q york Mr Bayrou, 73, a crucial partner in Macron’s centrist alliance, has been a well-known figure in French politics for decades. His political experience is seen as key in efforts to restore stability as no single party holds a majority at the National Assembly. Mr Macron’s office said in a statement that Mr Bayrou “has been charged with forming a new government”. During the handover ceremony, Mr Bayrou said that “no one knows the difficulty of the situation better” than he does. “I’ve taken reckless risks all along my political life to raise the issue of debt and deficits in the most important elections,” he said. France is under pressure from the European Union’s executive body and financial markets to reduce its colossal debt, estimated to reach 6% of its gross domestic product this year. “I know that the risks of difficulties are much greater than the chances of success,” Mr Bayrou said, adding that he hopes to lead the country towards a “needed reconciliation”. “I think this is the only possible path to success,” he said. The new prime minister is expected to hold talks with political leaders from various parties in the coming days in order to choose new ministers. Former prime minister Michel Barnier resigned last week following a no-confidence vote prompted by budget disputes in the National Assembly, leaving France without a functioning government. Mr Macron in an address to the nation vowed to remain in office until his term ends in 2027. Mr Macron’s centrist alliance does not have a majority in parliament and Mr Bayrou’s Cabinet will need to rely on moderate lawmakers from the left and the right to be able to stay in power. Some conservatives are expected to be part of the new government. Mr Macron’s strategy aims at preventing far-right leader Marine Le Pen from holding “make or break” power over the government. Ms Le Pen helped oust Mr Barnier by joining her National Rally party’s forces to the left to pass the no-confidence motion last week. Mr Bayrou’s appointment is also in line with Mr Macron’s efforts to build a non-aggression pact with the Socialists so that they commit not to vote against the government in any future confidence motion. Mr Bayrou leads the centrist Democratic Movement, known as MoDem, which he founded in 2007. In 2017, he supported Mr Macron’s first presidential bid and became a weighty partner in the French president’s centrist alliance. At the time, he was appointed justice minister, but he quickly resigned from the government amid an investigation into the MoDem’s alleged embezzlement of European Parliament funds. Mr Bayrou this year was cleared in the case by a Paris court, which found eight other party officials guilty and sentenced the party to pay a fine. Mr Bayrou became well known to the French public when he was education minister from 1993 to 1997 in a conservative government. He was three times a candidate for president: in 2002, 2007 and 2012.

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Jimmy Carter, former US president and Nobel Peace Prize recipient, dead at 100, Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports

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Their expectation levels may have been different, but neither Rutgers nor Seton Hall has had the most promising start to the season. New Jersey's two power-conference programs will try to author a signature win when the Pirates visit the Scarlet Knights for the Garden State Hardwood Classic on Saturday afternoon in Piscataway, N.J. Rutgers (6-4) endured a three-game losing streak before picking up its first Big Ten win of the season Tuesday, 80-76 over Penn State. The Scarlet Knights have enjoyed plenty of attention thanks to five-star freshmen Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey, but they've also put a loss to Kennesaw State on their resume. They'll try to assert their dominance over Seton Hall (5-5), which has lost to Fordham, Hofstra and Monmouth while fielding one of the weakest offenses in Division I. At 60.1 points per game, the Pirates rank sixth-to-last in the country, even as they limit opponents to 59.4 points per outing (the No. 11 scoring defense). Rutgers is 5-0 at home after leading by as many as 15 in the Penn State victory. Harper had 24 points, 12 rebounds and five assists and Bailey produced 15 points and 15 rebounds. "They're like a sixth defender for us," Harper said of the fans. "We've been on the road for 20 days so seeing all of our fans, and seeing how loud they were, it meant the world to us." The student section will be especially fired up to see the rival Pirates, which could make free-throw shooting an issue for them. They rank No. 350 in the country at 60.3 percent from the foul line entering Friday. However, Seton Hall pulled out a road win the last time the game was played at Rutgers. In a defensive rock fight in 2022, the Pirates prevailed 45-43. Rutgers got revenge last season at Seton Hall's place, winning 70-63. But most players on both rosters are new and will experience the rivalry game for the first time. "I don't have a Jersey player on my team, right?" Pirates coach Shaheen Holloway told NJ.com . "So I have to get those guys to understand rivalries." Seton Hall will lean on Chaunce Jenkins (11.8 ppg) -- who was limited in the team's 85-76 loss to Oklahoma State on Sunday due to a knee injury, but is cleared to face Rutgers -- and Isaiah Coleman (11.7 ppg), one of three returning players from last year's team. For Rutgers, Harper is excited about the rivalry having grown up in New Jersey and watched his older brother, Ron Harper Jr., play in the game. At 23.4 ppg, Dylan Harper is the third-leading scorer in the country, and he adds 5.1 rebounds and 4.6 assists per contest. Seton Hall leads the all-time series 42-32. --Field Level MediaJordan Ivy-Curry, UCF aim to topple Tulsa

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