Author: Andrew Rogers

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has launched a review of nearly 1,000 cities across the state to ensure compliance with a new property tax law, his office said Tuesday. The law prevents cities from raising property taxes beyond the previous year if they fail to meet financial transparency requirements. Paxton’s initiative targets a majority of Texas’ roughly 1,200 cities, including Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Corpus Christi, and Waco. His office requested financial documents and other information but did not allege any wrongdoing in its announcement. In Waco, officials confirmed they received Paxton’s letter on November 21 and submitted all requested…

Michigan lawmakers are working on a new job creation package aimed at boosting employment and supporting economic growth. Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, and GOP House Speaker Matt Hall said they want the plan completed before the end of the year. The initiative is designed to address employment challenges and provide new opportunities for workers across the state. While specific details have not been released, lawmakers emphasized collaboration across party lines to deliver results quickly. Governor Whitmer highlighted the need for innovative strategies to create jobs and strengthen local economies. “Michigan families deserve opportunities to thrive,” she…

Fanatics has launched its prediction market platform, Fanatics Markets, in Georgia and South Carolina. The platform allows residents to trade contracts based on sports, politics, entertainment, and other cultural events, even though sports betting and gambling remain illegal in both states. Unlike traditional betting, Fanatics Markets works through contracts. Users purchase contracts that pay out only if their predictions come true. This approach is designed to let fans engage with events while offering a chance to earn profits for correct forecasts. Jay Trikha, owner of Savannah Taphouse on Broughton Street, said fantasy teams are already very popular among his patrons.…

Texas has launched a new plan to bring Turning Point USA chapters to high schools across the state. The initiative aims to open the right-wing organization’s clubs in every public high school campus. Governor Greg Abbott, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, and Turning Point USA Senior Director Josh Thifault announced the program at the Governor’s Mansion on Monday. The officials did not explain how schools would be required to start the clubs. However, Abbott warned that schools blocking the initiative could face “meaningful disciplinary action.” “Any school that stands in the way of a Club America program should be reported immediately…

Firefighters from Hancock and Brooke counties responded to a major house fire in New Cumberland, West Virginia, late Monday night that involved multiple structures. Authorities say the fire affected three homes, two of which were occupied at the time. The initial call came in around 11:15 p.m., reporting a house fire on Second Avenue. Fire crews arrived quickly and began working to control flames and heavy smoke that spread across the three properties. Police confirmed that all residents were evacuated safely and that no injuries have been reported so far. Fire departments from Newell, New Cumberland, Chester, and Hancock County…

Cinnabon has responded after a video went viral showing a Wisconsin employee shouting racist slurs at customers in Ashwaubenon, a suburb of Green Bay. The company described the footage as “disturbing” and confirmed that the employee involved has been fired. The video, shared on social media, shows a woman and her husband encountering the employee at the Cinnabon on Friday. The couple, described in an online fundraiser as a Black Somali Muslim pair, said the employee directed racist remarks and threats toward them. According to the woman, the encounter began when she asked if the caramel was running low. The…

The holiday season in Wisconsin is a time of family, celebration, and shared meals. Yet, not everyone in the state has access to enough food. Hunger remains a serious issue, and state leaders have worked for years to address it. During the pandemic, Governor Evers used $70 million in federal funding for the Food Security Initiative. This program connected food-insecure families with local Wisconsin farmers. Building on this effort, the 2025-2027 state budget now funds a new Food Security and Wisconsin Products Program. This program invests $5 million annually to support nonprofit organizations that buy and distribute food to communities…

New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani released a video Sunday explaining how residents can protect themselves during encounters with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He stressed that his administration will defend immigrant communities while upholding the city’s constitutional right to protest. The video follows a recent ICE raid in Manhattan, highlighting Mamdani’s plan to confront federal actions that could affect immigrants. He urged New Yorkers to be informed and confident in asserting their legal rights. “As mayor, I’ll protect the rights of every single New Yorker, including the more than three million immigrants who call this city home,” Mamdani…

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., compared White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller’s comments on migrants to the way Nazis described Jewish people. She made the remarks during an interview on Sunday. CBS host Margaret Brennan asked Omar to respond to Miller’s social media post, which read: “No magic transformation occurs when failed states cross borders. At scale, migrants and their descendants recreate the conditions, and terrors, of their broken homelands.” Omar described the comments as “White supremacist rhetoric” and said they echoed historical language used to dehumanize groups. “It reminds me of the way the Nazis described Jewish people…

The University of Oklahoma drew national attention after a student filed a complaint over receiving a zero on an essay. Junior Samantha Fulnecky claimed religious discrimination because her assignment referenced the Bible. The graduate instructor who graded the essay has been placed on administrative leave. Oklahoma Chronicle host Evan Onstot discussed the reactions to the complaint and its wider implications for free speech and religious expression on campus. Onstot also spoke with Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt about open primaries for state elections. Holt supports an initiative petition that could appear on voters’ ballots as State Question 836. If passed,…