njoku is out, sidelined by a knee injury that prompted the Chargers to place him on injured reserve Tuesday, forcing him to sit out for the next four games. Charlie Kolar is out, too, avoiding IR when surgery on Monday revealed his forearm injury was less serious than originally feared.

Njoku and Kolar were hurt during the Chargers’ 26-14 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday at SoFi Stadium, leaving the tight end position more than a little thin for their game Sunday against the Buffalo Bills. The Chargers will turn to Oronde Gadsden to fill the void at a key position.

General Manager Joe Hortiz and Coach Jim Harbaugh needed better blocking and more production from the Chargers’ tight ends after middling blocking and production during their two seasons together. So, Hortiz signed Njoku and Kolar during the offseason to team with Gadsden.

The rotation was working well until the newcomers were injured Sunday. Njoku had a team co-leading five catches in the season-opening loss to the Arizona Cardinals, and Kolar had three catches in the Chargers’ Week 2 loss to the Raiders. Gadsden was a fine third option.

“I’m excited for ‘OG,’ his opportunities, finding different grooves in the offense to get a playmaker the ball and have him be impactful in the run game,” Chargers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel said, referring to Gadsden by his initials. “Certainly, with injuries in his position room, that always gives you more opportunities. As far as the way we’re going to play, I’m not going to contribute to the Bills’ defensive game plan, so we’ll play with 10 (players).”

McDaniel was joking about playing one brick shy of the usual 11-man load.

In fact, the Chargers will be without their two best blocking tight ends in Njoku and Kolar. Gadsden, the Chargers’ fifth-round draft pick out of Syracuse in 2025, has proved to be a better receiver and playmaker than a blocker in his 17 games over two NFL seasons

Gadsden has four catches for 50 yards and one touchdown in two games so far. His touchdown catch on Sunday was one of two TD passes quarterback Justin Herbert has tossed this season, a well-executed play that gave the Chargers an all-too-brief 14-10 lead over the Raiders.

Catching passes is only part of the equation, though. The Chargers want and need Gadsden to be a better blocker in order to round out his game, adding an equally important element Sunday and beyond in the absence of the more experienced and accomplished players in Njoku and Kolar.

“I mean, it’s time on task and technique,” Harbaugh said when asked how Gadsden, a former wide receiver in college who moved into the tight end position for his junior and senior seasons, might improve as a blocker. “Football is a technique game. Fundamentals. Techniques.”

INJURY REPORT

The Chargers’ final injury report for Sunday’s game was lengthy and diverse, starting with six players who were ruled out and two others who were listed as questionable to play. For starters, Trevor Penning will replace left guard Kayode Awosika, who has a leg injury.

In addition to Kolar and Awosika, safety Elijah Molden (hamstring), offensive lineman Trey Pipkins III (knee), wide receiver Brenen Thompson (quadriceps) and defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson (hamstring) are out. Backup quarterback Trey Lance (groin) and cornerback Rodney Shelley (hamstring) are questionable.

Molden and linebacker Denzel Perryman, who was placed on injured reserve to start the season because of an undisclosed injury, performed a series of sprints on the sideline while their teammates practiced before leaving for Buffalo. They each wore weighted vests to make the workout more difficult.

McCONKEY UPDATE

Wide receiver Ladd McConkey, Herbert’s co-favorite target in the season opener, said he was sound and would play his customary number of snaps against the Bills after he was limited last week against the Raiders. He suffered an injured rib and sat out the fourth quarter against the Cardinals.

​ Orange County Register 

A White House press ban was lifted this week. But the tensions and legal battle aren’t over yet

• September 25, 2026

By REBECCA BOONE

Journalists from three news outlets that President Donald Trump banned from White House grounds are back at the executive complex with TV cameras, laptops and microphones in hand.

But the legal battle between Trump and some of the media that cover him is far from over.

Here are some things to know about the White House press corps, lawsuits over press access and the increasingly contentious relationship between the president and the Fourth Estate.

Trump said unfavorable press coverage prompted the ban

Last week, Trump said he was banning CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House over what he called unfavorable coverage and “fake news.” Some journalists with those organizations had their White House press passes revoked, prohibiting them from White House grounds.

The affected news organizations sued, and several other news outlets and press associations filed legal briefs and released statements supporting them.

The president’s attorneys later argued in court that the outlets’ coverage threatened national security, but they didn’t detail how the coverage put the nation at risk. Court filings cited letters the administration sent each outlet outlining stories it found problematic and dangerous, but the judge found that the standard they described was too vague to justify the ban.

Attorneys for the news organizations called the ban a blatant First Amendment violation and a clear case of ‘viewpoint discrimination’ — government action that penalizes speech because of the viewpoint expressed.

The news organizations scored a temporary win, but the case is not over

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly issued a temporary restraining order early Thursday, ordering the White House to reinstate the banned journalists’ press credentials. That order lasts 14 days.

There will likely be another round of court filings and legal arguments over the next several days before the judge decides whether to issue a longer-lasting ruling called a preliminary injunction.

Preliminary injunctions are also temporary, often designed to last until a lawsuit is resolved one way or another.

Two constitutional rights are at play

Kelly’s temporary order focused less on whether the news outlets enjoy a First Amendment free press right to White House access and more on whether their Fifth Amendment due process rights may have been violated.

Existing case law is clear, Kelly wrote. Members of the press corps are entitled to fair notice from the government about why their credentials may be revoked, as well as an opportunity to state their case to the government on why their credentials should be preserved.

Kelly wrote that he issued the temporary restraining order because it’s likely the news outlets will be able to demonstrate they weren’t given proper notice or a chance to respond.

The press pool serves as the public’s eye on the president

The work of the president occurs around the clock and often in spaces too small to accommodate every journalist who covers the executive branch. The White House Correspondents’ Association — a group of journalists who cover the president — created the press pool decades ago to ensure that a rotating roster of journalists traveled with the president wherever he goes.

The pool typically follows the president almost everywhere, including aboard Air Force One, at state dinners, in the Oval Office and on the golf course. The pool traditionally represents print and wire reporters, photographers and radio and television journalists.

The effort is designed to hold the nation’s chief executive accountable on behalf of the American public, providing information on the president’s activities and the work of the executive branch. The pool is always near the president so journalists can document unexpected developments.

The pool distributes in-person reports and imagery to the broader press corps. They also share their notes, video and audio with other news outlets, congressional offices and interested parties.

The White House video pool consists of five major U.S. television broadcasters that take turns shooting and sharing video. When the White House banned CNN — which belongs to the pool — the other four pool members declined to participate in a show of solidarity. For days, the pool provided no live video of the president. By Friday, the video pool was back in operation.

Trump’s relationship with the pool has grown increasingly tumultuous

For decades, the White House Correspondents’ Association selected the members of the pool, but that changed Feb. 25, 2025, when the White House announced its officials would pick the pool members — effectively giving the executive control over coverage of the American presidency.

The White House almost always selects journalists who are outwardly favorable to Trump as part of the mix.

To show his displeasure with a news organization’s coverage, Trump has hurled personal insults at journalists or tried to exclude outlets entirely. In some cases, the news organizations sue in response.

During Trump’s first term, the White House suspended the credentials of Jim Acosta, who was a CNN correspondent at the time. The same judge handling the lawsuit from CNN, MS NOW and Politico also decided Acosta’s case, ordering the White House to restore his credentials.

Last year, Trump barred Associated Press journalists from some events and kicked the news agency out of the press pool after it refused to accede to the president’s demands to change its style from “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America.”

AP sued, and that case is ongoing, though a preliminary ruling from a federal appeals court said Trump could ban the wire service from some highly restricted areas such as the Oval Office or Air Force One.

Boone reported from Boise, Idaho. Associated Press journalists Jocelyn Noveck in New York and Laurie Kellman in London contributed.

​ Orange County Register 

At Santa Anita, trainer Aggie Ordonez seeks ‘new heights’

• September 25, 2026

ARCADIA — Of all the horse trainers and owners who go into this weekend at Santa Anita dreaming of earning spots in the Breeders’ Cup races next month in Kentucky, the one who may be pinching herself is Aggie Ordonez.

Ordonez, 58, has a chance to make the best season of her training career even better when she saddles Vodka Vodka, a 20-1 longshot on the morning line for Saturday’s 1 1/8-mile Goodwood Stakes for older males, and Om N Joy, the 2-1 favorite in Sunday’s 1 1/16-mile Zenyatta Stakes for fillies and mares.

A win in either the $300,000, Grade I Goodwood or the $200,000, Grade II Zenyatta would put Ordonez’s 2026 purses over $1 million in her third consecutive year of rising earnings. A trip to the Breeders’ Cup on Oct. 30-31 at Keeneland would be her first.

“I feel like I’m reaching new heights every year, every week, every day,” Ordonez said one morning this week at Clockers’ Corner, as her labradoodle, Daisy Doodle, strained at her leash. “It’s been an incredible journey. I’m loving every second of it. Don’t wake me up.”

Ordonez hasn’t booked flights to Lexington just yet.

“We’re taking it day by day,” she said. “If they both win, and they both earn a berth in the Breeders’ Cup, and they both come out of the race(s) great, of course that would be the dream. But they lead the way.”

Ordonez, daughter of the late jockey and trainer Pete Anderson, took a political-science degree from Tulane and got a job in racetrack publicity in Florida. Galloping horses on the side led to an assistant trainer role in the San Francisco Bay Area with Brett Sumja, and Ordonez took over his barn when Sumja retired in 2004. Ordonez shifted to the Southern California tracks in 2022.

That’s about when she began teaming up with Jerry and Connie Baker of Glendora, who bred and co-own Vodka Vodka and Om N Joy. The two California-bred horses are half-siblings, 5-year-old Vodka Vodka by Stay Thirsty out of Margie’s Minute, 4-year-old Om N Joy by Om out of the same mare. Ordonez has part-ownership in Vodka Vodka.

Om N Joy blossomed in 2025, and scored her signature win with jockey Kent Desormeaux at 8-1 in the Grade II Santa Margarita Stakes at Santa Anita in May. Sent up against males in the Pacific Classic at Del Mar, she ran a respectable fourth.

The Zenyatta puts Om N Joy up against Bob Baffert’s unbeaten Rabeeba, but Ordonez couldn’t sound more confident.

“Om N Joy’s the queen,” Ordonez said. “I don’t know how she knows it, but she knows there’s a race in the next week, because she’s just a holy terror to gallop. She wants to pass everybody on the racetrack. She’s on top of her game.”

Vodka Vodka’s biggest win came with Desormeaux in the ungraded Sunland Park Stakes in New Mexico in April. The gelding lost a shoe at the start and came back with a bruised foot, which abscessed. He was off until August, then stumbled at the start and finished seventh in the Pat O’Brien Stakes at Del Mar.

“He has a little bit to prove, and I’m very confident he can turn that upside down and get back to the winner’s circle,” Ordonez said as Vodka Vodka goes into the Goodwood against 2025 winner Nevada Beach and seven others.

The Goodwood, whose winner can claim free entry in the $7 million Breeders’ Cup Classic, and the Zenyatta, a qualifier for the $2 million Breeders’ Cup Distaff, are among 13 graded stakes on the first two weekends of Santa Anita’s six-week autumn meet.

The meet opened Friday with Joel Rosario and Juan Hernandez looking ready to pick up where they left off at Del Mar.

Rosario led Hernandez in wins, 42-37, at the top of the Del Mar summer-meet jockey standings while Hernandez was better in win percentage (23%-19%) and purses ($3.2 million to $2.9 million). On Friday, Hernandez was named to ride three morning-line favorites, Rosario two, on the eight-race card.

Santa Anita’s first post is 1 p.m. every Friday, Saturday and Sunday through Nov. 1, plus the holiday Monday, Oct. 12.

​ Orange County Register