The leader of the California Senate says she will step down from her leadership post

Mauricio Pochettino says Chelsea’s owners must look past their disappointment and back him to implement the plan he was hired to draw up in order to lift the club out of their slump. Defeat to Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge on Sunday means the team have taken an average of 0.85 points per game over the last 35 matches, three short of a full league season. Over a single campaign they would have won 32 points, a tally that would have seen them relegated in every Premier League season since the league became 38 games in 1995, and would have left them bottom of the table in five of them. That run goes back to October 19 last year when the team, then managed by Graham Potter, drew 0-0 away at Brentford. Pochettino is the fourth manager to have led the side in that period, with Potter having been removed on April 2 and Frank Lampard taking over until the end of the campaign, with a single game in charge for caretaker boss Bruno Saltor. Despite the turnover of coaches, the Blues have won only six times in the league in the 11 months since, drawing 12, giving them a return of 30 points from 35 games. The squad assembled by co-owner Todd Boehly’s Clearlake Capital consortium at a cost of more than £1billion over the last 16 months are currently 14th in the table after six games and have not scored in 285 minutes of play. Pochettino encouraged supporters to keep faith and focus on the quality of recent performances rather than the club’s relegation form over the last year. “It’s about learning, it’s about the process,” he said after Ollie Watkins’ second-half goal for Villa condemned his side to their third loss of the season. “We are a young team (in) a process that they need to learn all together. It’s difficult to talk about positives because when you lose it’s difficult, but we need to talk about positive things. “No doubt that with time the team is going to perform, but of course now we cannot hide the situation. It’s a situation that disappoints all the fans, the club, us and the players. “They (the owners) are disappointed, they arrive to the club and (were) so excited to build some project. Of course they feel disappointed, but at the same time they need to support the plan.” If there was a bright spot for Chelsea it was the return of striker Armando Broja after nine months out with an ACL injury. The Albania international came off the bench in the second half and headed wide in the closing minutes as the team sought an equaliser. “It was good to see Broja after nine, 10 months,” said Pochettino. “Again I think to have the possibility to have different options is good for the team. But he needs to build his confidence also.” Watkins’ goal was his first in the league this season and the striker admitted it was a weight off his shoulders. “The first one is always hard to get,” Watkins told VillaTV. “I’m delighted to get off the mark now. “It’s a bit of a relief, really, because the more the games go by, there’s a lot of talk and pressure. “But I just try and block that out and I back myself in front of goal no matter what anyone says. “I’m looking forward to the games coming up now and plenty more goals for the season.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Hooker Johnny Matthews is a perfectly able deputy for Scotland – John Dalziel Axed Jason Roy urged to remain positive with World Cup role still a possibility ECB unable to commit to equal pay targets for England men and women

Anthony Bourdain’s comments about Henry Kissinger in his 2001 book have resurfaced following the controversial politician’s death. The former United States Secretary of State died at the age of 100 at his home in Connecticut on Wednesday 29 November. During his lifetime, some called for Kissinger to be charged with war crimes. And, it seems the beloved late chef Bourdain was not a fan of his after scathing comments from the book 'A Cook’s Tour: In Search of the Perfect Meal' resurfaced. After a visit to Cambodia, Bourdain wrote, “You’ll never stop wanting to beat Henry Kissinger to death with your bare hands”, because of his approval of a secret and illegal war there. Kissinger is believed to be responsible for the deaths of between 150,000 to 500,000 Cambodian civilians after ordering the secret carpet bombing of Cambodia and Laos over four years from 1969. 540,000 bombs were dropped by the US. Bourdain wrote: “You will never again be able to open a newspaper and read about that treacherous, prevaricating, murderous scumbag sitting down for a nice chat with Charlie Rose or attending some black-tie affair for a new glossy magazine without choking.” He continued: “Witness what Henry did in Cambodia ― the fruits of his genius for statesmanship ― and you will never understand why he’s not sitting in the dock at The Hague next to [Serbian President Slobodan] Milošević.” It was not the only time Boudain mentioned Kissinger’s name with disdain after Bourdain responded to comments that he had become a kind of “statesman” due to the way his work had brought awareness around global conflicts and struggles. Bourdain argued, “I’m not going to the White House Correspondents’ dinner. I don’t need to be laughing it up with Henry Kissinger”. “Any journalist who has ever been polite to Henry Kissinger, you know, f*** that person,” Bourdain said. “I’m a big believer in moral grey areas, but, when it comes to that guy, in my view he should not be able to eat at a restaurant in New York.” There's been plenty of takes on social media to the news. As people around the world have reacted to the news of his death, an X/Twitter account called “Is Henry Kissinger Dead Yet?” simply wrote “YES” in a post. How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

The Justice Department has taken an unusual step in court to try to protect former President Donald Trump from testifying under oath in a lawsuit from former FBI officials Peter Strzok and Lisa Page.

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Rihanna has been hailed as an icon to mums after sharing a joyous photo of herself breastfeeding her baby boy. The Grammy-Award winner, who’s expecting her second child this summer with A$AP Rocky, announced the launch of a new Savage x Fenty maternity line on Tuesday. Her clothing brand celebrated the release of its new capsule collection for “moms and moms-to-be” by posting snaps of the superstar feeding her one-year-old son RZA. The caption to the Instagram offering read: “Not ur mama's maternity bras...designed by [Rihanna], approved by baby RZA.” Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The post racked up nearly 2,000 comments in just six hours as fans gushed over the gorgeous images. “Pregnant with one while breastfeeding another. Women are amazing,” wrote one admirer. “I remember in 2020 when I was breastfeeding I was like damn Riri needs to sell us fashionable maternity bras. Now I need another baby,” joked a second. “I’ve been looking forward to a maternity line even though I don’t have any kids,” admitted a third. “Bless you Rihanna for releasing a maternity collection while I’m pregnant,” said a fourth. “[And] this is why I will always buy everything from Rih! She understands EVERY assignment,” added a fifth. And a sixth said: “I’m so glad I’m waiting to have children. By the time I’m pregnant Rihanna will have made all the accessories for me and my baby to be dope as hell.” The exciting new maternity line features three new bralette styles and comfortable hipster briefs, with prices starting at just £6.60. It also includes an oversized graphic t-shirt that reads: “Make More Babies.” “The new maternity capsule is about bringing that confidence and comfort to moms at every stage of their journeys,” RihannaVogue ahead of the drop. “I want to remind people that you can still channel sexiness and feel good while being a parent.” It’s not the first time the 35-year-old RnB legend has waxed lyrical about motherhood to the fashion mag. Shortly after her internet-breaking Super Bowl performance in February – when she revealed she was pregnant with baby number two - she spoke to British Vogue about how her life has changed since becoming a mum. “It’s everything. You really don’t remember life before, that’s the craziest thing ever,” she said. “You literally try to remember it — and there are photos of my life before — but the feeling, the desires, the things that you enjoy, everything, you just don’t identify with it because you don’t even allow yourself mentally to get that far … because it doesn’t matter.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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