Why Sleep Is the Key to Living Longer

Today, at the age of 63, I find myself in peak health—physically, mentally, and energetically. A wide range of performance metrics and biomarker data bolster this belief. I’ve gotten here not by luck, but by effort and by prioritizing healthspan: the amount of time you spend in good health, free of disease. I’m on a personal mission to maintain this optimal health for the next decade, so that I can intercept the next generation of therapeutics under development that are promising to slow, stop, and even reverse aging.

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Over the past decade, my primary focus has been to study the field of human longevity with an eye specifically toward healthspan. I’ve immersed myself in research and devoured publications in the realms of biotechnology, nutrition, exercise, sleep, and, most recently, artificial intelligence in service of health and longevity. I’ve interviewed top scientists on my Moonshots podcast and onstage during my longevity conferences. I’ve even launched XPRIZE Healthspan, where more than 440 teams are currently competing for $101 million to see what can most effectively turn back the ravages of aging. Finally, I hold in close company dozens of top scientists and physicians who work closely with me in the various companies I founded or co-founded.

People often ask me the very same question I’ve posed to these longevity luminaries for years: what can you do to live a longer, healthier life? The answer is so rich and varied that I’ve written a whole guidebook sharing the tools that I’m personally using today to maximize my own healthspan. The Longevity Guidebook includes how to exercise to build muscle and VO2 max, the advanced diagnostics available right now for preventative care, supplements and medications that optimize cellular and whole-body function, how to create and maintain a longevity mindset, and tailored approaches for women’s health. I’m grateful to draw on cutting-edge insights from my friends who are leading experts in the longevity sciences. 

One of the most important (and least appreciated) keys to extending your healthspan is a great night’s sleep. It rejuvenates the body, boosts cognitive function, and powers your immune system. It’s the foundation for your health and longevity.

Read More: Therapists Share the 1 Tip That’s Changed Their Lives

Sleep expert Matthew Walker, director of the Center for Human Sleep Science at the University of California, Berkeley and author of the excellent book Why We Sleep, says that sleep is the single most effective thing we can do to reset our mental and physical health each day. There is a direct relationship between how well you sleep and how long you live, and almost nobody can get away with fewer than six hours of sleep a night without harming their health.

For most people, regularly getting eight hours of sleep boosts memory retention, enhances concentration, augments creativity, stabilizes emotions, strengthens the immune system, enhances athletic performance, and staves off deadly ailments like cancers and heart disease.

Still not convinced?  Here are three powerful examples:

1. The difference between getting a good night’s sleep and a bad one is a decrease from 100% to 60% in the brain’s ability to retain new facts. That’s the difference, as Walker puts it, between “acing an exam and failing it miserably.”

2. Going twenty-four hours without sleep is like having a blood alcohol concentration of 0.10%, above the legal limit for driving in most places.

3. A sleepless night with only four hours of sleep resulted in a 70% reduction in the activity of your natural killer cells (which combat infections and cancer). Remarkably, the activity of natural killer cells returns to baseline levels after one night of normal sleep.

Sleep doesn’t get the respect it deserves. It’s often the first thing people sacrifice to make time for almost anything else, whether leisure or work. But the popular belief that “you can sleep when you’re dead” is fundamentally damaging to your health, happiness, and longevity.

For example, regularly getting fewer than six or seven hours of sleep each night doubles your risk of cancer and can increase the likelihood that you’ll develop Alzheimer’s disease. Insufficient sleep can also contribute to major psychiatric conditions such as anxiety and depression.

One key lesson from Walker is if humans had been able to evolve with the ability to get along with less sleep, then we would have. We are most vulnerable to predation and least productive while we sleep. Yet evolutionarily our bodies retained the need for eight hours.

Read More: How to Stop Checking Your Phone Every 10 Seconds

Insufficient sleep can have serious metabolic and hormonal consequences. When individuals are sleep-deprived, the body essentially enters a state of malnutrition. “If you take the mentality of ‘I’ll sleep when I’m dead,’ ironically, you will have both a shorter life and the quality of that life will be significantly worse as a consequence,” Walker said onstage at our longevity conference this year. He then highlighted a study where young, healthy men were restricted to five hours of sleep for five nights. The result? Their testosterone levels dropped to the equivalent of someone 10 years older. “Five hours a night for five nights will age a man by a decade,” Walker emphasized, noting that this also affects female reproductive hormones such as estrogen and progesterone.

Sleep deprivation also leads to cognitive and metabolic impairments. A study that restricted people to four hours of sleep for four nights found that these individuals, previously with normal blood sugar, became classified as prediabetic by the end of the trial. This underscores the profound metabolic toll that insufficient sleep can take in a very short time.

Convinced yet? Here are 9 tips for optimizing your sleep.

1. Aim for 7-9 hours: Anything less than 7 hours of sleep can lead to significant metabolic, cognitive, and cardiovascular impairments.

2. Improve sleep efficiency: Walker emphasizes that efficiency is crucial. You can get a sense of yours through sleep trackers like Oura or WHOOP. Anything less than 85% (time spent in bed sleeping versus awake) needs attention.

3. Maintain regular sleep patterns: Regularity is more important than quantity when it comes to long-term health benefits. Walker recommends going to bed and waking up at the same time every day, with only a +/- 25-minute variance.

4. Align your sleep with your chronotype: Everyone has a chronotype—whether they’re a morning person or a night owl. Your goal should be to gradually adjust to a healthy sleep schedule that respects your natural tendencies. For example, if you’re a night owl, start with a bedtime close to when you feel naturally drowsy, like 11:30 PM, and gradually shift it earlier by 15-30 minutes every few nights. 

5. Time your exercise right: For optimal sleep quality, it’s best to finish exercise 90 minutes before bed, allowing your body enough time to cool down.

6. Eat at the right times, too: It’s best to finish eating at least two hours before bed, giving your body time to digest and reducing indigestion during sleep.

7. Manage stress before sleep: To avoid “tired and wired” syndrome before bed, consider journaling, taking a hot shower, meditation, or catching up with a friend.

8.    Practice good sleep hygiene: An hour before bedtime, lower the lights in your room by 70%. If you need to use your phone, do it only while standing, and put it away when you lie down. Remove clocks from view to avoid watching the time pass.

9.  Monitor yourself for sleep apnea: Sleep apnea, a condition where breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep, reduces oxygen levels and can lead to increased risks of heart disease, diabetes, and cognitive decline. Your doctor can order a sleep study, or you can use tools like the SnoreLab app to track signs like loud snoring or gasping for air. If symptoms appear, seek professional evaluation.

Excerpted from Longevity Guidebook: How to Slow, Stop, and Reverse Aging — and NOT Die from Something Stupid

source https://time.com/7160802/sleep-longevity-live-longer-health/

What It’s Like to Have Long COVID As a Kid

It started when my brain gave out on me in algebra class one January day in 2022. I couldn’t figure out a simple math problem; all I saw were numbers and symbols. My eyelids drooped, my head hurt, I could barely stay awake. Something wasn’t right.

I hadn’t felt like myself since getting COVID-19 a couple weeks earlier. Simple tasks like reading a text or standing up were draining. But what happened in that classroom scared me. At age 14, my life became a state of constant exhaustion, punctuated by doctors’ visits that, months later, would lead to a Long COVID diagnosis. Still, in those early weeks, I felt determined. I was a high-achieving student athlete always eager to accept a challenge—and I felt confident that I could get past whatever this was quickly.

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That didn’t happen. And I had no idea how hard a road lay ahead—or just how dramatically the journey would reshape my perspective, outlook, goals, and relationships.

Two years after that initial episode, I’m 85% recovered. I can handle a full day of school. Brain fog and fatigue only reappear during intense projects or when I’m sick. I’ve also discovered a lot about myself, about invisible illness, and about the importance of friends and loved ones—lessons that can help anyone in the midst of a life-changing illness, as well as anyone wanting to offer help.

Here’s what I’ve learned.

Letting go is not failure

I used to be a person who pushed myself academically, athletically, and personally. But with Long COVID, that only made me sicker. I knew I had to move in the opposite direction. I dropped half my classes, which felt like losing half of myself. But reducing my workload gave my body the bandwidth to heal. I hadn’t given up on life. I had simply changed my focus in order to find a new way forward. With chronic illness, slowing down isn’t quitting—it’s survival.

Small victories matter

When you’re used to dreaming big and racking up achievements, it’s hard to accept that future success might look different. But chronic illness forces you to redefine what a “win” is. For me, it meant trading the goals of straight As and competitive swimming for getting out of bed and attending a couple of classes. With chronic illness, little moments like these become milestones. Celebrate them.

You can’t push through it

Before I got sick, I believed that you could overcome anything with enough effort and discipline. So I attacked my illness with the same attitude, often overexerting myself in an attempt to regain my old life. But chronic illness doesn’t respond to sheer willpower. The more I pushed, the worse I felt. Sometimes, the strongest thing you can do is listen to your body and respect its limits.

Invisible illnesses are isolating

People can have a hard time understanding what they can’t see. And since there was nothing visibly wrong with me, some assumed I wasn’t actually sick but had just given up on them. Friends stopped inviting me out. Teachers thought I had quit caring about schoolwork. The isolation I felt was one of the most difficult challenges of having Long COVID. Those who reached out and supported me have become some of my most treasured friends.

Read More: The Relentless Cost of Chronic Disease

Healing isn’t linear

The trajectory for many illnesses is to get sick, get rest, get better. But chronic illness isn’t that simple. Some days I began at 50% strength, others at 10%, and I never knew where the roller coaster would take me. The energy I felt one hour might evaporate the next. At first, my teachers and friends didn’t understand the sudden shifts. Of course, neither did I. But a low-energy day isn’t the same as not trying. It’s just part of the healing process.

Relapse anxiety can be paralyzing

Even as some of my physical symptoms started to fade, I was always on high alert for a possible relapse. Every time I pushed myself a little harder, I worried that I’d end up back where I started. That fear held me back from fully re-engaging with school and activities I once loved. It was helpful to remind myself that I didn’t have to return to “normal” all at once—small, gradual progress was enough.

It can make you mentally stronger

Chronic illness changes you. It forces you to slow down, rethink what success looks like, and find new ways of measuring progress. At the same time, it opens up windows into yourself and the world around you.

Read More: The Unique Hell of Getting Cancer as a Young Adult

And what I’ve discovered is a new kind of internal strength and a new sense of self. I still pursue goals, but now they’re more personal, more purposeful. I feel more grounded in values that are authentically my own, and not based on what society expects of me. I’ve learned how to find meaning even in the face of limitations.

I’ve also developed a deeper empathy for those struggling with their own chronic illnesses. Listening without judgment, offering patience rather than pressure, and showing support without conditions: These kindnesses were key to my recovery, and they’re essential for anyone living in the darkness of chronic illness. Thanks to the examples of others, I’m now well-equipped to help those in need—and eager to repay the favor.

source https://time.com/7160814/long-covid-kid-personal-essay/

Legacies of Slavery Across the Americas Still Shape Our Politics

The long history of slavery in the United States has been at the heart of public debates during the past two presidential elections cycles. During the 2016 U.S. presidential elections, public debates about reparations for slavery reemerged when Caribbean Community (CARICOM) led calls for reparations. Since then, new debates about Confederate monuments erupted in violence at Charlottesville, Va., and the brutal murder of George Floyd made clear that the legacy of slavery persists in deadly and dangerous ways.

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Public conversations about the legacies of slavery and calls for reparations have continued to gain traction. Some states such as California and cities such as Boston created task forces to study the legacies of slavery and Jim Crow and formulate proposals of reparations to remedy the harms caused by these atrocities. And yet, across southern states such as Florida, new bills proposed the prohibition of the teaching of topics associated with slavery and race.

And yet, chattel slavery was not peculiar to the United States. The largest number of enslaved Africans were transported to the Caribbean and Latin America. In fact, Kamala Harris’ candidacy is great reminder of the need to see the roots and consequences of human bondage that existed across the Americas. She has direct links with this painful history as her paternal ancestors were enslaved, not in the United States, but in the British Caribbean colony of Jamaica. Harris’ family has roots in Saint Ann Parish, on the north coast of the island, where Marcus Mosiah Garvey, the founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA), was born.

The history of slavery in the United States cannot be dissociated from the history of human bondage in the Caribbean, and to understand this painful history we must also look to the history of Latin America, especially Brazil, where the largest number of enslaved Africans were transported during the era of the Atlantic slave trade.

Read More: How the World Got Hooked on Sugar

Approximately 12.5 million Africans were brought to the Americas between 1501 and 1875. During this period of the Atlantic slave trade, nearly 300,000 enslaved persons were transported in slave ships from African ports to mainland North America and more than 3.4 million disembarked in the British and French West Indies.

Although estimates of the Atlantic slave trade are constantly changing and increasing, more than 5 million enslaved men, women, and children landed on Brazilian shores. It represents the largest number in the Americas and more than ten times more than the number of African captives transported from the African continent to the United States.

Many people believe that slavery in Latin America was a benevolent institution. Several scholars and students think that slave owners freed their slaves out of pure generosity, embracing the idea that enslaved people were part of the family of slaveholders, and that the color line didn’t exist in countries such as Brazil.

But nothing could be further from the truth. Like in the British colonies of North America and the Caribbean, the working and living conditions of enslaved people in Latin America were equally violent and even more deadly. In the lucrative sugar plantations of northeast Brazil and the Caribbean, life expectancy was much lower than in the United States. Hard work conditions and sex imbalance undermined the “natural” increase of the enslaved population. So, slave owners kept importing new enslaved Africans to toil in these plantations. In urban areas, enslaved women often outnumbered enslaved men. Yet, in the streets of Brazilian cities and towns, they were submitted to constant surveillance and exposed to violence of all kinds. In the household of their slave owners, enslaved women were regularly submitted to sexual violence.

Enslaved people fought daily against this system of oppression. In cities of Latin America and the Caribbean, such as Lima, Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City, Kingston, and Havana, bondswomen toiled all day in the streets selling food, often in order to be able to buy the freedom of their loved ones. In Brazil, Black people often composed the majority of the populations of cities like Rio de Janeiro and Salvador. This concentration favored their efforts to preserve their languages, deities, foodways, artistic practices, music, dance, and festivities. Especially in the port areas, where bondsmen worked in the docks and as sailors, sometimes crossing the Atlantic Ocean, enslaved people kept connected with the newly arrived enslaved Africans from which they got news and even goods from their homelands in Africa.

Read More: How Wall Street Funded Slavery

In Brazil, as in West Africa and West Central Africa, bondswomen were key players in this process. They dominated the marketplace. They also became central figures in Candomblé, the Afro-Brazilian religion whose temples are widespread in Bahia, Maranhão, and other states across the country.

All over the Americas, and not only in the United States, by fighting back against their owners, Africans (especially African women) and their descendants played a central role in the construction of the Western Hemisphere’s economic, social, and cultural fabric, by feeding the cities, planting and harvesting sugar and cotton, nursing the children of slave owners, and taking care of their own children.

But why does all this matter for the 2024 election?

As anti-Black racism remains one of the most enduring legacies of slavery in the Americas, understanding the scope of slavery in other parts of the American continent beyond the United States helps us to more honestly face this painful history of human violence as not a U.S. anomaly but rather as part of a long shared human history of Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

Seeing slavery through this broader perspective allows us to better understand the history of the United States. It encourages us to embrace a more compassionate and generous view of the future of the United States and its increasingly diverse population, and therefore to challenge hate speech against immigrants, many of whom like Kamala Harris are also people of African descent with historical ties to slavery elsewhere in the Americas.

The continental history of slavery is American history and needs to be part of our textbooks and taught in our schools, if we dare to want to build a better world.

Ana Lucia Araujo is a historian and Professor at the historically Black Howard University in Washington D.C. and author of Humans in Shackles: An Atlantic History of Slavery (University of Chicago Press, 2024).

Made by History takes readers beyond the headlines with articles written and edited by professional historians. Learn more about Made by History at TIME here. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of TIME editors.

source https://time.com/7134374/slavery-americas-brazil/

Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands and Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya Win New York City Marathon

NEW YORK — Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands won the men’s race at the New York City Marathon on Sunday and Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya took the women’s event.

Both runners pulled away from their closest competitors in the final few hundred meters to come away with their first victories in the race.

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Nageeye was step-for-step with 2022 champion Evans Chebet before using a burst heading into Central Park to come away with the win in 2 hours, 7 minutes, 39 seconds. Chebet finished 6 seconds behind.

“At the finish I was like, am I’m dreaming? I won New York,” Nageeye said.

He had run the New York race three times before with his best finish coming in 2022, when he was third.

“I know the course,” Nageeye said. “Today was two things: survive that race and my race is after 36 (kilometers; 22 miles). I was thinking like a cyclist, survive 36K and you’re going to win.”

Chepkirui was running New York for the first time and pulled away from defending champion Hellen Obiri in the women’s race. Chepkirui, who started to run marathons in 2022, won in 2:24.35. Obiri finished nearly 15 seconds behind.

“It means my training has been good,” Chepkirui said. “I’m so happy.”

Obiri was looking to be the first repeat champion since Mary Keitany of Kenya won three in a row from 2014-16. Vivian Cheruiyot of Kenya finished third, giving the African nation the top three spots.

Tamirat Tola, the men’s defending champion and Paris Olympic gold medalist, finished fourth, right behind Albert Korir.

The top Americans finished sixth in both races. Conner Mantz led the men and Sara Vaughn the women. Vaughn was in the lead group heading into Mile 20 when they entered the Bronx before she dropped off the lead pack.

Vaughn was geared up to run Chicago before COVID-19 kept her from competing in that race. She was a late addition to this marathon.

The day got started with an upset in the men’s wheelchair race as three-time defending champion Marcel Hug was beaten by Daniel Romanchuk, who also won in 2018 and 2019. Susannah Scaroni won the women’s wheelchair race. It was her second victory in New York, also taking the 2022 race and giving Americans winners in both events — the first time that has happened.

The 26.2-mile (42.2-kilometer) course took runners through all five boroughs of New York, starting in Staten Island and ending in Central Park. This is the 48th year the race has been in all five boroughs. Before that, the route was completely in Central Park when it began in 1970. The first race had only 55 finishers while more than 50,000 are expected to compete this year.

The weather was perfect to run in with temperatures in the lower 40s when the race started. Last year, it was 61 degrees when the race started.

source https://time.com/7171751/new-york-city-marathon-2024-winners/

Who Will Replace Mitch McConnell as Senate GOP Leader? It Remains Deeply Uncertain

WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans vying to replace longtime leader Mitch McConnell have been crossing the country to campaign and fundraise for colleagues, making their final arguments before a consequential ballot the week after the presidential election. But their pitches are mostly behind closed doors, and most GOP senators won’t yet say which lawmaker they are backing.

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South Dakota’s John Thune, McConnell’s current No. 2, and John Cornyn of Texas, who held that job before Thune, are the front-runners in the Nov. 13 secret ballot to replace McConnell. The Kentucky senator is stepping aside from the post in January after almost two decades as leader. The winner could steer the direction of the party for years to come and possibly become the next Senate majority leader if Republicans win enough seats in Tuesday’s election.

The outcome is, for now, uncertain.

Only a few Republican senators have publicly endorsed a candidate. Many say they are still undecided. The third senator in the race — Florida Sen. Rick Scott, who is dealing with his own reelection bid — could act as a spoiler. Another candidate could still jump in.

In many ways, “the two Johns” are remarkably similar, making the choice difficult for their colleagues. Both are well-liked and, in the mold of McConnell, lean toward the more traditional wing of the Republican Party. But both have also suggested they will try to move on from the McConnell era with a more open approach.

“I’m trying to find differentiation because they’re both great guys,” said Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who has worked closely with both of them.

The two men are also trying to distinguish themselves from McConnell by making clear that they support Donald Trump in this year’s presidential election. Like McConnell, they have both sparred with Trump in the past, especially after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. But both Thune and Cornyn have talked to Trump frequently in recent months, attended campaign events and visited his Florida home.

Whether Trump wins, and if he endorses one of the contenders, could become a determining factor.

“I don’t know what he’ll do,” Cornyn said of Trump in September. “But this is obviously an election between senators, and I think that’s where the voters are.”

Some of the former president’s strongest allies in the Senate are urging him to stay above the fray. Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin, who is supporting Thune, says he’s been trying to talk Trump out of an endorsement. Trump understands “the need to work with whoever the next leader is,” Mullin said.

Tillis suggested that a Trump endorsement could backfire.

“You have to be careful with the psychology of the Senate,” Tillis said. “We know each other very well, and we spend hours and hours together. It’s a fairly small club.”

Still, both Cornyn and Thune are keeping close to Trump. Cornyn met Trump on a trip to Texas in October and appeared at a rally in Nevada. Thune was at an event in August with Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance.

Thune, who said after the Jan. 6 attack that Trump’s efforts to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power were “inexcusable,” told The Associated Press over the summer that he views their potential relationship as a professional one. If they both win their elections, Thune said, “we’ve got a job to do.”

Scott, meanwhile, is a longtime friend of Trump’s and has positioned himself as a strong ally. Scott traveled to New York to support Trump during Trump’s hush money trial. Trump could endorse Scott in the contest, potentially winning more votes for the Florida senator or giving him leverage to influence the race.

In addition to private meetings, both Thune and Cornyn have flown around the country to fundraise and campaign for their fellow senators.

Thune has made more than two dozen campaign stops for GOP senate candidates, and aides say he has raised more than $31 million for Senate races this campaign cycle, including a $4 million transfer to the Senate Republican campaign operation.

Cornyn has similarly gone around for candidates and poured money into Texas races. His aides emphasize his long history of fundraising for Republicans — more than $400 million during his 22 years in the Senate, his office says.

On policy, the two men are similar, voting generally in step with the conference but working with Democrats at times. Cornyn is a longtime member of the Senate Judiciary Committee who took a leading role on bipartisan gun legislation two years ago. Thune worked across the aisle as a former chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.

It’s unclear whether either could win support from the growing minority of Republican senators who battled McConnell in recent years as he championed Ukraine aid and criticized Trump. Many in that group voted for Scott when he challenged McConnell after the 2022 elections.

In a potential overture to that group, Cornyn has called for a conference vote on instituting term limits for the Republican leader. “I believe the Senate needs more engagement from my colleagues, and that includes the opportunity for any member to serve in leadership,” Cornyn posted on X in March.

Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, a member of the more conservative faction, said he has not made a commitment in the race but wants to know how they would move legislation and work with Trump if he is president. “I think some of this will come into focus after the election when we know what we’re dealing with, we know what our caucus is going to be,” Hawley said.

Many in that group, including Scott and Utah Sen. Mike Lee, have pushed to take power away from leadership and empower individual senators. Lee has issued a series of candidate demands, but neither Cornyn nor Thune has so far shown interest in negotiating.

But both of them have signaled that they hear the complaints.

Thune indicated in the AP interview that he’s open to making changes to the leader’s role, but cautioned that he would not leave the position at the mercy of rank-and-file senators. He said he wanted to “empower our individual members or committees to do things through regular order” and open up the amendment process, but “I’m not going to make wholesale changes that weaken the leader position to where it’s just a free-for-all.”

Tillis suggested in September that it would be a deal breaker for him if any of the candidates engaged in deal-making.

“If you would be willing to weaken your position to satisfy a few votes, then you’re unfit to be leader, in my opinion,” Tillis said. “And I think most people think that way.”

source https://time.com/7171736/who-will-replace-mitch-mcconnell-as-senate-gop-leader/

Kamala Harris Aims Jibe at Donald Trump During Surprise SNL Appearance

Ahead of the presidential election on Nov. 5, Vice President Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance on sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL). The Democratic presidential nominee flew to New York City after hosting a rally in North Carolina, where her opponent, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, also held a rally in the pivotal battleground.

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Harris had a starring role in the Nov. 2 show’s “2024 Pre-Election Cold Open.” The skit started off by revisiting some of the most talked about campaigning moments over the past week, with Maya Rudolph continuing her portrayal of Harris and James Austin Johnson, clad in a garbage vest, parodying Trump.

The sequence then turned to Rudolph’s depiction of Harris sitting in front of a vanity table, wishing she could “talk to someone who’s been in [her] shoes, you know? A Black, South Asian woman running for President… preferably from the Bay Area.” Then, the camera panned to Harris sitting on the other side of the pretend mirror.

After lengthy applause from the crowd, Harris said she was there to remind Rudolph and, by extension, herself: “You got this.”

Harris continued: “Because you can do something your opponent cannot do. You can open doors”—a jibe based on a viral clip of Trump struggling to open the door to a garbage truck this week.

Hitting their stride, Harris and Rudolph, who remained in character throughout, continued with a comedy rhyme-style pep talk with one another, beginning with the SNL star saying, “Now Kamala, take my palm-ala,” before the two agreed that America needs to “keep Kamala and carry on-a-la.”

The two then joined each other at the center of the stage for Rudolph to say she was voting for Harris come Tuesday, and to deliver the show’s iconic final lines of the cold open together: “And live from New York, it’s Saturday night.” It was then up to this week’s host, former SNL writer John Mulaney, to take over.

Harris has never hosted or guested on the show before, but previously praised Rudolph’s impression of her during an appearance on The View in October, saying of the SNL star: “She’s so good.”

Meanwhile, Trump has hosted SNL twice: once in 2004, and once as a presidential candidate in 2015, though he did not appear on SNL this season, or since his presidency.

source https://time.com/7171701/kamala-harris-saturday-night-live-appearance-donald-trump-jibe/

What a Donald Trump Win Would Mean For Immigration

Former President Donald Trump is promising a sweeping overhaul of U.S. immigration policy if he wins the election, one that aims to build upon and escalate the already strident measures of his first term. 

Trump intends to commence mass deportations of millions of people, a project that could be marked by widespread workplace raids and the involvement of the U.S. military, all while putting federal resources into expanding the border wall at the U.S.-Mexico border.

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His proposed agenda would represent a dramatic shift in American immigration policy, targeting millions of undocumented immigrants and redefining the nation’s approach to newcomers. 

Trump’s dark view of immigration has helped define his political career since he launched his first presidential campaign in 2015. His rhetoric around the issue has raised concerns that his immigration agenda is rooted in an idealized fantasy of racial purity. He said in a speech in December that migrants coming into the U.S. are “poisoning the blood of our country.” Last month, he said undocumented immigrants who commit murder have “bad genes.” 

Trump’s proposals have reignited debates around legality, ethics, and the potential societal impacts of such an expansive crackdown. Critics argue that his strategies could pose fundamental challenges to civil rights and humanitarian obligations. But the Trump campaign is trying to capitalize on rising public discontent regarding immigration and border security, framing their plans as a necessary response to what Trump describes as a national crisis.

Here’s what to know about Trump’s immigration plan if he were to win the presidential election.

Mass deportations

Trump is making his plans for mass deportations of undocumented immigrants a central feature of his potential second term. He has signaled an ambition to carry out what he calls the “largest domestic deportation operation in American history.” That could mean a years-long effort to remove an estimated 11 million people who are in the country without authorization. His administration aims to leverage expedited removal processes, which allow for rapid deportations without the usual legal hearings.

His campaign has emphasized that such measures are within existing legal frameworks and would not require new legislation. They argue that mass deportations would benefit American workers by raising wages and improving job conditions. However, experts warn that the abrupt removal of millions of immigrants would likely lead to economic instability, particularly in industries heavily reliant on undocumented labor, such as agriculture and hospitality.

Critics of Trump’s deportation strategy contend that it is inhumane, citing potential violations of due process and the trauma that mass removals could inflict on families and communities. Many of the people targeted have lived in the U.S. for years and have children who are U.S. citizens. The implications of such a drastic policy shift could also extend far beyond immigration, fundamentally reshaping the demographic and economic landscape of the nation.

Using the military for immigration

Trump’s proposal to use the military for immigration enforcement marks a significant escalation in the federal government’s approach to undocumented immigrants. By invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 and the Insurrection Act, he plans to deploy federal troops to assist in apprehending migrants at the southern border, a move that raises serious legal and ethical concerns regarding the role of the military in domestic law enforcement. 

Trump has said he would move thousands of troops currently stationed overseas to the southern border of the U.S. He has also said he would deploy the U.S. Navy to impose a blockade of fentanyl and fentanyl precursor chemicals from entering the country.

The militarization of immigration policy reflects Trump’s broader strategy of framing immigration as a security threat, portraying all undocumented immigrants as dangers to public safety. The intention is to create an unprecedented formidable presence at the border, bolstered by the National Guard and local police from Republican-led states. Advocates argue that this approach is essential for national security, while critics view it as a dangerous precedent that undermines civil liberties and could lead to excessive force against vulnerable populations. 

Trump also wants to build new detention camps to hold undocumented immigrants awaiting deportation, which the campaign says would enable faster processing and removal of immigrants. This effort would also likely include the military. Opponents fear that this approach could mirror past abuses in immigration enforcement, where the rights of individuals are overlooked in favor of rapid, large-scale removals.

Workplace raids

A second Trump administration would plan to expand workplace raids as a method of identifying and apprehending undocumented immigrants. The strategy, which he also ramped up in his first term, aims to increase the visibility and enforcement of immigration laws in everyday settings, targeting industries that frequently employ unauthorized workers.

Trump has suggested that these raids will not only deter unauthorized employment but also lead to significant labor market shifts, benefiting American workers. However, the practical implications of such raids could be far-reaching, disrupting local economies and instilling fear within immigrant communities. Critics argue that workplace raids often result in chaos, separating families and exacerbating vulnerabilities among immigrant populations. The resulting atmosphere of mistrust can leave immigrants afraid to report crimes or seek help in dangerous situations for fear of deportation.

Expanding the border wall 

Expanding and reinforcing the border wall is another cornerstone of Trump’s immigration agenda, a promise that resonates deeply with his base. 

The U.S.-Mexico border is nearly 2,000 miles long. During Trump’s first term, the U.S. government built less than 500 miles of border wall, and much of it replaced smaller, dilapidated barriers.

Trump’s GOP party platform released during the Republican National Convention in July promised, “We will complete the Border Wall.” Trump has indicated plans to redirect military funding to construct new sections of the wall, defying congressional appropriations—an approach that mirrors tactics from his first term, when he prioritized border security over other federal funding priorities.

Advocates for the wall argue that it is necessary for national security and controlling illegal immigration. Yet, critics contend that the wall represents a misguided allocation of resources, with many experts arguing that immigration challenges require comprehensive reforms rather than punitive measures.

The prospect of renewed construction raises environmental and logistical concerns, particularly in regions where natural landscapes may be disrupted. Additionally, whether a border wall even works as a deterrent remains debated, with studies suggesting that a comprehensive approach addressing root causes of migration would be more effective in the long term.

Returning to the ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy

Trump has promised to reinstate the “remain in Mexico” policy he put in place during his first 

term. This policy, formally called the Migrant Protection Protocols, forced migrants who entered the U.S. over the southern border and requested asylum to return to Mexico while their cases were heard. During the Trump administration, this led to more than 65,000 migrants not from Mexico struggling to find temporary shelter in northern Mexico.

More Border Patrol agents

Trump plans to hire 10,000 new Border Patrol agents. This could be a difficult task, as the U.S. Border Patrol has struggled to fill existing positions due to low morale and funding issues. Trump has promised to offer pay raises and bonuses to enhance recruitment and retention within the agency.

Trump’s plan would enlarge the Border Patrol by 50% and require congressional approval. However, the campaign has not clarified how it would secure the necessary funding. In February, Republicans and Democrats in Congress had agreed on a border security deal that would have added 2,500 more Border Patrol agents and expanded the roster of immigration judges. President Joe Biden promised to sign the measure. But the bill died after Trump told Republicans to wait to take action until after the election.

Ending birthright citizenship

On his first day back in office, Trump has promised to issue an executive order ending the long-standing Constitutional principle that children born in the U.S. are granted citizenship. Trump said he would instruct federal agencies to require that any child born in the U.S. have at least one parent who is a lawful permanent resident or citizen, before they can be issued a passport or Social Security number. 

The 14th Amendment of the Constitution guarantees that all people born in the U.S. have the rights of citizens, regardless of their race. Ratified in 1868, that amendment sought to remedy the harm caused by the Supreme Court’s Dred Scott decision of 1857, which ruled that Black people were not citizens. Any executive action Trump takes to deny birthright citizenship to people born in the U.S. is sure to be challenged in court and would likely be fought all the way to the  Supreme Court.

Ideological screenings for immigrants

Trump has promised to bring back the travel ban from Muslim-majority countries he implemented in his first term. His campaign wrote on X in October 2023 that he would “reinstate and expand” the ban on travel from “terror-plagued countries” and “implement strong ideological screening for all immigrants.”

In that post, the Trump campaign listed plans to send immigration agents to protests in the U.S. to remove “pro-Jihadist” demonstrators from the country and to revoke student visas of “radical anti-American and anti-semitic foreigners” at universities. “Sympathy for jihadists, Hamas, or Hamas ideology will be automatically disqualifying” for immigrants applying to enter the U.S, the campaign wrote.

Those ideas were expanded in the GOP platform adopted during the Republican National Convention in July.  “Republicans will use existing Federal Law to keep foreign Christian-hating Communists, Marxists, and Socialists out of America,” the party platform states.

source https://time.com/7171654/donald-trump-immigration-plan-2024/