As Election Day is just days away, Washington, D.C., Michigan, Georgia and other states around the U.S. are ramping up security, as massive protests are expected no matter who wins.
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Tennessee’s Highest Point Gets a New Name
The U.S. Board of Geographic Names voted to approve a new name for this week’s highest peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Clingmans Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will now be known as Kuwohi, the Cherokee name for the mountain, which translates to “mulberry place.”
Read the full storyPro-Palestinian Protesters Vandalize Statues Outside White House During Massive Protest
Pro-Palestinian protesters vandalized statues and threw items at a National Park Service ranger near the White House during a Saturday protest calling for a cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas, according to multiple videos.
“Surround the White House for Gaza” was held Saturday afternoon and deemed a “national mobilization” to call for an “immediate ceasefire, an immediate end to the siege on Gaza, the freedom of all Palestinian prisoners, and an end to the occupation of Palestine,” according to a description of the event. Videos posted on social media appeared to show protesters vandalized statues, harassed a National Park Service ranger and set off smoke bombs.
Read the full storyPennsylvania Road Closure Costing Residents Thousands in Tolls
The reopening of a three-mile section of Route 611 through the Delaware Water Gap – shut down since December 2022 due to rockslides – has been complicated by a combination of nature and red tape.
In the meantime, area residents pay tolls multiple times a day along a detour that crosses into New Jersey and business owners struggle to keep their doors open.
Read the full storyThree Sue National Park Service for Refusing to Accept Cash for Park Entrance Fees
Three people have filed a lawsuit against the National Park Service for refusing to take cash for park entrance fees alleging its NPS Cashless program violates federal law.
The complaint, filed in federal court earlier this month, seeks to have a judge declare NPS Cashless unlawful. The suit alleges that three visitors were denied entrance to national parks in Arizona, New York and Georgia. The complaint further alleges that the “National Park Service no longer accepts American money at approximately twenty-nine national parks, national historic sites, national monuments, and national historic parks around the country.”
Read the full storyNational Park Service Backtracks on Removing Beloved Pennsylvania Statue After Widespread Ridicule
The National Park Service reversed its decision to remove a famous statue from Welcome Park in Philadelphia, according to a Monday statement from the agency.
A statue of William Penn, who founded the then-colony of Pennsylvania in 1681 and played a significant role in American politics, will not be removed from Welcome Park after deliberation from the National Park Service, accordingto The Associated Press. The agency first planned to remove the statue as part of “rehabilitation” efforts for the park, but backpedaled on that commitment after public backlash.
Read the full storyFederal Diversity Trainings Cost Taxpayers in 2023 Millions of Dollars
The Biden administration spent millions on diversity trainings for federal agencies, including some for the armed forces, in 2023.
Taxpayers were on the hook for the more than $16.3 million the federal government spent on diversity trainings taking place in 2023, according to a government spending database. Past government diversity trainings have instructed federal workers that asking an Asian colleague for help with a math problem could be racist, that men can become pregnant and that “social pain” can be the same as physical pain.
Read the full storyNational Park Service Names Oak Ridge as American World War II Heritage City
The National Park Service (NPS)announced Monday the designation of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, as an American World War II Heritage City.
NPS’ American World War II Heritage Cities Program ”honors the contributions of local towns, cities, counties and their citizens who stepped into the workforce to support America’s war effort during World War II.”
Read the full storyPopular Stop on Century-Old Hiking Trail Undergoes Name Change to ‘Finally Right that Wrong’
A popular stop for day hikers and backpackers in Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park is undergoing a name change, according to a press release by the National Park Service (NPS).
Read the full storyNational Park Service Requiring All Employees, Visitors to Wear Masks, in Line with Biden’s Federal Mask Mandate
The National Park Service (NPS) has implemented the federal mask mandate for all employees and visitors of national parks and facilities on Tuesday, the agency announced.
The NPS, which manages 423 properties across the country, is now in line with President Joe Biden’s executive order mandating masks on federal properties that he signed on Jan. 20, his first day in office.
Read the full storyNational Parks Service Approves 50,000-Person March on Washington, Will Not Enforce Masks, Social Distancing
A permit for the 57th March on Washington obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation shows that organizers anticipate around 50,000 people will attend the Washington, D.C., event Friday.
The permit for the annual march from the National Park Service grants permission to “conduct a public gathering” to Rev. Mark Thompson and the National Action Network (NAN) to commemorate the 57th March on Washington despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that has led to limitations on public gatherings.
Read the full storyTrump Donated $100,000 of His Salary to Help Fund Alcoholism Research
by Jason Hopkins President Donald Trump has donated $100,000 of his salary to the federal agency that manages research on alcohol and alcohol related issues. The sizable donation — which was the president’s third quarter salary of 2018 — was given to National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the White House revealed. The NIAA “conducts research on the impact of alcohol use on human health and well-being” and serves as “the largest funder of alcohol research in the world,” according to the organization’s website. The research agency was just the latest recipient of Trump’s presidential salary. As a 2016 candidate, the billionaire real estate mogul pledged not to accept a salary if elected president. Trump, who by law must be compensated, has followed through on this promise by giving away his $400,000 annual government income to various federal departments every quarter. Since occupying the White House, Trump has donated to the National Park Service, Department of Transportation, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Small Business Administration and other agencies. Herbert Hoover and John F. Kennedy are the only other U.S. presidents to refuse a salary while in office. The most recent donation is a personal issue for the president. Trump’s brother, Fred Trump Jr.,…
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