Politics

Kevin Spacey está de vuelta para su payasada anual de Navidad Frank Underwood, solo que esta vez tiene grandes noticias, burlándose de una carrera presidencial y rompiendo con Tucker Carlson.

El actor apareció en la última entrevista por X de Tucker que acaba de caer el domingo y sí, está completamente en personaje como su ex personaje de "House of Cards" para el video de siete minutos. Mientras que él nunca dice abiertamente que se postula para, ciertamente sugiere que podría hacerlo.

Spacey (como Underwood), dice que no está por encima de entrar en la carrera en esta última hora, explicando que él cree que el país necesita a alguien como él durante este tiempo oscuro.

Tucker le pregunta directamente si se presenta, pero KS no llega a comprometerse.

Como de costumbre, todo es muy extraño, pero es coherente, por lo que suponemos que recibe algunos elogios. Spacey ha estado haciendo todo este asunto de Frank Underwood desde hace unos años, desde que fue efectivamente cancelado durante el movimiento #MeToo, y cada año es raro como el infierno.

Recordemos que el papel de Spacey fue nixed de la temporada final de "HOC" en medio de su escándalo, y ha estado tratando de hacer un regreso desde entonces... aunque con no mucho éxito.

Kevin Spacey is back for his annual Christmas-time Frank Underwood shtick, only this time he has big news ... teasing a presidential run, and breaking it to Tucker Carlson.

The actor showed up in TC's latest X interview, which just dropped Sunday -- and yes, he's completely in character as his former "House of Cards" anti-hero for the 7-minute video. While he never outright says he's running for POTUS, he certainly suggests he just might.

Watch ... Spacey (as Underwood) says he's not above stepping into the race at this late hour, explaining that he believes the country needs someone like him during this dark time.

Tucker asks him directly if he's running, but KS stops short of outright committing to it.

Per usual, it's very bizarre ... but it is consistent, which we suppose he gets some kudos for. Spacey's been doing this whole Frank Underwood thing for a few years now -- ever since he was effectively canceled during the #MeToo movement -- and each year, it's weird as hell.

Remember, Spacey's role was nixed from the final season of 'HOC' amid his scandal ... and he's been trying to mount a comeback ever since, with not very much mainstream success.

1:20 PM PT -- The Chicks just addressed Laura's death, writing ... "We are shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of Laura Lynch, a founding member of The Chicks. We hold a special place in our hearts for the time we spent playing music, laughing and traveling together. Laura was a bright light…her infectious energy and humor gave a spark to the early days of our band. Laura had a gift for design, a love of all things Texas and was instrumental in the early success of the band. Her undeniable talents helped propel us beyond busking on street corners to stages all across Texas and the mid-West."

They add, "Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones at this sad time."

11:42 AM PT -- The Texas Dept. of Public Safety has confirmed Lynch's death, and the details thus far about how she died are absolutely tragic. Law enforcement says their preliminary investigation shows that Laura was heading east on Highway 62, and that another car heading west attempted to pass another vehicle in front of it on a two-way undivided portion of the highway.

As that car tried going around, it ended up hitting Laura's vehicle head-on... and killed her. The driver of the other vehicle was transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Laura was declared dead at the scene ... and a full probe has been launched.

Laura Lynch, a founding member of The Dixie Chicks, has died after being involved in a car crash ... TMZ has learned.

The musician's cousin, Mick Lynch, tells us Laura passed away Friday outside of El Paso, TX just after sunset while driving from there to nearby Dell City -- which is about an hour and a half away going east. We're told she was traveling on a highway and got into a collision.

No other details about the exact circumstances of the accident were immediately available.

Lynch co-founded the famous music group -- now known just as The Chicks -- alongside Robin Lynn Macy, Martie Erwin and Emily Erwin back in 1989 ... serving as the upright bassist and eventually taking on the role of lead vocalist for the band.

At first, they had a bluegrass/traditional country sound ... and toward the beginning of their career, they were mostly a local Texas act that toured the area and surrounding states.

Eventually, they released their first album, "Thank Heavens for Dale Evans," in 1990 ... which didn't produce any charting singles. Ditto for their 2nd album, "Little Ol' Cowgirl," from 1992 -- although that one featured a song that got covered and got some play, "Past the Point of Rescue." It was during this period that another OG member, Robin Lynn Macy, exited.

Come '93, it was just 3 Dixie Chicks and they released yet another album, "Shouldn't a Told You That," which didn't receive much commercial success either. This was the last album Lynch contributed to before leaving the band in '95 ... when Natalie Maines replaced her.

There are different reasons cited for why Lynch left ... but it appears she was heading in a different direction big picture -- wanting to focus on family and personal matters. At any rate, in interviews since -- LL expressed no regrets about her decision, and went on to live a relatively private life. Of course, in the following years ... the Dixie Chicks caught fire.

With Maines, the sound of the band changed to become a bit more modern ... and Maines took up lead vocal duties -- with sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer staying on too. They broke through into the mainstream in '98 with "Wide Open Spaces," and took off.

Of course, the Dixie Chicks were at the center of a lot of controversy heading into the 2000s -- including their remarks on George W. Bush and the Iraq War -- and eventually ... they changed their band name too due to the racist southern undertones affiliated with the OG.

As for Laura, she married Mac Tull and had a daughter, both of whom she's survived by. She was 65.

RIP

A North Dakota politician put his foot square in his mouth after he went on a xenophobic and homophobic rant while he was being arrested – and filmed! – for driving drunk.

Republican lawmaker Nico Rios was cruising around the district he represents in Williston the night of December 15, when police on patrol saw his car swerving and pulled him over.

The officers walked up to Rios behind the wheel and turned on their bodyworn cameras, leading to the shocking 21-minute encounter that has now gone viral.

Check out the footage ... the cops ask a series of questions to Rios who is slurring his words and getting caught in lies, falsely claiming at one point that he doesn't have an open beer bottle in his car.

Rios also gives an expired registration to the officers, who order him out of his vehicle for a field sobriety exam.

During the test, Rios becomes agitated and starts hurling threats at the officers, accusing them of "f—king picking on me" and promising they will regret it because of who he is.

Rios then rejects a request to take a breathalyzer from one of the officers, who promptly arrests him, placing him in handcuffs.

On the ride to the police station, Rios starts antagonizing the British-born officer, poking fun at his accent and claiming his country is being overrun by "f---king migrants and refugees."

In the stationhouse, Rios makes a homophobic remark to the officer, who informs his supervisor about the litany of derogatory comments from the lawmaker.

1:58 PM PT -- John nos dice que no pretendía hacer daño con su tuit, diciendo: "¿En serio, amigos? No dije tal cosa. A pesar de los titulares que afirman lo contrario, absolutamente no llamé a un acto de violencia ni amenacé a un presidente de Estados Unidos".

La estrella de "The Dukes of Hazzard" John Schneider probablemente tendrá una visita del Servicio Secreto en un futuro próximo, ya que acaba de hacer una amenaza de muerte en las redes sociales contra el presidente Biden.

El actor, conocido por interpretar a Bo Duke en la icónica serie de televisión, publicó el tuit el miércoles, afirmando que tanto Biden como su hijo, Hunter Biden, "deberían ser colgados públicamente". El post completo de John decía: "Señor Presidente, creo que usted es culpable de traición y debería ser colgado públicamente. Su hijo también. ¿Su respuesta es...? Atentamente, John Schneider".

La amenaza de John ha sido borrada desde entonces y fue una respuesta directa al post de Biden sobre Donald Trump, en el que criticaba al ex mandatario acusado.

A juzgar por su tuit, John piensa que Biden es culpable de traición también.

Curiosamente, el miércoles, el mismo día que hizo la amenaza, fue un día bastante agitado para John. También fue revelado como la celebridad secreta que se escondía detrás del disfraz de donut en el programa de competencia de FOX, "The Masked Singer".

La cuenta de John también tiene otras menciones donde se refiere a Biden y la traición y tiene otro post reciente en el que apunta al Dr. Anthony Fauci como "Traicionero".

Por lo tanto, parece que hay un tema aquí, pero se ha intensificado con las amenazas de muerte.

3:02 PM PT -- He has since expanded his statement, now saying, "Seriously, folks? This is my final comment on this. I neither said nor implied any such thing. Despite headlines claiming otherwise, in my post, I absolutely did not call for an act of violence or threaten a U.S. president as many other celebrities have done in the past. I suggest you re-read my actual post and pay attention to the words before believing this nonsense."

He continues, "It’s my position, which I am entitled to have, that some of our nations leaders in Washington have lost their way, and corruption runs rampant, both on our nation’s borders and abroad. Transparency and accountability must happen in order for our constitutional republic to survive. There is no threat implied or otherwise in that statement."

1:58 PM PT -- John tells us he meant no harm in the tweet, saying, "Seriously, folks? I said no such thing. Despite headlines claiming otherwise, I absolutely did not call for an act of violence or threaten a U.S. president."

"The Dukes of Hazzard" star John Schneider will likely have a visit from the Secret Service in the near future ... because he made a social media death threat against President Biden.

The actor, famous for playing Bo Duke on the iconic TV show, posted on Twitter Wednesday, stating both Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, "should be publicly hung." John's full tweet read, "Mr. President, I believe you are guilty of treason and should be publicly hung. Your son too. Your response is..? Sincerely, John Schneider."

John's threat has since been deleted ... and was a direct reply to Biden's post about Donald Trump, where POTUS took shots at the indicted former president.

Judging by his tweet, John thinks Biden is guilty of treason too.

Funny enough, Wednesday, the same day he sent the threat, was a pretty eventful day for John ... because he was also revealed as the secret celebrity hiding behind the donut costume on FOX's singing competition show, "The Masked Singer."

John's account also has other replies where he mentions Biden and treason ... and there's another recent post ripping Dr. Anthony Fauci as "Treasonous."

So, there seems to be a theme here ... but now, it's escalated to death threats.

We reached out to John's camp ... so far no word back.

Jason Oppenheim, president and founder of the famed Oppenheim Group, is now representing Kanye West in the sale of his Malibu beachfront estate, and there's been some criticism Oppenheim should not represent an antisemite, but we've contacted some high-end realtors who feel it's absurd to have a litmus test on which clients they will represent.

The L.A. realtors we've spoken with say there is no way in this divided social and political climate anyone can do business by excluding clients whose views they find offensive. The example that repeatedly comes up is the war in the Middle East. As one high-end realtor put it, "What are we supposed to do, ask a potential client if they side with Israel or Palestine?"

An extremely successful L.A. realtor begged to differ, saying, "Wait a minute. Kanye is one of the biggest antisemites in the world. I would never represent him, ever."

But another realtor said, "Are we supposed to see if a client is a registered Republican and say screw you, I'm not representing you?"

It goes beyond religion and politics ... one realtor said, "What if a client has an offensive post on Instagram? Or what if a client's in the middle of nasty divorce and I side with their spouse?"

Several realtors said it's ridiculous to think they would Google every prospective client to look for a reason not to represent that person.

And one realtor, who was at one time a practicing lawyer, said it's absurd to think an attorney would judge a client before taking a case, adding, "It's just not reality."

And a realtor we spoke with said what if a client had a different view on gay marriage? He said, "At some point it just becomes impossible to do business."

That same realtor asked, "What about the buyer who pays Kanye $53 million for the Malibu property?" before adding, "What if Kanye goes to a Mercedes dealership. Should they not sell him a car?"

Jason Oppenheim, presidente y fundador del famoso Grupo Oppenheim, representa ahora a Kanye West en la venta de su propiedad frente a la playa de Malibú, y ha habido algunas críticas a Oppenheim respecto a que no debe representar a un antisemita. Nos hemos puesto en contacto con algunos agentes inmobiliarios de alto perfil y sienten que es absurdo tener someter a pruebas a los clientes que van a representar.

Los agentes inmobiliarios de Los Ángeles con los que hemos hablado dicen que no hay forma de que, en este clima social y político dividido, nadie pueda hacer negocios excluyendo a clientes cuyas opiniones consideren ofensivas. El ejemplo que se repite es la guerra de Oriente Medio. Como dijo un agente inmobiliario de alto nivel: "¿Qué se supone que tenemos que hacer, preguntar a un cliente potencial si está de parte de Israel o de Palestina?".

Un exitoso agente inmobiliario de Los Ángeles discrepó diciendo: "Un momento. Kanye es uno de los mayores antisemitas del mundo. Nunca lo representaría, jamás".

Pero otro agente inmobiliario dijo: "¿Se supone que debemos ver si un cliente es un republicano registrado y decir jódete, no te represento?".

Va más allá de la religión y la política, un agente inmobiliario dijo: "¿Qué pasa si un cliente tiene un post ofensivo en Instagram? O ¿qué pasa si un cliente está en medio de un divorcio desagradable y me pongo del lado de su cónyuge?".

Varios agentes inmobiliarios dijeron que es ridículo pensar que buscarían en Google a cada posible cliente para buscar una razón para no representar a esa persona.

Y un agente inmobiliario, que un tiempo fue abogado en ejercicio, dijo que es absurdo pensar que un abogado juzgaría a un cliente antes de tomar un caso y agregó: "Simplemente no es la realidad".

Un agente inmobiliario con el que hablamos dijo: "¿qué pasaría si un cliente tuviera una opinión diferente sobre el matrimonio gay? Dijo: "En algún momento simplemente se hace imposible hacer negocios".

Ese mismo agente inmobiliario preguntó: "¿Qué pasa con el comprador que paga a Kanye 53 millones de dólares por la propiedad de Malibú?" antes de añadir: "¿Qué pasa si Kanye va a un concesionario de Mercedes. ¿No deberían venderle un carro?".

El reinado de Mariah Carey como la reina de la Navidad continua, ya que viajó hasta D.C. para contagiar un poco de alegría festiva en la Casa Blanca.

En un post compartido en su cuenta de Instagram el miércoles, la cantante fue vista con el Presidente Joe Biden y sus gemelos de 12 años, Moroccan y Monroe.

Vistiendo un mini vestido brillante y una chaqueta recortada a juego, Mariah estaba en su salsa, ya que también se tomó algunas fotos con Kamala Harris y su marido Doug Emhoff.

En el pie de foto de IG, Mariah habló de la gran decoración festiva que vio durante la visita, que tuvo lugar la semana pasada con sus hijos.

Los gemelos han estado apareciendo mucho últimamente en las aventuras relacionadas con la Navidad de su mamá. Recientemente, también aparecieron en el video musical de la versión actualizada de su clásico, "All I Want For Christmas Is You".

Mariah Carey's reign as the Queen of Xmas is only getting stronger ... as she journeyed to D.C. to spread some festive cheer at the White House.

In a post shared to her IG Wednesday, the singer posed with President Joe Biden ... with her 12-year-old twins Moroccan and Monroe in tow.

Wearing a glittering minidress and matching cropped jacket for some extra Christmas flare, Mariah was in her element as she also got snap-happy with Kamala Harris & her hubby Doug Emhoff.

In the caption, Mariah gushed about all the extensive festive decor she saw during the visit ... which took place last week with her brood.

The twins have been popping up a lot lately in their momma's Christmas-related ventures ... most recently in the music vid for the upgraded version of her classic, "All I Want For Christmas Is You."

Logan Paul apareció en South Park y recibió las típicas bromas del show. El programa satírico acaba de ir a por la superestrella de la WWE y su empresa de bebidas en su nuevo especial.

"South Park: No apto para niños" se estrenó en Paramount+ el miércoles y uno de sus muchos objetivos resultó ser el YouTuber convertido en empresario.

En un clip del programa, el personaje Clyde Donovan se sienta frente a un computador mientras observa a un influencer llamado Logan LeDouche (que se parece mucho a Paul) promocionando su marca de bebidas, "Cred" (que comparte la misma apariencia que las botellas de Prime Hydration).

"Lo más importante es ser uno mismo", dice LeDouche en la escena. "Cuando siento que no puedo ser yo mismo, es cuando necesito una bebida hidratante que me levante, ¡es cuando necesito a Cred!".

La parodia incluso se burla de la exagerada campaña de marketing de Logan para la compañía, que incluía saltar de un avión mientras se bebía una botella de Prime.

"¡Bebe Cred, o eres un pedazo de mierda!"

La escena también se burla de la controvertida bebida energética de la compañía, que fue escudriñada por el senador Chuck Schumer, quien dijo que podría ser perjudicial para la base de fans principalmente joven de Logan, a pesar de que sus latas indican específicamente que es para mayores de 18 años.

"¡Bebe Cred en tu colegio hoy! No apto para niños", dice el narrador del video.

Logan parece estar de acuerdo con todo esto, porque recientemente compartió el clip en sus cuentas de redes sociales

Logan Paul went down to South Park and got his ass roasted ... 'cause the satirical show just went after the WWE Superstar and his Prime drink company in its newest special.

"South Park: Not Suitable for Children" just dropped on Paramount+ on Wednesday ... and one of its many targets just so happened to be the YouTuber-turned-entrepreneur.

In a clip of the show, character Clyde Donovan sits in front of a computer as he watches an influencer named Logan LeDouche (who looks very similar to Paul) hawk his drink brand, "Cred" (which shares the same appearance to Prime Hydration bottles).

"The most important thing is just to be yourself," LeDouche says in the scene. "When I feel like I can't be myself, that's when I need a hydration drink that'll pick me up -- that's when I need Cred!!"

The spoof even mocks Logan's over-the-top marketing campaign for the company ... which included jumping out of a plane as he drank a bottle of Prime.

"Drink Cred, or you're a piece of s***!!"

The scene also pokes fun at the company's controversial energy drink ... which was scrutinized by Senator Chuck Schumer, who said it could be harmful to Logan's primarily young fanbase -- even though its cans specifically state it's for people ages 18 and up.

"Drink Cred at your school today!! Not intended for children," the narrator in the clip says.

Logan seems to be okay with it all ... 'cause he recently shared the clip on his social media accounts

The Los Angeles Lakers have officially hung up a banner to celebrate their In-Season Tournament Championship ... and, as expected, it was met with some serious mixed reviews.

The team revealed Monday night the flag will stay in the rafters at Crypto.com Arena for the foreseeable future ... something that ain't exactly sitting right with plenty of fans of the storied NBA franchise.

After all, the team's won SEVENTEEN world championships -- and as you can hear in video from the pregame banner-raising ceremony prior to the contest against the Knicks, when L.A. officially hung the IST title keepsake, Lakers supporters didn't seem thrilled.

There was merely a smattering of applause ... and even LeBron James and his teammates didn't look all that pumped while watching the festivities from the court.

Of course, there were some who liked it, including Metta World Peace -- who told TMZ Sports last week he was definitely in favor of keeping the memento at the Lakers' home facility.

Several celebs in attendance at the game didn't seem to mind it much either ... Timothee Chalamet was all smiles in his courtside seat -- although his New York ballcap showed he probably could care less what L.A. does when it comes to decorating its arena.

Kevin Bacon, Dustin Hoffman, Mookie Betts and several other A-listers were there too ... and while it's not entirely clear what their stances were on the banner -- we take it they probably don't care much either way.

Omri Miran is among the Israeli hostages being held captive by Hamas ... and his brother-in-law, a former captain in the Israel Defense Forces, is calling for his safe return ASAP.

Moshe Lavi, the former IDF captain, says Omri was held at gunpoint by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7, when he was kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Nahal Oz. Moshe says Omri's wife, his sister Lishay, and the couple's 2 daughters, Roni and Alma, were also held at gunpoint with Omri before ultimately being left behind and rescued by the IDF.

Some hostages have since been released by Hamas, but Omri was not among them ... so Moshe and family members of other hostages are pressuring public officials in Israel and across the globe to do whatever is necessary to bring more hostages home.

Moshe tells TMZ ... his family hasn't received any official word of how Omri is doing in captivity, though hostages released 2 weeks ago claimed Omri was seen alive in one of the Hamas tunnels in Gaza.

Still, Moshe says just because Omri was said to be safe back then doesn't mean he's in good shape now ... as Moshe points out, "Every second in captivity is eternity" ... which is why time is of the essence here.

Of grave concern to all the families is the fact 3 of the remaining hostages were accidentally killed during IDF efforts to take out Hamas militants. The victims have been identified, and Omri is not among them.

But, Moshe is calling on public officials to work day and night to bring Omri and his fellow captives back safely to their loved ones.

7:33 AM PT -- The driver in question, 46-year-old James Cooper, has been charged with DUI and inattentive driving ... this according to the Wilmington Police Department.

Part of President Joe Biden's motorcade was involved in a crash, with things so scary the Secret Service thought there was a threat to POTUS' life ... and they moved in quick.

The dramatic moment was caught on video Sunday as Biden and his wife, Jill, were leaving campaign headquarters in Delaware, where there was press outside waiting to ask him questions as he was getting ready to board a waiting SUV and head home for the night.

Right as he was responding to one question about his standing in the polls, you can hear a loud bang off-camera -- which captures the Prez's attention ... and all his SS agents too.

Those around him quickly whisked him away and got him inside the car closest to him, and others swooped in to attend to whatever the heck had just happened there on the street. As it turns out, some Joe Schmo had rammed into one of the motorcade SUVs.

You can tell SS agents didn't know what was going on, and they treated it as an intentional move -- closing in on the driver with guns drawn and telling him to put his hands up .... which he most certainly did. Soon, it became evident ... it was a random accident.

In the end, nobody was harmed ... and cops are now investigating the cause and whether any potential impairment was at play. From the sounds of it, no one was arrested.

Still, pretty dramatic ... good to know these guys are always ready to spring into action.

Let the haters hate, but Metta World Peace is all about the Lakers honoring their In-Season Tournament win with a banner ... telling TMZ Sports the accomplishment now gives L.A. bragging rights over the Boston Celtics!!

The Purple and Gold are reportedly hanging a memento in the Crypto.com Arena rafters to commemorate their recent title ... which was met with mixed reviews, considering the tourney doesn't hold nearly as much weight as winning the Finals.

We spoke with Metta -- a 2010 NBA champ -- about the move ... and he tells us he's a big fan!!

MWP explains he thinks being the first-ever IST MVP means a lot for LeBron James' legacy ... and while he still considers himself a Michael Jordan stan, he praised the King for maintaining his dominance at 38 years old.

In fact, Metta says he sees LeBron playing at least 25 seasons ... which should earn him George Washington's spot on the quarter!!