Category: State News

Transgender Teacher Convicted of Threatening ‘Murder Spree’ at School, Media Bury Gender Identity

Just the News
Hadyn Dollery

A Virginia jury found transgender former Loudoun County substitute teacher Hadyn Dollery guilty on “two counts of threatening to injure or kill a person, one count of making threats on school grounds, and one count of threatening to damage a building,” charges that bring up to 25 years in prison combined, Loudoun Now reported.

Prosecutors showed evidence that 19-year-old Dollery, able to teach under a state law requiring only a high school diploma to be a substitute, threatened a “murder spree” at John Champe High School, where Dollery taught at the time, after the teacher’s student boyfriend broke up with him.

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Maricopa County Says Vendor ‘Mistakenly’ Mailed Out over 3K Midterm Ballots Prematurely

Just the News
Mail In Ballot

Maricopa County Recorder’s Office acknowledged Sunday that a third-party vendor “mistakenly” mailed out 3,126 ballots prematurely but said the incident affected “only the timing of the mailing.”

“The correct ballots were mailed to the correct voters,” the office said on social media. “Upon consultation with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, it was determined that the ballots remain valid and do not need to be voided or reissued.”

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H-1B Visas Are The One Topic Vivek Ramaswamy Refuses To Talk About

Daily Caller News Foundation
office meeting

You may remember him from the 2024 presidential debate stage or from cable news promoting his book on “woke,” but who really is Vivek Ramaswamy, and why does he want to run Ohio so badly?

To help answer this question, the Daily Caller News Foundation traveled to Marietta — a city of about 13,000 in the state’s Appalachian southeast — where the billionaire-turned-Republican Ohio gubernatorial nominee was holding a town hall with veterans and Gold Star families on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. After the event, the Cincinnati-born Ramaswamy sat for a 15-minute interview with his surgeon wife, Apoorva, at his side, during which he discussed a variety of topics, including the campaign, artificial intelligence, data centers and the impact of the war with Iran.

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Florida Becomes First State to Ban Use of EBT Cards to Purchase ‘Inappropriate’ Non-Essential Items

American Greatness
Ron DeSantis

Governor Ron DeSantis (R) announced Monday that Florida will become the first state to ban the use of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) funds for “inappropriate” non-essential purchases like tobacco, pornography, tattoos, and video games.

DeSantis made the announcement during a news conference at Feeding Tampa Bay, a regional food bank and nonprofit organization based in Tampa, Florida.

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El-Sayed Leads Rogers in Michigan Senate Race: Poll

Just the News
Michigan Senate Race

Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed has carved out a lead over former Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., in the battle for Michigan’s open Senate seat, according to a recent survey.

El-Sayed, who recently defeated Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., to clinch the party nomination, earned 46% support among likely voters in the latest Susquehanna Polling & Research survey. Rogers, for his part, took 39% support.

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Minnesota Man Once Praised as ‘Outstanding Refugee’ Now Faces Charges in Alleged Medicaid Fraud Case

Daily Caller News Foundation
Salman Ahmed Elmi

A man previously recognized as an “outstanding refugee” by the Minnesota Department of Human Services has been charged over an alleged Medicaid fraud scheme, according to news coverage.

Democratic Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced Monday that his Medicaid Fraud Control Unit had charged two men for allegedly stealing more than $1.5 million from the state’s Medicaid program. Salman Ahmed Elmi was charged in the first case with 8 felony theft offenses linked to Reva Health allegedly billing over $1,000,000 in Medicaid-funded services that were either never provided or were ineligible for reimbursement, per the announcement.

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Activists Opposing Virginia Data Centers Have Marxist Ties

Daily Caller News Foundation
PSL supporters

Some Virginia anti-data center activists and candidates are seemingly linked to a Marxist-Leninist party tied to the Chinese Communist Party, according to public records, social media and news reports.

Local Virginia political figures have appeared in connection with the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), a Marxist-Leninist organization that seeks to replace US capitalism with socialism. Data center opposition has intensified across Virginia over concerns about rising electricity demand and costs, water use, noise pollution and facilities being built near homes, according to the Virginia Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission. Those issues are especially pronounced in Northern Virginia, where the state’s data center industry is focused.

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Michigan Appeals Court Reverses Two More Convictions Tied to Whitmer Kidnapping Plot

Just the News
Whitmer suspects

A Michigan appeals court on Monday overturned two more convictions related to the 2020 kidnapping plot of Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, ruling that it was obligated to overturn the convictions based on precedent.

Pete Musico and Paul Bellar were previously convicted of providing material support for an act of terrorism in the plot, alongside Joseph Morrison, whose conviction was overturned by a different appeals panel last month.

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Nearly Two-Thirds of Minnesota 11th Graders Below Grade Level in Math

Admin

Nearly two-thirds of Minnesota 11th graders are below grade level in math, and the class of 2025 posted the worst academic performance on record for a graduating cohort even as it earned the highest graduation rate ever.

As measured by the state’s Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment, the spring 2025 proficiency results reflect the percentage of juniors meeting the state’s academic math standards, which include content students must “satisfactorily complete” by the time they graduate. (Seventy-seven percent of 11th graders statewide took the test.)

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McMaster Taps Lindsey Graham’s Sister to Finish His Term

Just the News
Darline Graham Nordone

Gov. Henry McMaster, R-S.C., on Monday announced his selection of Darline Graham Nordone to succeed the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

Nordone is the sister of the late Graham. Prior to the announcement, President Donald Trump had recommended that McMaster appoint her. During a press conference, McMaster stated that he had spoken to Nordone about serving the remainder of Graham’s term beore discussing it with Trump.

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Ohio Cracks Down on CDLs for Foreign-Born Drivers

The Daily Signal
truck driver

Amid federal scrutiny and concerns about commercial driver’s licenses being in the hands of unqualified drivers, Ohio is cracking down on CDLs for those drivers not born in the United States. The CDLs of 1,200 foreign-born drivers will be downgraded to a Class D by the state for failing to adequately meet standards proving they are in the United States legally.

Ohio Department of Public Safety spokesman Bret Crow confirmed the downgrade to The Center Square last week. “Those receiving this notice who believe their documents do meet the updated federal standards may request a hearing with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to dispute the downgrade and/or submit additional documentation to BMV to prove their eligibility,” he said.

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Florida Supreme Court Allows State Republicans to Use New Congressional Map

Just the News
Florida Supreme Court

The Florida Supreme Court declined Wednesday to halt the use of a new congressional map that state Republicans passed earlier this year amid a mid-decade redistricting push.

Gov. Ron DeSantis had signed the map into law in May, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a Louisiana redistricting case that the state’s existing congressional map that includes an additional majority-black district violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.

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AI Software Cuts Sepsis Deaths in Half at Florida Hospital

Daily Caller News Foundation
doctor and computer

A Florida hospital has cut sepsis-related deaths by half by utilizing advanced technology that continuously monitors patients to detect potential early warning signs, The Times reported on Tuesday.

Tampa General Hospital has saved almost 900 lives over four years after implementing the Palantir-developed Sepsis Hub system, The Times reported. The software tracks every patient’s vital signs of every patient around the clock and can notify a “rapid response team” of hospital employees to any slight changes that could indicate sepsis, according to the outlet.

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Anti-ICE Protesters Who Disrupted Minnesota Church Service Avoid State Charges

Just the News
Irene Kao

A Minnesota attorney said dozens of anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protesters will not face state charges for their disruption of a Minnesota church service earlier this year.

The 39 protesters are facing federal civil rights charges for disrupting the church service in St. Paul, Minnesota, in January. The charges came after a livestreamed video showed them interrupting services at Cities Church by chanting “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good,” after the protesters learned that one of the church pastors was also an ICE official.

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Ohio State University Announces $100 Million Settlement in Sexual Assault Cases

Just the News

The Ohio State University said Wednesday it has reached a $100 million settlement with all but one of the 280 former students who claimed a campus doctor sexually assaulted them decades ago.

The settlement marks a significant step toward ending the eight-year legal battle over allegations that the school had been aware of hundreds of claims that Dr. Richard Strauss, who committed suicide in 2005, sexually assaulted primarily male athletes in the mid-1970s to 1990s and did nothing. 

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Florida Sues OpenAI over Claimed AI Harms, Including Aiding Mass Shooters, Encouraging Suicide

Just the News
Florida AG

Florida on Monday became the first U.S. state to sue OpenAI over the alleged harms caused by the artificial intelligence firm, arguing it knowingly released an unsafe product and ignored warnings about its possible harms. 

The lawsuit, filed by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, alleges that OpenAI permitted its flagship AI assistant ChatGPT to aid and abet mass shooters, encourage user suicides, damage users’ critical thinking skills, and addict minors, the Wall Street Journal reported. 

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Ex-CIA Official Charged After FBI Search Finds $40 Million in Gold Bars, $2 Million in Cash, and Rolex Stash

Christina Botteri
David J. Rush

A former Senior Executive Service-level official at the Central Intelligence Agency with Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) clearance was charged with theft of public money after federal agents discovered approximately 303 one-kilogram gold bars valued at more than $40 million, roughly $2 million in U.S. currency, and about 35 luxury watches during a search of his Virginia home.

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Five Republicans Vote with Democrats to Keep South Carolina’s Race-Based Congressional Maps Alive

Daily Caller News Foundation
SC Republicans

Five South Carolina Republicans joined Democrats Tuesday to block a Trump-backed redistricting push that could have helped the GOP target the state’s lone Democratic-held House seat.

The state Senate voted 29-17 on a proposal to take up redistricting after the regular legislative session ends, falling two votes short of the two-thirds threshold needed to move forward. The vote came after President Donald Trump took to Truth Social, urging South Carolina Republicans to “GET IT DONE!” and said he would be “watching closely.”

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Democrats, Media and Legal Scholars Float Wild Proposals to Win Virginia Redistricting Battle

Just the News
spanberger virginia

In the wake of the party’s failed Virginia redistricting gambit, Democrats and their allies in the media and academia have been floating radical proposals to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. In response to their defeat at the Virginia Supreme Court, the Democratic leaders have promised to remain defiant and have labeled the judicial decision “undemocratic” and discriminatory against minorities. 

“Even after being aided and abetted by blatantly undemocratic court decisions, the failed GOP majority will not be able to gerrymander themselves back into power,” Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the House Democratic Minority Leader, wrote in a letter to his caucus on Monday. “Republican extremists spent the last few days applauding their ongoing effort to rig the midterm elections based on two egregious judicial decisions dripping with far-right partisanship,” he also wrote. “We remain undeterred.”

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FBI Raids Office of Virginia State Sen. Louise Lucas

Just the News
Louise Lucas

The FBI on Wednesday raided the office of Virginia Senate President Pro Tempore Louise Lucas in connection with a corruption probe that has ensnared the Democrat power broker and close ally of Gov. Abigail Spanberger, sources told Just the News.

Officials said FBI agents executed search warrants at multiple locations, including a state Senate office in Portsmouth, Va., and a cannabis business with ties to the state senator.

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Virginia Supreme Court Upholds Block on Certifying Referendum Results Allowing Redistricting

Just the News

The Virginia Supreme Court on Tuesday denied a motion from state Attorney General Jay Jones to lift a stay on the certification of the state’s redistricting referendum result.

The decision follows a Tazewell County Circuit court blocking certification while legal challenges to the referendum persist. The referendum faces multiple challenges and a separate court blocked a GOP-driven challenge earlier this week.

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Supreme Court Punts on Parental Rights Case of School District Concealing Gender Transition

The Daily Signal
classroom teacher

The Supreme Court  on Monday opted not to hear a gender secrecy case out of Florida, in which parents objected to a policy that kept their child’s school from informing them of a gender transition.

The case involves the School Board of Leon County, Florida, which in 2018 said that when students informed their school’s administration that they would assert a different gender identity, the school would treat students consistent with that gender identity. The plan said that school administrators revealing this to parents could be dangerous to the well-being of a student, CBS News reported.

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Virginia Judge Stays Certification of Redistricting Vote: Sources

Just the News
Judge bangs the gavel

A Virginia County Court on Wednesday barred certification of the state’s redistricting referendum, pending appeal, according to former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli and state Rep. Wren Williams, R-Va.

The Tazewell County Circuit Court issued the injunction barring certification. The order will face certain appeal and likely head to the state Supreme Court, which is already expected to address a challenge to the referendum.

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Soros-Linked Dark Money Puts Lopsided Democrat Gerrymander of Virginia Across Finish Line

Daily Caller News Foundation
George Soros

Virginia voters narrowly approved a gerrymandered House map Tuesday — one expected to add four Democratic seats in the midterms.

The 2026 Virginia redistricting amendment passed with 51% of voters backing the “yes” campaign and 49% casting their ballot for “no” with 94% of votes counted, the Associated Press reported. As a result, the light blue state, where former Vice President Kamala Harris won less than 52% of the vote in 2024, will likely see 91% of its House seats drawn to favor Democrats.

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RNC Chair Gruters Says Group Triggering Lawsuit in Virginia in Response to Dems’ Gerrymandering Win

Just the News
Joe Gruters

Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters said — prior to Virginians on Tuesday night voting in favor of a referendum to redraw the state’s congressional map to give Democrats 10 House members and leave Republicans with just one — that his group has a lawsuit in the legal pipeline to stop or reverse the effort. 

“We already have a case that’s in the courts right now,” he said on Just the News, No Noise, prior to the vote tally in which the referendum passed 51.5% to 48.5%.

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