Report: An Increase in Glendale’s Minimum Wage Could Derail the City’s Economy

Worker

Glendale residents will have the opportunity to decide whether or not to raise minimum wage and benefits for hotel and event workers this November. The Hotel and Event Center Minimum Wage Protection Act, proposed and funded by the Worker Political Action Committee, will be on the ballot this year and while it seems to stem from good intentions, a report from the Common Sense Institute of Arizona says it could have detrimental economic impacts.

The initiative not only states that hotel and event centers workers must earn a minimum of $20 per hour, but it would also set a limitation on the amount of square feet a room attendant is required to clean before the employer must pay twice the hourly wage, it would require employers to distribute service charges to the employees who performed those services and lastly, the city of Glendale would be required to enforce these rules.

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Commentary: Don’t Jail Parents for School Shootings – Arm Teachers

Teacher Guns

Understandably, we want to blame someone besides the 14-year-old who murdered four people last week at Apalachee High School in Georgia. People are shocked and upset that the father taught the boy to shoot and hunt and bought the boy a rifle for Christmas. But that doesn’t mean it made any sense for police to arrest the father the day after the school shooting on two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter, and eight counts of cruelty to children.

This isn’t the first time that parents are being held liable for their children’s actions. Jennifer and James Crumbley were sentenced to prison for 10 to 15 years after their son perpetrated the 2021 Oxford High School shootings in Michigan. Their crime? Letting their son have access to the father’s pistol, which was used in the murders.

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Fani Willis Defies Subpoena from State Investigative Committee to Attend Black Caucus Event in D.C.

Fani Willis

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis defied a subpoena Friday issued by a Georgia state senate committee investigating her alleged misconduct.

Rather than testify before the committee, Willis is scheduled to attend the annual legislative conference for the Congressional Black Caucus in Washington, D.C. An agenda for the Georgia Senate Special Committee on Investigations hearing stated Willis would provide “sworn testimony,” but state Republican Sen. Bill Cowsert began the meeting by announcing Willis would not appear.

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Accused Killer Colt Gray Missed Nine of 12 Possible School Days After Enrolling Two Weeks Late at Apalachee High School: GBI

Colt Gray

Colt Gray, who authorities say killed four at the Apalachee High School on September 4, missed nine days of school after enrolling two weeks after classes commenced for the 2024 school year, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) revealed on Friday.

The GBI confirmed Colt Gray was enrolled at the high school on August 14, indicating he began attending two weeks after the Barrow County School System calendar indicates classes began.

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‘My Signature Has Been Forged’: DeSantis Probes Florida Pro-Abortion Ballot Measure Petitions amid Fraud Allegations

Ron DeSantis

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration is asking law enforcement to “prioritize” the investigation into what may be “fraudulent” signatures on petitions to get a pro-abortion measure on the Nov. 5 ballot, according to a letter shared with The Daily Signal.

The Palm Beach Supervisor of Elections’ office received complaints from voters about their signatures being forged on constitutional initiative petitions circulated by Floridians Protecting Freedom, the pro-abortion coalition behind an amendment that would legalize abortion on demand up to birth.

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Dave McCormick Argues Biden-Harris, Sen. Bob Casey Responsible After Pennsylvania Town Sees 2,000 Percent Increase in Migrants

Republican U.S. Senate nominee Dave McCormick on Friday blamed Democratic leaders, including the Biden-Harris administration and his political opponent, Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), after one Pennsylvania town saw a 2,000 percent increase in migrants under the current administration.

The Republican’s campaign said McCormick released the statement as “reports reveal the small Pennsylvania town of Charleroi is suffering from a [2,000 percent] increase in migrants.”

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RNC Sues North Carolina Election Officials for Allowing Digital Student IDs to Be Used as Voter ID

Michael Whatley

The Republican National Committee (RNC) on Thursday sued the North Carolina State Board of Elections (NCSBE) for a fourth time in a month, citing its recent decision that digital student identification cards are adequate for voting in November.

The NCSBE voted on Aug. 20 to allow the use of digital student ID cards generated by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a sufficient form of identification, reversing its previous rule that only physical and plastic photo ID cards could be used. But the lawsuit argues that the new rule circumvents state election law.

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Music Spotlight: Andrea Vasquez

Andrea Vasquez

Since country music isn’t about a place or demographic but about a mindset, I try to portray a wide range of what country music is and encompasses.

Someone who has been on my radar for a few years is a petite singer/songwriter with powerhouse vocals and an unstoppable attitude that combines to make the complete package known as Andrea Vasquez. The Cali native has blended her love of modern country and Latin-American roots to create a refreshing sound within the genre, with her newest song, “Solo,” out this week.

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Latest Bush Admin Official to Endorse Harris is Former A.G. Alberto Gonzales, Now Dean of Belmont Law, Who Resigned After Democrats Demanded Perjury Inquiry

Alberto Gonzales

Former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Thursday endorsed the presidential bid of Vice President Kamala Harris, making the current Belmont University College of Law Dean the latest Bush administration official to back the Democrat over former President Donald Trump.

In his endorsement, published by German-owned Politico, Gonzales noted he is “the only lawyer in American history to serve both as White House counsel and as attorney general,” but did not note that he resigned from the latter position as prominent Democrats demanded he face a perjury inquiry due to his claims before Congress.

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Commentary: Yet Another Democrat Vote Fraud Scheme Exposed

People Voting

This week, former president Donald Trump noted the need for stronger border protections to stop illegal voting.

He’s right — noncitizen voting is a threat to our republic.  And Democrats know it — since 2021, they have welcomed millions of illegal migrants into the country.  It’s not surprising some of those same illegal migrants are registered to vote — even though it’s against the law, cancels out a legal citizen’s vote, and puts illegally registered immigrants at risk for deportation.

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Boeing’s Problems Explode as Thousands Walk Off Job in Midnight Strike

Boeing Strike

Thousands of Boeing factory workers went on strike shortly after midnight on Friday in another blow to the beleaguered airplane maker, which has spent months battling a wave of quality control crises, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) rejected a tentative agreement between Boeing and union leaders that would have established a 25% wage increase over four years, the WSJ reported. Roughly 94% of the union’s 33,000 members voted to reject the contract and 96% voted in favor of the strike — significantly more than the two-thirds majority needed for the work stoppage to move forward.

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Conservative Florida Attorney Appeals License Suspension, Denounces Political Censorship over Calling His Opponent ‘Corrupt’ and ‘Swampy’

Chris Crowley

Chris Crowley, a conservative attorney in Florida, filed an appeal with the Florida Supreme Court last month contesting 60-day suspension of his law license for exercising free speech during his political campaign for Office of the State Attorney in Florida’s 20th Judicial Circuit. His attorney said this is the first time an attorney has been disciplined for partisan political speech in Florida, and likely anywhere in the U.S.

Crowley, a decorated Gulf War veteran, said the Florida Bar should be subject to the state’s anti-SLAPP law, which prohibits the use of the courts to suppress free speech. SLAPP stands for Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation. 

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Federal Judge Releases Alleged Cyberstalker McKenzie McClure from Psychiatric Center Despite Objections of Nashville Christian School

McKenzie McClure

Alleged cyberstalker McKenzie McClure, who identifies as a transgender man named Kalvin, was released on Thursday from the East Tennessee psychiatric facility where she was ordered to receive treatment before her case could move forward following a detention hearing held by U.S. District Court Judge Chip Frensley.

McClure will now receive outpatient care while living at home with her parents, a location the court heard from the Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) Head of School is only blocks away from a bus stop used by its students.

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YouTube Censors Police Video of Jon Bon Jovi Talking Distraught Woman off Nashville Bridge During Music Video Shoot

Jon Bonjovi

A Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) spokesman confirmed to The Tennessee Star on Thursday that YouTube pulled its video of legendary musical artist Jon Bon Jovi talking a “distraught woman” off the ledge of a Nashville bridge, potentially saving her life.

MNPD Public Affairs Director Don Aaron confirmed to The Star the video was originally published to a YouTube channel operated by the police department, and that it was removed from the platform by YouTube. The platform did not impose additional punishment to the MNPD-operated channel beyond removal of its video, Aaron told The Star.

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Cook Political Report Now Says Montana Senate Race Is ‘Leaning Republican’

Montana Senate Race

Republican candidate Tim Sheehy is now poised to dethrone Democratic incumbent Sen. Jon Tester for Montana’s Senate seat, according to a Cook Political Report rating from Thursday.

Cook Political Report, a leading nonpartisan election and campaign watcher, shifted its rating for the competitive senate seat from toss up to leaning Republican. Sheehy has consistently led Tester by a few points over the last few months, with the latest findings swinging even more in the Republican challenger’s favor.

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Election Officials Warn USPS About Key Issues with Voting by Mail Ahead of Presidential Election

USPS

A group of state and local election officials voiced concerns Wednesday regarding the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) capacity to efficiently handle the delivery of millions of ballots for the 2024 presidential election.

The National Association of State Election Directors and other officials wrote a letter to U.S. Postal Service Postmaster Louis DeJoy expressing concerns about USPS’ operations, such as processing delays, lost or delayed election mail and insufficient training that could impact the timely and accurate delivery of election mail. The officials stated in the letter that mailed ballots, postmarked by the required date during the past year and recent primary season, arrived at local election offices several days past the deadline for counting.

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Tim Walz Appointed Member of Political Party ‘Loyal’ to Chinese Communists to State Board

Tim Walz

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, appointed a member of a political faction that has pledged loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to a state board that advises the government on Asian-American affairs, a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation found.

Walz first appointed Chang Wang, a Minnesota-based attorney, to the Council On Asian Pacific Minnesotans in May 2020. Wang now serves as the “interim chair” of the Council On Asian Pacific Minnesotans, which advises the governor, legislature and other state agencies by promoting the “economic, social, legal and political equality of Asian Pacific Minnesotans,” according to its website. Wang’s term is up in January 2025.

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LaRose Wants Attorney General to Prosecute Voting Violations

LaRose says he has sent evidence of more than 600 election law violations to county prosecutors since 2019 that have not been pursued.

“Unfortunately, many of these referrals have not been pursued by law enforcement, sometimes by choice and other times due to limited prosecutorial capacity,” LaRose said. “State law gives the attorney general the authority to take up these referrals if the prosecuting attorney doesn’t prosecute the violations within a reasonable time. The only way to maintain Ohio’s high standard of election integrity is to enforce the law whenever it’s broken.”

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Poll Shows Jewish Voters in Pennsylvania Breaking for Trump After October 7 Attacks, Campus Protests

Trump Supporters

Greater numbers of Jewish voters living in Pennsylvania are reportedly planning to vote Republican in November, with  former President Donald Trump seeing a double-digit increase in his support since 2020, according to a poll conducted by the Teach Coalition and Honan Strategy group and released by the New York Post on Wednesday.

Pollsters reported that Vice President Kamala Harris ahead with Jewish voters in Pennsylvania, with 49 percent of their vote. However, they found the former president was within single digits of the Democratic nominee, with Trump receiving the support of 42 percent of Pennsylvania’s Jewish voters.

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UCLA Report: Spanish Language Ads Key to Connecting with Florida Hispanic and Latino Voters

Florida Senate Race

Republican incumbent Sen. Rick Scott and Democratic challenger Debbie Mucarsel-Powell aired Spanish-language ads this week while amplifying their attempts to reach the Latino vote.

Scott, who speaks fluent Spanish, has so far released several Spanish language television and radio ads targeting Latino voters, and a pro-Scott super PAC backing Scott is also airing a Spanish language ad in Spanish in Orlando this week.

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Arizona Man and Three Others Charged with $178 Million COVID Fraud

Court and Money

An Arizona man and three associates have been charged in a scheme to defraud the U.S. Small Business Administration of at least $178 million in loans meant to help small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Eric Karnezis, 43, from Sedona, Arizona, has been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering in a 23-count indictment. His co-defendants are Lynisha Wells, 47, and Nikkia Bennett, 43, both from Chula Vista, California, and Fredrico Williams, 48, from San Diego.

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Dennis Quaid’s ‘Reagan’ Shatters Records with a 98 Percent Fan Score: ‘The Biggest Challenge Was Not Doing an Impersonation’

While exceeding all viewing and monetary expectations, Dennis Quaid’s Reagan continues to outperform all competitors.

When I learned that moviegoers gave the film an “A” CinemaScore and a 98 percent on Rotten Tomatoes – in sharp contrast to its critics’ score, which stood at 18 percent the last time I checked – I knew immediately that I wanted to see the movie. That 80 percent difference chasm makes it the film with the greatest gap between critics and fans in Hollywood theatrical films’ history, surpassing the record of 65 percent held by The Boondock Saints.

Dennis Quaid is known for playing iconic characters such as Doc Holliday in Wyatt Earp, Jimmy Morris in The Rookie, and Jerry Lee Lewis in Great Balls of Fire to name a few. But playing Ronald Reagan is at the top of his list and may just be the pinnacle character of his storied career.

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Joe Biden, Kamala Harris’s Mass Migration: 15 Percent of U.S. Residents Were Born in Foreign Country

Breitbart President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’s administration have overseen a record surge in the foreign-born population, with about 2-in-13 United States residents having been born in a foreign country. Analysis published by the Center for Immigration Studies, which reviewed data from the Census Bureau’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement of the Current Population Survey, details the extent to which Biden and Harris have grown the foreign-born population in the U.S. to a record-setting level. According to the survey, the foreign-born population stands at about 51.3 million as of March of this year — an increase of 2.5 million migrants compared to March 2023. In effect, the survey indicates that at least 2-in-13 U.S. residents are now foreign-born. READ THE FULL STORY                   

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Since 2021, U.S. Has Seen Greatest Number of Canadian Illegal Border Crossers in History

People crossing the U.S. Northern border

by Bethany Blankley   The greatest number of Canadians who’ve illegally entered the U.S. or attempted to illegally enter in recorded U.S. history has been reported under the Biden-Harris administration and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s administration. Since fiscal 2021 through July 2024, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported 150,701 Canadians illegally entered or attempted illegal entry into the U.S. The majority were apprehended at the US-Canada border, followed by other locations nationwide, with a small number at the US-Mexico border, according to the data. The greatest number of Canadians encountered or apprehended by CBP or Border Patrol agents was in fiscal 2022 of 47,126. U.S. officials at the northern border reported the most of 40,600; the next greatest number was reported nationwide totaling 6,413, followed by 113 at the southwest border, according to the data. In fiscal 2023, the numbers were slightly less, totaling 44,700, with the majority reported at the northern border of 37,169, followed by 7,431 nationwide and 100 at the southwest border. These numbers are up significantly from fiscal 2021, of 22,371. The majority in 2021, 16,193, were reported at the northern border, followed by 6,178 nationwide and 76 at the southwest border. The overwhelming majority are single…

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Mail-In Voting Begins as First State Sends Out Ballots Weeks from Election Day

Mail In Ballot

Alabama began sending out the first mail-in ballots to voters on Wednesday, over 50 days out from the November election, according to CNN.

Alabama residents who requested mail-in ballots will be the first to lock in their vote for the upcoming local, state and presidential races, with Wisconsin rolling out their mail-in ballots the following week on September 19, CNN reported. North Carolina was supposed to have kickstarted mail-in voting, but the state was held up by a court order to reprint their ballots after former independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. withdrew from the race and appealed to have his name be taken off.

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Blinken Fails to Comply with House Subpoena and Faces Contempt Resolution

Washington Examiner The House Foreign Affairs Committee will move forward with a resolution to hold Secretary of State Antony Blinken in contempt of Congress after the top Biden administration official failed to comply with a subpoena to testify on the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.  The committee will meet for a full markup on the resolution next week, after which the panel is likely to decide whether to advance the contempt charges to the full House for a vote. Committee members will meet on Sept. 19 at 2 p.m., according to committee Chairman Mike McCaul (R-TX).  The markup comes after the committee subpoenaed Blinken last week as the panel concluded its yearslong report into the chaotic withdrawal that ended in a suicide bombing outside Kabul International Airport that killed 13 U.S. service members and left several others behind as the Taliban regained control of the country. READ THE FULL STORY                   

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Federal Judge Clears Way for Betting on U.S. Elections in Predictions Market Case

Axios There are now two election-related betting contests legally trading on events-based marketplace Kalshi, following an opinion by a federal judge in favor of the company. Why it matters: Hundreds of millions of dollars has already been wagered on this year’s U.S. election, but all of those bets were made in a legal grey area, one that seems to have just become a lot more clear. Catch up quick: Kalshi, a startup predictions market where people can place wagers on real-world events, had sued the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for seeking to block it from offering a market for election outcomes. READ THE FULL STORY                   

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Matt Boyle Details How Trump Could Disrupt Kamala Harris’ Plan to Win over Women Voters While Keeping Men ‘Sullen, But Not Mutinous’

Matt Boyle

Matt Boyle, the national political editor at Breitbart News, explained how former President Donald Trump has an opportunity to infiltrate Vice President Kamala Harris’ strategy to win the election, which is by wooing women voters while at the same time keeping men voters “sullen, but not mutinous.”

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Teacher Allowed Alleged Apalachee High School Killer Colt Gray to Leave Classroom with Belongings Ahead of Attack: GBI

Colt Gray

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) on Thursday revealed alleged Apalachee High School attacker Colt Gray, who is accused of killing four and injuring nine at the school on September 4, was allowed to leave his classroom by a teacher after he asked to speak with someone at the front office.

According to a GBI web page about the Apalachee High School attack, the teacher allowed Colt Gray to leave a classroom after he requested to “go to the front office and speak someone.”

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During Seminar for Journalists on Election Law, Progressive Knight Foundation Dismisses Anticipated Claims of Election Fraud

Stop the Steal Rally

The progressive Knight Foundation conducted a seminar on September 5 to educate journalists about election law for the upcoming 2024 general election. Co-sponsored with the American Bar Association’s Task Force for American Democracy, the speakers consisted of election fraud deniers, including activists like David Becker of The Center for Election Innovation & Research.

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Biden DOJ Dropped Nearly Half of Pending Obstruction Charges for January 6 Defendants After Supreme Court Ruling

January Six

The Biden Department of Justice (DOJ) dropped nearly half of pending obstruction charges against Jan. 6 defendants since the Supreme Court issued a major ruling in June, according to recent data.

The Supreme Court ruled in June that in charging Jan. 6 defendants, the DOJ had interpreted too broadly a statute that carries up to 20 years in prison for anyone who corruptly “obstructs, influences, or impedes any official proceeding.” Since the Fischer v. United States ruling, around 60 of 126 defendants had the pending obstruction charges dropped, DOJ data from Sept. 6 shows.

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Arizona, Nevada Governors Sound Alarm on California Governor’s Gasoline Proposal

The Democratic governor of Arizona and Republican governor of Nevada signed a bipartisan letter warning against California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s gasoline refinery proposal they say could result in gasoline supply shortages and raise gasoline prices.

“It is evident that increased regulatory burdens on refiners and forced supply shortages will result in higher costs for consumers in all of our states,” wrote Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs and Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo in their letter to Newsom. “With both of our states reliant on California pipelines for significant amounts of our fuel, these looming cost increases and supply shortages are of tremendous concern to Arizona and Nevada.”

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Commentary: Kamala Harris’ War on Housing

Kamala Harris

As Kamala Harris campaigns to become the most powerful person in the world, her detractors claim, among other things, that she has no idea how to manage the economy. She has certainly demonstrated that with her recent pronouncements. Even her usual supporters have been critical of her economic policy suggestions. Price controls on groceries. $25,000 grants for first-time homebuyers. A tax on unrealized capital gains. But while Harris backpedals from some of her most economically illiterate schemes, it’s only to attract more votes. Don’t be fooled. She hasn’t changed.

To demonstrate Harris’s long-standing record of waging economic war on productive citizens, consider her actions while serving as California’s Attorney General. She used that office to support policies that made homes unaffordable. Those policies roll out from California and infect the rest of the country.

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Climate Activists Disrupt Virginia GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin Speech on September 11 Remembrance

Glenn Youngkin

Climate activists crashed Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s lunch keynote at a Federalist Society education event in downtown Washington, D.C., on Thursday, interrupting his remarks about remembering the victims and heroes of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The Republican, who sailed into office on the strength of parental demands to control their children’s education amid COVID-19 restrictions, was discussing how he just came from Arlington National Cemetery when a small mob of activists approached the stage and started chanting.

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Police Say Rifle Used at Apalachee High School Concealed in Backpack as Mother of Accused Killer Declares Son ‘Not a Monster’

Colt Gray

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith reportedly offered new details about how authorities believe accused Apalachee High School killer Colt Gray obtained the rifle used during the attack and managed to conceal it at the campus where he allegedly killed four and injured nine.

Smith reportedly told Fox 5 Atlanta the rifle used during the attack was purchased legally after a background check was completed by Colin Gray, the father of Colt Gray. The purchase was made at a gun store just miles away from Apalachee High School, which the outlet reported is now cooperating with law enforcement.

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Federal Government Could Slash Oil Lease Opportunities in a Top Producing State

Oil Rig

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s updated Resource Management Plan for North Dakota could cost the state $34 million a year for the next 30 years, North Dakota officials said in a protest filed with the agency.

The plan announced in August bans oil and gas leased on 4 million acres, which is about 99% of federal lands in the state, according to Gov. Doug Burgum. Forty-four percent of federally-owned fluid mineral acreage would also not be available for leasing.

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Generous Benefit Plans Leading Government Employees to Be Nearly 40 Percent More Expensive than Private Sector

Office Work

State and local government workers were roughly 40% more expensive to employ than private sector employees in the second quarter of 2024, largely due to generous benefit plans, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released Tuesday.

Total compensation costs, including wages, salaries and benefits, averaged $43.94 per hour for private sector employees, approximately 40% less than the $61.37 average hourly compensation cost for state and local government workers, according to the BLS data. The disparity was primarily driven by pricey government benefit plans, with costs averaging $13.04 per hour for private industry workers, over 80% less than the $23.57 per hour in benefit costs for their state and local government counterparts.

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Bipartisan Group of 42 Attorneys General Demand Health Warning on Social Media

Kid on phone

A bipartisan group of state attorneys general sent Congress a letter Monday, urging lawmakers to pass a bill that requires a U.S. surgeon general on every algorithm-driven social media platform.

Forty-two state attorneys general, led by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, signed onto the letter. Rosenblum serves as the President of the National Association of Attorneys General.

The move comes as United States Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy called for this to happen in June.

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