<b>LINCOLN –&nbsp;</b>In a unanimous vote on August 7, 2025, the Nebraska Environmental Trust (NET) Board appointed Holly Adams as the agency’s new Executive Director.

Adams stated, “As Executive Director, I envision leading our agency with transparency and a renewed commitment to public engagement while adhering to NET’s updated laws, policies, and procedures. I am dedicated to our mission of conserving, enhancing, and restoring Nebraska’s natural environments. By maintaining open communication and consistency with our grantees, we will rebuild trust and increase our impact.”

After reviewing 54 applications, NET’s Executive Committee selected six candidates for the first round of interviews. Two candidates advanced to the second round, and Holly Adams was ultimately chosen as the finalist.

Holly Adams has served the State of Nebraska for the past twelve years. During the last five years, she has acquired valuable knowledge and experience in her role as the NET's Grant Administrator.

Adams holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Fisheries and Wildlife with an emphasis on Conservation Biology.

<p><i>Story by NET Communication</i></p><p><b>LINCOLN –&nbsp;</b>In a unanimous vote on August 7, 2025, the Nebraska Environmental Trust (NET) Board appointed Holly Adams as the agency’s new Executive Director.</p><p>Adams stated, “As Executive Director, I envision leading our agency with transparency and a renewed commitment to public engagement while adhering to NET’s updated laws, policies, and procedures. I am dedicated to our mission of conserving, enhancing, and restoring Nebraska’s natural environments. By maintaining open communication and consistency with our grantees, we will rebuild trust and increase our impact.”</p><p>After reviewing 54 applications, NET’s Executive Committee selected six candidates for the first round of interviews. Two candidates advanced to the second round, and Holly Adams was ultimately chosen as the finalist.</p><p>Holly Adams has served the State of Nebraska for the past twelve years. During the last five years, she has acquired valuable knowledge and experience in her role as the NET's Grant Administrator.</p><p>Adams holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Fisheries and Wildlife with an emphasis on Conservation Biology.</p>

Nebraska Environmental Trust announces New Executive Director

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754872804646.png" alt="&nbsp;President Trump seen on Sunday in the White House residence room  -image courtesy CSPAN" />
                        <figcaption>&nbsp;President Trump seen on Sunday in the White House residence room  -image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
                    </figure><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/Z9AfU5PVvW">pic.twitter.com/Z9AfU5PVvW</a></p>&mdash; Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) <a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec/status/1954877370625823191?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 11, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/IpKXCkTbJ7">pic.twitter.com/IpKXCkTbJ7</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1954878435182235906?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 11, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/mgqy6fCsIw">pic.twitter.com/mgqy6fCsIw</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1954560175941025915?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 10, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">President Trump will hold a press conference at 10AM ET tomorrow in the Briefing Room. Tune in! <a href="https://t.co/MFQNX2yeW5">pic.twitter.com/MFQNX2yeW5</a></p>&mdash; Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) <a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec/status/1954714380131533056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 11, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Reactions on Day One of increased federal law enforcement in D.C.:<br><br>&quot;It&#39;s awesome that we have extra police presence to keep everybody safe and have them coming back.&quot;<br><br>&quot;If it&#39;s going to stop the crime, yeah — it&#39;s necessary.&quot;<br><br>MAKE D.C. SAFE AGAIN! <a href="https://t.co/ExZOaLxizM">pic.twitter.com/ExZOaLxizM</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1954287936318681233?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 9, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

'No Mr. Nice Guy': Trump set to clean up Washington, D.C.

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/laurencross/">Lauren Cross</a>

If you live in a small town, you probably have fewer grocery stores than you did 30 years ago — and fewer choices inside them.

Independent grocers have disappeared, replaced by big national chains that now decide what’s on the shelves, how much it costs, and who gets to profit.

In 1990, the top four grocery chains controlled just 13% of nationwide sales. By 2019, the top four retailers — Walmart, Kroger, Costco, and Ahold Delhaize — controlled 34% of U.S. grocery sales,&nbsp;<a href="https://ers.usda.gov/sites/default/files/_laserfiche/publications/106795/EIB-256.pdf?v=40605" target="_blank">according to the USDA</a>.

That concentration hasn’t gone unnoticed. Just last year, the Federal Trade Commission and nine states&nbsp;<a href="https://hpj.com/2024/02/26/ftc-sues-to-block-supermarket-merger/" target="_blank">sued to block a $25 billion merger between grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons</a>, arguing that the deal would harm both shoppers and workers by reducing competition, increasing prices, and consolidating power into fewer hands. The merger has since unraveled, but only after a court battle and mounting public pressure.

In rural counties, market concentration more than doubled between 1990 and 2019, according to USDA data.

One way to measure concentration is the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), a tool used to track monopoly risk. In rural areas, HHI scores jumped from 3,104 to 5,584 — more than twice the threshold where federal antitrust regulators start to worry about competition. According to a 2023 USDA report, the USDA considers anything above 2,500 is considered highly concentrated.

Now that trend may speed up. The White House has proposed nearly $7 billion in USDA budget cuts, including $721 million from&nbsp;<a href="https://investigatemidwest.org/2025/05/14/trump-says-he-loves-farmers-hes-dismantlintheg-the-agency-helping-their-communities-survive/" target="_blank">Rural Development programs</a>&nbsp;— the ones that help small towns open grocery stores and other local businesses. One program on the chopping block is the Rural Business-Cooperative Service. Loan funding for community facilities and rural businesses would also drop by 45%, with no new grant dollars offered.

At the same time, the administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” initiative discusses improving nutrition, but proposes cuts to the very programs that help people buy food, including Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), school meal equipment, and farm-to-school efforts.

The bottom line? Rural communities already hit hardest by grocery consolidation are now facing even more roadblocks.

This&nbsp;<a href="https://investigatemidwest.org/2025/06/18/usda-data-highlights-monopoly-risk-in-rural-grocery-markets/" target="_blank">article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a href="https://investigatemidwest.org/" target="_blank">Investigate Midwest</a>&nbsp;and is republished here under a&nbsp;<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/" target="_blank">Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/6/1750436100569.png" alt=" General Manager Brian Horak walks down an aisle at Post 60 Market in Emerson, Nebraska. Locals opened the market as a cooperative in 2022 after the tiny town lost its only grocery store (Kevin Hardy/Stateline)." />
                        <figcaption> General Manager Brian Horak walks down an aisle at Post 60 Market in Emerson, Nebraska. Locals opened the market as a cooperative in 2022 after the tiny town lost its only grocery store (Kevin Hardy/Stateline).</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/laurencross/">Lauren Cross</a></p><p>If you live in a small town, you probably have fewer grocery stores than you did 30 years ago — and fewer choices inside them.</p><p>Independent grocers have disappeared, replaced by big national chains that now decide what’s on the shelves, how much it costs, and who gets to profit.</p><p>In 1990, the top four grocery chains controlled just 13% of nationwide sales. By 2019, the top four retailers — Walmart, Kroger, Costco, and Ahold Delhaize — controlled 34% of U.S. grocery sales,&nbsp;<a href="https://ers.usda.gov/sites/default/files/_laserfiche/publications/106795/EIB-256.pdf?v=40605" target="_blank">according to the USDA</a>.</p><p>That concentration hasn’t gone unnoticed. Just last year, the Federal Trade Commission and nine states&nbsp;<a href="https://hpj.com/2024/02/26/ftc-sues-to-block-supermarket-merger/" target="_blank">sued to block a $25 billion merger between grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons</a>, arguing that the deal would harm both shoppers and workers by reducing competition, increasing prices, and consolidating power into fewer hands. The merger has since unraveled, but only after a court battle and mounting public pressure.</p><figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/6/1750436058104.png" alt="" />
                        <figcaption></figcaption>
                    </figure><p>In rural counties, market concentration more than doubled between 1990 and 2019, according to USDA data.</p><p>One way to measure concentration is the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), a tool used to track monopoly risk. In rural areas, HHI scores jumped from 3,104 to 5,584 — more than twice the threshold where federal antitrust regulators start to worry about competition. According to a 2023 USDA report, the USDA considers anything above 2,500 is considered highly concentrated.</p><p>Now that trend may speed up. The White House has proposed nearly $7 billion in USDA budget cuts, including $721 million from&nbsp;<a href="https://investigatemidwest.org/2025/05/14/trump-says-he-loves-farmers-hes-dismantlintheg-the-agency-helping-their-communities-survive/" target="_blank">Rural Development programs</a>&nbsp;— the ones that help small towns open grocery stores and other local businesses. One program on the chopping block is the Rural Business-Cooperative Service. Loan funding for community facilities and rural businesses would also drop by 45%, with no new grant dollars offered.</p><p>At the same time, the administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” initiative discusses improving nutrition, but proposes cuts to the very programs that help people buy food, including Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), school meal equipment, and farm-to-school efforts.</p><p>The bottom line? Rural communities already hit hardest by grocery consolidation are now facing even more roadblocks.</p><p>This&nbsp;<a href="https://investigatemidwest.org/2025/06/18/usda-data-highlights-monopoly-risk-in-rural-grocery-markets/" target="_blank">article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a href="https://investigatemidwest.org/" target="_blank">Investigate Midwest</a>&nbsp;and is republished here under a&nbsp;<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/" target="_blank">Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.</p><figure>
                        <img src="https://investigatemidwest.org/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=754059&amp;ga4=G-R9VE8P61LG" alt="" />
                        <figcaption></figcaption>
                    </figure>

USDA data highlights monopoly risk in rural grocery market

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/shauneen-miranda/">Shauneen Miranda</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/jacob-fischler/">Jacob Fischler</a>&nbsp;<br><a href="https://stateline.org/">Stateline</a>

WASHINGTON — Fueled by President Donald Trump’s aims to bolster the U.S. House’s razor-thin GOP majority in the 2026 midterm elections, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/04/texas-redistricting-democrats-quorum-break-what-need-know/" target="_blank">rare mid-decade redistricting fight</a>&nbsp;in Texas grew increasingly bitter in recent days and engulfed other states.

As Democratic legislators in the Lone Star State fled to block a new congressional map, a handful of both blue and red states eyed their own redistricting plans, lawsuits cropped up and members of Congress pledged bills to curb redistricting wars.

While Texas is the only state that has so far taken formal action to redraw its U.S. House lines, a full-blown arms race could be imminent.

Here’s a breakdown on the redistricting battle as the drama unfolds:

How did all of this interest in redistricting kick off?

Republicans in Texas drew a new congressional map at the urging of Trump that could give the GOP five crucial new congressional seats in 2026.

Midterm elections typically lead to the loss of congressional seats for a president’s party.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, the GOP&nbsp;<a href="https://pressgallery.house.gov/member-data/party-breakdown" target="_blank">currently holds</a>&nbsp;219 seats in the House, while Democrats hold 212 spots, with four vacancies. That extremely narrow majority has created immense challenges for U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, as he tries to enact Trump’s sweeping agenda and cater to the president’s demands as well as factions in the GOP conference.

Though congressional districts are typically redrawn every decade following each U.S. Census, the move, particularly in Texas, is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/texas-redistricting-history-partisan-apportionment-democrats-legislature/" target="_blank">not unprecedented</a>&nbsp;and is allowed.

Texas Republicans&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/30/texas-redistricting-congressional-maps-house-republicans/" target="_blank">unveiled a draft</a>&nbsp;of the new congressional map in late July, which looks to reshape and flip major metro areas’ districts held by Democrats.

According to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/01/texas-congressional-redistricting-doj-coalition-districts/?_bhlid=7f2627553c4e88985dcc13d559313ade1585940b" target="_blank">The Texas Tribune</a>, the Department of Justice sent Texas’ leaders a letter in early July that said four of its districts violate the U.S. Constitution. The proposed map would dismantle those districts, per the Tribune.

More than 50 of Texas’ Democratic legislators left the state to try to block the legislature from adopting the new map, according to the Tribune.

This move has drawn the ire of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/05/texas-democrats-ken-paxton-court-vacate-seats-quorum-break/" target="_blank">Texas Gov. Greg Abbott</a>, who went so far as to&nbsp;<a href="https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-files-lawsuit-seeking-removal-of-texas-democrat-caucus-chair-representative-wu" target="_blank">file a lawsuit</a>&nbsp;asking to remove the Texas House Democratic Caucus chair, state Rep. Gene Wu, after Wu left the state.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also&nbsp;<a href="https://texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/attorney-general-ken-paxton-will-seek-judicial-orders-declaring-runaway-democrats-who-abandon-their" target="_blank">said Tuesday</a>&nbsp;that he will pursue a court ruling that declares the seats vacant for the House Democrats who do not return by Friday.

Texas GOP U.S. Sen. John Cornyn has also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cornyn.senate.gov/news/cornyn-urges-fbi-to-investigate-hold-fleeing-texas-legislators-accountable/" target="_blank">called on the FBI</a>&nbsp;“to take any appropriate steps to aid in Texas state law enforcement efforts to locate or arrest potential lawbreakers who have fled the state.” Trump on Tuesday, asked by a reporter if the FBI should “get involved,” said, “Well, they may have to.”

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been among the most vocal Democratic governors in suggesting retaliating against Texas Republicans by redrawing his populous blue state’s own lines before the 2026 elections.

State laws in California and other Democratic states make mid-decade redistricting tougher than it is in Texas.

While pro-democracy groups have praised California’s nonpartisan commission as the “gold standard” of independent redistricting, Newsom has indicated he would ask state lawmakers to temporarily scrap it to join the arms race he says Trump started in Texas.

At a Monday press conference, Newsom justified his exploration of mid-decade redistricting in the Golden State by describing Trump’s recent and historic record as anti-democratic.

“These folks don’t play by the rules,” Newsom said. “If they can’t win playing the game with the existing set of rules, they’ll change the rules. That’s what Donald Trump has done … Here is someone who tried to break this country, tried to light democracy on fire on Jan. 6. He recognizes he’s going to lose in the midterms.”

What other states are looking at potentially redistricting?

Vice President JD Vance is slated to visit Indiana Thursday in an attempt to push redistricting, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/08/05/vice-president-heads-to-indiana-to-push-redistricting-but-legalities-remain-unclear/" target="_blank">Indiana Capital Chronicle</a>.

Indiana GOP Gov. Mike Braun said that as of now, no commitments have been made, when asked about redistricting efforts in the Hoosier State, per the Capital Chronicle.

Leaders of large Democratic states, in addition to California, are considering their own redistricting in response to Texas.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul wrote in an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/texas-redistricting-new-york-kathy-hochul-20802629.php?emci=f5933625-3c72-f011-8dc9-6045bda9d96b&amp;emdi=85ee365f-d072-f011-8dc9-6045bda9d96b&amp;ceid=37942749" target="_blank">op-ed published in the Houston Chronicle</a>&nbsp;Tuesday that she would “not sit on the sidelines” and watch “Republicans dismantle democracy.”

“What Texas is doing isn’t a clever strategy, it’s political arson — torching our democracy to cling to power,” Hochul wrote. “The only viable recourse is to fight fire with fire.”

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker appeared alongside Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin and a group of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/texas-dems-flee-illinois-block-redistricting-vote" target="_blank">exiled Texas Democratic lawmakers</a>&nbsp;at a news conference Tuesday. Pritzker said it was “possible” the state would pursue redistricting,&nbsp;<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/illinois-governor/2025/08/05/jb-pritzker-illinois-remap-texas-democrats-greg-abbott" target="_blank">according to the Chicago Sun-Times</a>.

Other Democratic governors — even including Laura Kelly of ruby-red Kansas — raised the prospect during a Democratic Governors Association&nbsp;<a href="https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2025/08/01/democratic-governors-endorse-mid-decade-redistricting-in-response-to-gop-efforts/" target="_blank">meeting in Wisconsin last week</a>&nbsp;of pursuing mid-decade redistricting if Texas follows through.

Republican states are also considering jumping in the fray.

Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O’Laughlin, a Republican, told a news radio station last week that it was&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/08/02/missouri-senate-leader-says-special-session-is-likely-to-redraw-congressional-map/" target="_blank">“likely”</a>&nbsp;lawmakers would convene in a special session to redraw district lines after&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/07/25/trump-white-house-pressing-missouri-republicans-to-redraw-congressional-map/" target="_blank">pressure from Trump</a>.

And Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican who holds the most competitive of Nebraska’s three U.S. House seats but plans to step down,&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/08/06/nebraska-might-join-national-wildfire-of-mid-decade-redistricting/" target="_blank">told the Nebraska Examiner</a>&nbsp;that Republicans in the state were having conversations about potential redistricting.

An arms race to shorten the cycle for redrawing congressional lines could come at a cost for efforts to overhaul the redistricting process.

Common Cause, a national pro-democracy group that advocates for election reforms including nonpartisan redistricting, urged Democrats not to respond to Texas.

A redistricting arms race would only result in “rigged elections across America,” Emily Eby French, the policy director for Common Cause Texas,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/good-government-group-urges-blue-states-back-away-redistricting-arms-race" target="_blank">said on a press call last week</a>. It was wrong for Republicans to put “a thumb on the scale” through redistricting, she said, but also wrong for Democrats to do the same.

“The real solution is for Democrats to help us lift the Republican thumb off of the Texas scale and every other scale in America until we reach free and fair elections for everyone.”

Trump, whose urging appeared to prompt Texas Republicans to action, has consistently pushed lawmakers in that state to reinforce the GOP advantage there.

Tuesday, he said on CNBC that Republicans were “entitled” to five more House seats in Texas.

Martin, the DNC chair, responded in Illinois.

“No party is entitled to any district,” he said. “We have to go out and earn the votes.”

Still, Martin advised Democrats in blue states to do the opposite by responding in kind to Texas Republicans.

In&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/gun-knife-fight-democrats-chief-pledges-more-pugnacious-party-more-states" target="_blank">an interview with States Newsroom last week</a>, Martin suggested Democratic states drop any commitment to nonpartisan redistricting in response to Texas.

“We’re not here to tie one of our hands behind our back,” he said. “We can’t be the only party that’s playing by the rules.”

At least two GOP House lawmakers — representing blue states looking at retaliatory redistricting efforts against Trump — are taking it upon themselves to introduce bills in Congress that bar these initiatives.

GOP Rep. Kevin Kiley of California&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepKiley/status/1952851943912817083" target="_blank">introduced a bill</a>&nbsp;in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/4889/text" target="_blank">House</a>&nbsp;this week that would ban mid-decade redistricting across the country.

Kiley said Newsom “is trying to subvert the will of voters and do lasting damage to democracy in California,” in a&nbsp;<a href="https://kiley.house.gov/posts/rep-kiley-to-introduce-redistricting-legislation" target="_blank">statement</a>&nbsp;earlier this week.

“Fortunately, Congress has the ability to protect California voters using its authority under the Elections Clause of the U.S. Constitution,” he said. “This will also stop a damaging redistricting war from breaking out across the country.”

Rep. Mike Lawler, a New York Republican, also said he&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepMikeLawler/status/1952871627852833110" target="_blank">plans to introduce legislation</a>&nbsp;to prohibit “partisan gerrymandering and mid-decade redistricting.”

The New York Republican told CNN on Tuesday that “this is fundamentally why Congress is broken,” adding that “you do not have competitive districts and so, most members are focused on primaries and not actually engaging in a general election.”&nbsp;

<p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/shauneen-miranda/">Shauneen Miranda</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/jacob-fischler/">Jacob Fischler</a>&nbsp;<br><a href="https://stateline.org/">Stateline</a></p><p>WASHINGTON — Fueled by President Donald Trump’s aims to bolster the U.S. House’s razor-thin GOP majority in the 2026 midterm elections, a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/04/texas-redistricting-democrats-quorum-break-what-need-know/" target="_blank">rare mid-decade redistricting fight</a>&nbsp;in Texas grew increasingly bitter in recent days and engulfed other states.</p><p>As Democratic legislators in the Lone Star State fled to block a new congressional map, a handful of both blue and red states eyed their own redistricting plans, lawsuits cropped up and members of Congress pledged bills to curb redistricting wars.</p><p>While Texas is the only state that has so far taken formal action to redraw its U.S. House lines, a full-blown arms race could be imminent.</p><p>Here’s a breakdown on the redistricting battle as the drama unfolds:</p><h2>How did all of this interest in redistricting kick off?</h2><p>Republicans in Texas drew a new congressional map at the urging of Trump that could give the GOP five crucial new congressional seats in 2026.</p><p>Midterm elections typically lead to the loss of congressional seats for a president’s party.&nbsp;</p><p>Meanwhile, the GOP&nbsp;<a href="https://pressgallery.house.gov/member-data/party-breakdown" target="_blank">currently holds</a>&nbsp;219 seats in the House, while Democrats hold 212 spots, with four vacancies. That extremely narrow majority has created immense challenges for U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, as he tries to enact Trump’s sweeping agenda and cater to the president’s demands as well as factions in the GOP conference.</p><p>Though congressional districts are typically redrawn every decade following each U.S. Census, the move, particularly in Texas, is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/texas-redistricting-history-partisan-apportionment-democrats-legislature/" target="_blank">not unprecedented</a>&nbsp;and is allowed.</p><h2>What’s going on in Texas?</h2><p>Texas Republicans&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/07/30/texas-redistricting-congressional-maps-house-republicans/" target="_blank">unveiled a draft</a>&nbsp;of the new congressional map in late July, which looks to reshape and flip major metro areas’ districts held by Democrats.</p><p>According to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/01/texas-congressional-redistricting-doj-coalition-districts/?_bhlid=7f2627553c4e88985dcc13d559313ade1585940b" target="_blank">The Texas Tribune</a>, the Department of Justice sent Texas’ leaders a letter in early July that said four of its districts violate the U.S. Constitution. The proposed map would dismantle those districts, per the Tribune.</p><p>More than 50 of Texas’ Democratic legislators left the state to try to block the legislature from adopting the new map, according to the Tribune.</p><p>This move has drawn the ire of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2025/08/05/texas-democrats-ken-paxton-court-vacate-seats-quorum-break/" target="_blank">Texas Gov. Greg Abbott</a>, who went so far as to&nbsp;<a href="https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-files-lawsuit-seeking-removal-of-texas-democrat-caucus-chair-representative-wu" target="_blank">file a lawsuit</a>&nbsp;asking to remove the Texas House Democratic Caucus chair, state Rep. Gene Wu, after Wu left the state.</p><p>Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also&nbsp;<a href="https://texasattorneygeneral.gov/news/releases/attorney-general-ken-paxton-will-seek-judicial-orders-declaring-runaway-democrats-who-abandon-their" target="_blank">said Tuesday</a>&nbsp;that he will pursue a court ruling that declares the seats vacant for the House Democrats who do not return by Friday.</p><p>Texas GOP U.S. Sen. John Cornyn has also&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cornyn.senate.gov/news/cornyn-urges-fbi-to-investigate-hold-fleeing-texas-legislators-accountable/" target="_blank">called on the FBI</a>&nbsp;“to take any appropriate steps to aid in Texas state law enforcement efforts to locate or arrest potential lawbreakers who have fled the state.” Trump on Tuesday, asked by a reporter if the FBI should “get involved,” said, “Well, they may have to.”</p><h2>How is California reacting?</h2><p>California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been among the most vocal Democratic governors in suggesting retaliating against Texas Republicans by redrawing his populous blue state’s own lines before the 2026 elections.</p><p>State laws in California and other Democratic states make mid-decade redistricting tougher than it is in Texas.</p><p>While pro-democracy groups have praised California’s nonpartisan commission as the “gold standard” of independent redistricting, Newsom has indicated he would ask state lawmakers to temporarily scrap it to join the arms race he says Trump started in Texas.</p><p>At a Monday press conference, Newsom justified his exploration of mid-decade redistricting in the Golden State by describing Trump’s recent and historic record as anti-democratic.</p><p>“These folks don’t play by the rules,” Newsom said. “If they can’t win playing the game with the existing set of rules, they’ll change the rules. That’s what Donald Trump has done … Here is someone who tried to break this country, tried to light democracy on fire on Jan. 6. He recognizes he’s going to lose in the midterms.”</p><h2>What other states are looking at potentially redistricting?</h2><p>Vice President JD Vance is slated to visit Indiana Thursday in an attempt to push redistricting, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/08/05/vice-president-heads-to-indiana-to-push-redistricting-but-legalities-remain-unclear/" target="_blank">Indiana Capital Chronicle</a>.</p><p>Indiana GOP Gov. Mike Braun said that as of now, no commitments have been made, when asked about redistricting efforts in the Hoosier State, per the Capital Chronicle.</p><p>Leaders of large Democratic states, in addition to California, are considering their own redistricting in response to Texas.</p><p>New York Gov. Kathy Hochul wrote in an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/texas-redistricting-new-york-kathy-hochul-20802629.php?emci=f5933625-3c72-f011-8dc9-6045bda9d96b&amp;emdi=85ee365f-d072-f011-8dc9-6045bda9d96b&amp;ceid=37942749" target="_blank">op-ed published in the Houston Chronicle</a>&nbsp;Tuesday that she would “not sit on the sidelines” and watch “Republicans dismantle democracy.”</p><p>“What Texas is doing isn’t a clever strategy, it’s political arson — torching our democracy to cling to power,” Hochul wrote. “The only viable recourse is to fight fire with fire.”</p><p>Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker appeared alongside Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin and a group of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/texas-dems-flee-illinois-block-redistricting-vote" target="_blank">exiled Texas Democratic lawmakers</a>&nbsp;at a news conference Tuesday. Pritzker said it was “possible” the state would pursue redistricting,&nbsp;<a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/illinois-governor/2025/08/05/jb-pritzker-illinois-remap-texas-democrats-greg-abbott" target="_blank">according to the Chicago Sun-Times</a>.</p><p>Other Democratic governors — even including Laura Kelly of ruby-red Kansas — raised the prospect during a Democratic Governors Association&nbsp;<a href="https://wisconsinexaminer.com/2025/08/01/democratic-governors-endorse-mid-decade-redistricting-in-response-to-gop-efforts/" target="_blank">meeting in Wisconsin last week</a>&nbsp;of pursuing mid-decade redistricting if Texas follows through.</p><p>Republican states are also considering jumping in the fray.</p><p>Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O’Laughlin, a Republican, told a news radio station last week that it was&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/08/02/missouri-senate-leader-says-special-session-is-likely-to-redraw-congressional-map/" target="_blank">“likely”</a>&nbsp;lawmakers would convene in a special session to redraw district lines after&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/07/25/trump-white-house-pressing-missouri-republicans-to-redraw-congressional-map/" target="_blank">pressure from Trump</a>.</p><p>And Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican who holds the most competitive of Nebraska’s three U.S. House seats but plans to step down,&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/08/06/nebraska-might-join-national-wildfire-of-mid-decade-redistricting/" target="_blank">told the Nebraska Examiner</a>&nbsp;that Republicans in the state were having conversations about potential redistricting.</p><h2>What downside do some see?</h2><p>An arms race to shorten the cycle for redrawing congressional lines could come at a cost for efforts to overhaul the redistricting process.</p><p>Common Cause, a national pro-democracy group that advocates for election reforms including nonpartisan redistricting, urged Democrats not to respond to Texas.</p><p>A redistricting arms race would only result in “rigged elections across America,” Emily Eby French, the policy director for Common Cause Texas,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/good-government-group-urges-blue-states-back-away-redistricting-arms-race" target="_blank">said on a press call last week</a>. It was wrong for Republicans to put “a thumb on the scale” through redistricting, she said, but also wrong for Democrats to do the same.</p><p>“The real solution is for Democrats to help us lift the Republican thumb off of the Texas scale and every other scale in America until we reach free and fair elections for everyone.”</p><h2>Are party leaders egging this on?</h2><p>Trump, whose urging appeared to prompt Texas Republicans to action, has consistently pushed lawmakers in that state to reinforce the GOP advantage there.</p><p>Tuesday, he said on CNBC that Republicans were “entitled” to five more House seats in Texas.</p><p>Martin, the DNC chair, responded in Illinois.</p><p>“No party is entitled to any district,” he said. “We have to go out and earn the votes.”</p><p>Still, Martin advised Democrats in blue states to do the opposite by responding in kind to Texas Republicans.</p><p>In&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/gun-knife-fight-democrats-chief-pledges-more-pugnacious-party-more-states" target="_blank">an interview with States Newsroom last week</a>, Martin suggested Democratic states drop any commitment to nonpartisan redistricting in response to Texas.</p><p>“We’re not here to tie one of our hands behind our back,” he said. “We can’t be the only party that’s playing by the rules.”</p><h2>How is Congress reacting?</h2><p>At least two GOP House lawmakers — representing blue states looking at retaliatory redistricting efforts against Trump — are taking it upon themselves to introduce bills in Congress that bar these initiatives.</p><p>GOP Rep. Kevin Kiley of California&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepKiley/status/1952851943912817083" target="_blank">introduced a bill</a>&nbsp;in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/4889/text" target="_blank">House</a>&nbsp;this week that would ban mid-decade redistricting across the country.</p><p>Kiley said Newsom “is trying to subvert the will of voters and do lasting damage to democracy in California,” in a&nbsp;<a href="https://kiley.house.gov/posts/rep-kiley-to-introduce-redistricting-legislation" target="_blank">statement</a>&nbsp;earlier this week.</p><p>“Fortunately, Congress has the ability to protect California voters using its authority under the Elections Clause of the U.S. Constitution,” he said. “This will also stop a damaging redistricting war from breaking out across the country.”</p><p>Rep. Mike Lawler, a New York Republican, also said he&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepMikeLawler/status/1952871627852833110" target="_blank">plans to introduce legislation</a>&nbsp;to prohibit “partisan gerrymandering and mid-decade redistricting.”</p><p>The New York Republican told CNN on Tuesday that “this is fundamentally why Congress is broken,” adding that “you do not have competitive districts and so, most members are focused on primaries and not actually engaging in a general election.”&nbsp;</p>

Why congressional redistricting is blowing up across the US this summer

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/author/ashley-murray/">Ashley Murray</a>&nbsp;

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump will remove former Missouri Republican U.S. Rep. Billy Long from his post as head of the Internal Revenue Service less than two months after his confirmation, according to the White House Friday.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will step in as commissioner of the agency tasked with enforcing tax law and collecting revenue, according to a White House official. Long’s sudden departure was first reported by the New York Times.

Long wrote on social media that Trump will now appoint him to be U.S. ambassador to Iceland. The White House confirmed Long’s statement.

“It is a honor to serve my friend&nbsp;President Trump and I am excited to take on my new role as the ambassador to Iceland. I am thrilled to answer his call to service and deeply committed to advancing his bold agenda. Exciting times ahead!” Long wrote.

The former lawmaker’s ouster comes as the IRS must begin to implement changes to the tax code&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-house-passes-massive-tax-break-and-spending-cut-bill-sending-it-trump" target="_blank">championed</a>&nbsp;by Senate Republicans and signed into law by Trump just last month. Those include temporary tax relief for some tipped and overtime workers, as well as permanent changes to the child tax credit and several clean energy tax credits.

The agency, which collects the lion’s share of the country’s revenue from individual taxpayers, lost more than 11,000 employees, or 11% of its workforce, either through deferred resignations or mass firings of probationary workers since Trump began his second term, according to a May 2&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tigta.gov/sites/default/files/reports/2025-05/2025ier017fr.pdf" target="_blank">report</a>&nbsp;from the agency’s inspector general.

Long, who represented Missouri in the U.S. House from 2011 to 2023 and then worked many years as a talk radio host, was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/billy-long-confirmed-internal-revenue-service-commissioner" target="_blank">confirmed</a>&nbsp;by the U.S. Senate in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1191/vote_119_1_00308.htm" target="_blank">53-44</a>&nbsp;vote on June 12.

The former lawmaker and media personality faced&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/irs-nominee-billy-long-probed-democrats-over-nonexistent-tribal-tax-credits" target="_blank">scrutiny</a>&nbsp;during his confirmation process from Senate Democrats who demanded an investigation into Long’s work with two companies, Capital Edge Strategies and White River, where he allegedly peddled fake tax credits.

Senate Democrats also scrutinized donations Long received to his defunct Senate campaign after Trump announced in December he intended to install the former congressman at the helm of the IRS.

Long denied any wrongdoing, and received the support of all Senate Republicans, including Senate Committee on Finance Chair Mike Crapo, of Idaho, who praised Long’s promise to “implement a top-down culture change at the agency.”

‘One corruption bombshell after another’

Sen. Ron Wyden, the committee’s top Democrat, said in a statement Friday that&nbsp;“it was obvious this would end badly, but every Senate Republican voted to confirm his nomination anyway.”

“He didn’t even last two months on the job. Let’s not forget that there wasn’t a vacancy at the time Trump announced Long’s nomination. Danny Werfel, a skilled leader with fans among Democrats and Republicans, had years left on his term,” the Oregon lawmaker said.

Upon Long’s confirmation, Wyden said the vote should have been an “easy no” for Republicans.

“It’s one corruption bombshell after another with former Congressman Billy Long,” he said in June.

States Newsroom reached out to what appeared to be Long’s phone number for comment.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754682615731.png" alt="Billy Long, former Missouri Congressman, photo IRS" />
                        <figcaption>Billy Long, former Missouri Congressman, photo IRS</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/author/ashley-murray/">Ashley Murray</a>&nbsp;</p><p>WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump will remove former Missouri Republican U.S. Rep. Billy Long from his post as head of the Internal Revenue Service less than two months after his confirmation, according to the White House Friday.</p><p>Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will step in as commissioner of the agency tasked with enforcing tax law and collecting revenue, according to a White House official. Long’s sudden departure was first reported by the New York Times.</p><p>Long wrote on social media that Trump will now appoint him to be U.S. ambassador to Iceland. The White House confirmed Long’s statement.</p><p>“It is a honor to serve my friend&nbsp;President Trump and I am excited to take on my new role as the ambassador to Iceland. I am thrilled to answer his call to service and deeply committed to advancing his bold agenda. Exciting times ahead!” Long wrote.</p><p>The former lawmaker’s ouster comes as the IRS must begin to implement changes to the tax code&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-house-passes-massive-tax-break-and-spending-cut-bill-sending-it-trump" target="_blank">championed</a>&nbsp;by Senate Republicans and signed into law by Trump just last month. Those include temporary tax relief for some tipped and overtime workers, as well as permanent changes to the child tax credit and several clean energy tax credits.</p><p>The agency, which collects the lion’s share of the country’s revenue from individual taxpayers, lost more than 11,000 employees, or 11% of its workforce, either through deferred resignations or mass firings of probationary workers since Trump began his second term, according to a May 2&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tigta.gov/sites/default/files/reports/2025-05/2025ier017fr.pdf" target="_blank">report</a>&nbsp;from the agency’s inspector general.</p><h2>Confirmed in June</h2><p>Long, who represented Missouri in the U.S. House from 2011 to 2023 and then worked many years as a talk radio host, was&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/billy-long-confirmed-internal-revenue-service-commissioner" target="_blank">confirmed</a>&nbsp;by the U.S. Senate in a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1191/vote_119_1_00308.htm" target="_blank">53-44</a>&nbsp;vote on June 12.</p><p>The former lawmaker and media personality faced&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/irs-nominee-billy-long-probed-democrats-over-nonexistent-tribal-tax-credits" target="_blank">scrutiny</a>&nbsp;during his confirmation process from Senate Democrats who demanded an investigation into Long’s work with two companies, Capital Edge Strategies and White River, where he allegedly peddled fake tax credits.</p><p>Senate Democrats also scrutinized donations Long received to his defunct Senate campaign after Trump announced in December he intended to install the former congressman at the helm of the IRS.</p><p>Long denied any wrongdoing, and received the support of all Senate Republicans, including Senate Committee on Finance Chair Mike Crapo, of Idaho, who praised Long’s promise to “implement a top-down culture change at the agency.”</p><h2>‘One corruption bombshell after another’</h2><p>Sen. Ron Wyden, the committee’s top Democrat, said in a statement Friday that&nbsp;“it was obvious this would end badly, but every Senate Republican voted to confirm his nomination anyway.”</p><p>“He didn’t even last two months on the job. Let’s not forget that there wasn’t a vacancy at the time Trump announced Long’s nomination. Danny Werfel, a skilled leader with fans among Democrats and Republicans, had years left on his term,” the Oregon lawmaker said.</p><p>Upon Long’s confirmation, Wyden said the vote should have been an “easy no” for Republicans.</p><p>“It’s one corruption bombshell after another with former Congressman Billy Long,” he said in June.</p><p>States Newsroom reached out to what appeared to be Long’s phone number for comment.</p>

Missouri’s Billy Long ousted by Trump as IRS chief after less than 2 months in office

Sherwood Foundation’s $25 million gift is latest backing for state and federal investments in literacy

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/author/zachwendling/">Zach Wendling</a><br><a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/03/17/lincoln-senators-clash-over-nebraska-school-retirement-bill-as-school-leaders-weigh-in/">Nebraska Examiner</a>

LINCOLN —&nbsp;The Nebraska State Board of Education signed off on steering $80 million in federal and private funding over the next five years to boost literacy for K-12 students.

The eight-member education board Friday unanimously awarded the first two years of a&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/nebraska-education-department-awarded-55-million-federal-grant-to-improve-student-literacy/">$55 million federal grant</a>&nbsp;to 46 recipients and accepted $25 million in new private funding for a similar purpose from the Sherwood Foundation. Both&nbsp;<a href="https://meeting.sparqdata.com/Public/Agenda/152?meeting=698743" target="_blank">buckets of funds</a>&nbsp;will be doled out over the next five years. Board members will consider how to spend the private dollars at a future meeting.

Board member Lisa Schonhoff of Bennington called the $80 million “a huge, huge, huge deal, and it is very clear and evident that we are all taking it very seriously.”

She said, “I think that we need to continue, now that we’ve got this money in front of us, to continue asking the tough questions, not going along to get along, but having these really tough conversations with each other and holding each other accountable.”

This February, board members voted 7-1 to approve the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.education.ne.gov/nebraskareads/nebraska-literacy-project/" target="_blank">Nebraska Literacy Project Plan</a>, which includes a goal to boost third grade reading proficiency to 75% by 2030. State reading tests deemed about 59% of third graders proficient in the 2023-24 school year, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2024/12/05/room-for-improvement-breaking-down-2023-24-nebraska-k-12-student-test-scores/">test data released last fall</a>.

“If there’s not accountability, and our kids aren’t reading by 2030, then we need to have some serious conversations with each other,” Schonhoff continued.

In addition to the federal and private dollars, the Legislature, led by former State Sens. Lou Ann Linehan of the Elkhorn area and Lynne Walz of Fremont, secured&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2024/04/09/lawmakers-narrow-advance-bill-on-computer-science-special-education-reading-and-more/">$6 million over three years</a>&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/2021-District-and-ESU-Map.pdf" target="_blank">educational service units</a>&nbsp;to employ regional coaches who will&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskalegislature.gov/bills/view_bill.php?DocumentID=55278&amp;docnum=LB1284&amp;leg=108" target="_blank">mentor teachers</a>&nbsp;teaching reading to children between 4 years old and third grade — a key time in child development.

Nebraska Education Commissioner Brian Maher confirmed that resources aren’t an issue. He said his department is focused on ensuring students are reading better tomorrow than they are today.

Schnohoff, a classroom teacher for more than 20 years before joining the state board in January, was the lone vote against the Nebraska Literacy Project Plan in February. She had voiced concerns about a focus on “high-quality instructional materials” and worried those materials could get in the way of students reading real books or writing.

The Nebraska Literacy Project Plan also has two other goals: to increase the percentage of K-3 students who meet Nebraska Reading Improvement Act standards and ensure all Nebraska teacher preparation programs implement evidence-based instruction for teachers grounded in the “science of reading.”

Board Vice President Deb Neary of Omaha called the federal&nbsp;<a href="https://education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Nebraska-Comprehensive-Literacy-State-Development-CLSD-Grant-Request-for-Applications-RFA.pdf" target="_blank">Comprehensive Literacy State Development Grant</a>&nbsp;a “gold standard project” as the Nebraska Department of Education has a vision, plan, science, research, data and professionals.

“We have everything that we need to be successful,” Neary said.

The federal dollars are designed to advance literacy skills for all children from birth to grade 12, and at least 95% of the grant funds must be distributed to eligible entities. Awardees can receive more funds if they serve more students.

Funding must be allocated at different ages or grade levels as follows:

Board member Sherry Jones said she was disappointed with those funding distributions because there was more demand for the K-5 age bracket than funding. Meanwhile, applicants seeking funds to help students in the other age brackets were fully funded. Jones said the K-5 age group is a critical time to teach reading.

“This is, I believe, an example where state and local decision making would have been better, in my opinion, than the federal government dictating to us how we should use this $55 million,” Jones said.

Nebraska Department of Education staff, responding to a question from Board President Elizabeth Tegtmeier of North Platte, said it’s possible that schools denied funding can reapply in the future. It’s also possible that some allocated dollars won’t be spent, with an expectation that some funds might be redistributed to new applicants or previous applicants who succeeded.

The Sherwood Foundation funds, which Neary praised as an “extraordinary” investment, will create the “Nebraska Literacy Leadership Network.” The network plans to convene up to 75 instructional leaders and higher education partners so they can better coach classroom teachers on how to teach literacy.

State Education Department staff pursued the public-private partnership with the Sherwood nonprofit after identifying a potential gap in school leader training and support.

“This isn’t a small project or amount,” Neary said. “This is a really big deal, and it is going to be transformational.”

Schonhoff said the professional development is critical, highlighting “no strings attached” compared to the federal dollars that she initially opposed but ultimately supported.

When Tegtmeier was elected president in 2024, she pledged to make literacy a focus, and on Friday, she credited state lawmakers, department staff, teachers and more for joining the efforts.

She credited early work done in 2017 and 2018 by former State Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks of Lincoln and Linehan. The two lawmakers studied literacy and dyslexia, including tours of multiple school districts, which led to new support for reading and dyslexia, including the Nebraska Reading Improvement Act, which allows students to be placed on reading improvement plans for focused interventions and support.

Tegtmeier said the state Education Department also hired a literacy director as well as a new deputy commissioner in the last year. She said many teachers spent parts of the summer attending related trainings and workshops.

Another supporter, Tegtimer said, is Gov. Jim Pillen, whose office reached out Thursday to express Pillen’s support for the Sherwood dollars ahead of Friday’s meeting.

Said Tegtmeier: “To everyone who has picked up their oar and chosen to row with us, I say, ‘Thank you.’”

Comprehensive Literacy State Development Grant initial awardees, first two years

Tier 1 awards (up to $65,000/year | $325,000/5 years —&nbsp;serving up to 1,000 students)

Tier 2 awards (up to $259,000/year | $1.295 million/5 years — serving 1,000 to 4,999 students)

Tier 3 awards (up to $440,000/year | $2.2 million/5 years — serving 5,000 or more students)

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754740987131.jpeg" alt=" Nebraska First Lady Suzanne Pillen visits a classroom in the Educare of Omaha at Indian Hill, where a team of literacy advocates launched the Nebraska Growing Readers initiative in October 2023. (Cindy Gonzalez/Nebraska Examiner)" />
                        <figcaption> Nebraska First Lady Suzanne Pillen visits a classroom in the Educare of Omaha at Indian Hill, where a team of literacy advocates launched the Nebraska Growing Readers initiative in October 2023. (Cindy Gonzalez/Nebraska Examiner)</figcaption>
                    </figure><h2>Sherwood Foundation’s $25 million gift is latest backing for state and federal investments in literacy</h2><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/author/zachwendling/">Zach Wendling</a><br><a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/03/17/lincoln-senators-clash-over-nebraska-school-retirement-bill-as-school-leaders-weigh-in/">Nebraska Examiner</a></p><p>LINCOLN —&nbsp;The Nebraska State Board of Education signed off on steering $80 million in federal and private funding over the next five years to boost literacy for K-12 students.</p><p>The eight-member education board Friday unanimously awarded the first two years of a&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/nebraska-education-department-awarded-55-million-federal-grant-to-improve-student-literacy/">$55 million federal grant</a>&nbsp;to 46 recipients and accepted $25 million in new private funding for a similar purpose from the Sherwood Foundation. Both&nbsp;<a href="https://meeting.sparqdata.com/Public/Agenda/152?meeting=698743" target="_blank">buckets of funds</a>&nbsp;will be doled out over the next five years. Board members will consider how to spend the private dollars at a future meeting.</p><p>Board member Lisa Schonhoff of Bennington called the $80 million “a huge, huge, huge deal, and it is very clear and evident that we are all taking it very seriously.”</p><p>She said, “I think that we need to continue, now that we’ve got this money in front of us, to continue asking the tough questions, not going along to get along, but having these really tough conversations with each other and holding each other accountable.”</p><h2>Focus on accountability</h2><p>This February, board members voted 7-1 to approve the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.education.ne.gov/nebraskareads/nebraska-literacy-project/" target="_blank">Nebraska Literacy Project Plan</a>, which includes a goal to boost third grade reading proficiency to 75% by 2030. State reading tests deemed about 59% of third graders proficient in the 2023-24 school year, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2024/12/05/room-for-improvement-breaking-down-2023-24-nebraska-k-12-student-test-scores/">test data released last fall</a>.</p><p>“If there’s not accountability, and our kids aren’t reading by 2030, then we need to have some serious conversations with each other,” Schonhoff continued.</p><p>In addition to the federal and private dollars, the Legislature, led by former State Sens. Lou Ann Linehan of the Elkhorn area and Lynne Walz of Fremont, secured&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2024/04/09/lawmakers-narrow-advance-bill-on-computer-science-special-education-reading-and-more/">$6 million over three years</a>&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/2021-District-and-ESU-Map.pdf" target="_blank">educational service units</a>&nbsp;to employ regional coaches who will&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskalegislature.gov/bills/view_bill.php?DocumentID=55278&amp;docnum=LB1284&amp;leg=108" target="_blank">mentor teachers</a>&nbsp;teaching reading to children between 4 years old and third grade — a key time in child development.</p><p>Nebraska Education Commissioner Brian Maher confirmed that resources aren’t an issue. He said his department is focused on ensuring students are reading better tomorrow than they are today.</p><p>Schnohoff, a classroom teacher for more than 20 years before joining the state board in January, was the lone vote against the Nebraska Literacy Project Plan in February. She had voiced concerns about a focus on “high-quality instructional materials” and worried those materials could get in the way of students reading real books or writing.</p><p>The Nebraska Literacy Project Plan also has two other goals: to increase the percentage of K-3 students who meet Nebraska Reading Improvement Act standards and ensure all Nebraska teacher preparation programs implement evidence-based instruction for teachers grounded in the “science of reading.”</p><h2>‘Everything that we need’</h2><p>Board Vice President Deb Neary of Omaha called the federal&nbsp;<a href="https://education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Nebraska-Comprehensive-Literacy-State-Development-CLSD-Grant-Request-for-Applications-RFA.pdf" target="_blank">Comprehensive Literacy State Development Grant</a>&nbsp;a “gold standard project” as the Nebraska Department of Education has a vision, plan, science, research, data and professionals.</p><p>“We have everything that we need to be successful,” Neary said.</p><p>The federal dollars are designed to advance literacy skills for all children from birth to grade 12, and at least 95% of the grant funds must be distributed to eligible entities. Awardees can receive more funds if they serve more students.</p><p>Funding must be allocated at different ages or grade levels as follows:</p><ul>
                        <li>15% to entities serving birth to kindergarten ($8.26 million).</li><li>40% to entities serving grades K-5 ($22.02 million).</li><li>40% to entities serving grades 6-12 ($22.02 million).</li>
                    </ul><p>Board member Sherry Jones said she was disappointed with those funding distributions because there was more demand for the K-5 age bracket than funding. Meanwhile, applicants seeking funds to help students in the other age brackets were fully funded. Jones said the K-5 age group is a critical time to teach reading.</p><p>“This is, I believe, an example where state and local decision making would have been better, in my opinion, than the federal government dictating to us how we should use this $55 million,” Jones said.</p><p>Nebraska Department of Education staff, responding to a question from Board President Elizabeth Tegtmeier of North Platte, said it’s possible that schools denied funding can reapply in the future. It’s also possible that some allocated dollars won’t be spent, with an expectation that some funds might be redistributed to new applicants or previous applicants who succeeded.</p><h2>Public-private partnership</h2><p>The Sherwood Foundation funds, which Neary praised as an “extraordinary” investment, will create the “Nebraska Literacy Leadership Network.” The network plans to convene up to 75 instructional leaders and higher education partners so they can better coach classroom teachers on how to teach literacy.</p><p>State Education Department staff pursued the public-private partnership with the Sherwood nonprofit after identifying a potential gap in school leader training and support.</p><p>“This isn’t a small project or amount,” Neary said. “This is a really big deal, and it is going to be transformational.”</p><p>Schonhoff said the professional development is critical, highlighting “no strings attached” compared to the federal dollars that she initially opposed but ultimately supported.</p><h2>‘Thank you’</h2><p>When Tegtmeier was elected president in 2024, she pledged to make literacy a focus, and on Friday, she credited state lawmakers, department staff, teachers and more for joining the efforts.</p><p>She credited early work done in 2017 and 2018 by former State Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks of Lincoln and Linehan. The two lawmakers studied literacy and dyslexia, including tours of multiple school districts, which led to new support for reading and dyslexia, including the Nebraska Reading Improvement Act, which allows students to be placed on reading improvement plans for focused interventions and support.</p><p>Tegtmeier said the state Education Department also hired a literacy director as well as a new deputy commissioner in the last year. She said many teachers spent parts of the summer attending related trainings and workshops.</p><p>Another supporter, Tegtimer said, is Gov. Jim Pillen, whose office reached out Thursday to express Pillen’s support for the Sherwood dollars ahead of Friday’s meeting.</p><p>Said Tegtmeier: “To everyone who has picked up their oar and chosen to row with us, I say, ‘Thank you.’”</p><h2>Comprehensive Literacy State Development Grant initial awardees, first two years</h2><p>Tier 1 awards (up to $65,000/year | $325,000/5 years —&nbsp;serving up to 1,000 students)</p><ul>
                        <li>Anselmo-Merna Public Schools: $113,750 (birth-kindergarten; grades 6-12)</li><li>Auburn Public Schools: $90,244 (birth-kindergarten)</li><li>Bertrand Public Schools: $113,750 (birth-kindergarten; grades 6-12)</li><li>Central Valley Public Schools: $130,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades 6-12)</li><li>David City Public Schools: $130,000 (grades K-5)</li><li>Educare Lincoln: $130,000 (birth-kindergarten)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 17 (north-central Nebraska): $130,000 (birth-kindergarten)</li><li>Elmwood-Murdock Public Schools: $67,903 (birth-kindergarten)</li><li>Fairbury Public Schools: $130,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades 6-12)</li><li>Falls City Public School District: $113,750 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Humboldt Table Rock Steinauer Public Schools: $113,750 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Johnson County School District: $101,773 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Laurel Concord Coleridge School: $113,750 (birth-kindergarten; grades 6-12)</li><li>Lewiston Consolidated Schools: $130,000 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Madison Public Schools: $113,750 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Milford Public Schools: $101,772 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Pawnee City Public Schools: $113,750 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Walthill Public Schools: $130,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades 6-12)</li><li>Wayne Community Schools: $57,518 (birth-kindergarten)</li>
                    </ul><p>Tier 2 awards (up to $259,000/year | $1.295 million/5 years — serving 1,000 to 4,999 students)</p><ul>
                        <li>Beatrice Public Schools: $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Buffett Early Childhood Institute: $518,000 (birth-kindergarten)</li><li>Crete Public Schools: $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 2 (eastern Nebraska): $518,000 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 4 (southeast Nebraska): $470,626 (grades K-5)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 5 (southeast Nebraska): $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-5)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 8 (north-central Nebraska): $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 11 (south-central Nebraska): $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 15 (southwest Nebraska): $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 16 (western Nebraska): $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Nebraska City Public Schools: $518,000 (grades K-12)</li><li>Ralston Public Schools: $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Scottsbluff Public Schools: $518,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li>
                    </ul><p>Tier 3 awards (up to $440,000/year | $2.2 million/5 years — serving 5,000 or more students)</p><ul>
                        <li>Educational Service Unit 3 (eastern Nebraska): $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 6 (eastern Nebraska): $880,000 (grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 7 (eastern Nebraska): $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 9 (south-central Nebraska): $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 10 (central Nebraska): $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Educational Service Unit 13 (western Nebraska): $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Fremont Public Schools: $880,000 (grades K-12)</li><li>Grand Island Public Schools: $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Lincoln Public Schools: $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Millard Public Schools: $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>Nebraska Children and Families Foundation: $662,606 (birth-kindergarten)</li><li>Omaha Public Schools/Educational Service Unit 19: $880,000 (grades 6-12)</li><li>Papillion La Vista Community Schools: $880,000 (birth-kindergarten; grades K-12)</li><li>University of Nebraska-Lincoln WORDS (Workshops on Reading Development Strategies) Project: $880,000 (grades K-5)</li>
                    </ul>

Nebraska ed board approves $80 million in fed, private funds to boost literacy

<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="qme" dir="ltr">🚨 <a href="https://t.co/ClTl6TjL0S">pic.twitter.com/ClTl6TjL0S</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953940364290572777?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">&quot;The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska. Further details to follow. Thank you for your attention to this… <a href="https://t.co/SI3twRJayp">pic.twitter.com/SI3twRJayp</a></p>&mdash; The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/1953945651857052106?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

President Trump confirms when, where he will meet Putin

The following is a statement from acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy on the passing of famed Apollo astronaut Jim Lovell. He passed away Aug. 7, in Lake Forest, Illinois. He was 97 years old.

“NASA sends its condolences to the family of Capt. Jim Lovell, whose life and work inspired millions of people across the decades. Jim’s character and steadfast courage helped our nation reach the Moon and turned a potential tragedy into a success from which we learned an enormous amount. We mourn his passing even as we celebrate his achievements.

“From a pair of pioneering Gemini missions to the successes of Apollo, Jim helped our nation forge a historic path in space that carries us forward to upcoming Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond.

“As the Command Module Pilot for Apollo 8, Jim and his crewmates became the first to lift off on a Saturn V rocket and orbit the Moon, proving that the lunar landing was within our reach. As commander of the Apollo 13 mission, his calm strength under pressure helped return the crew safely to Earth and demonstrated the quick thinking and innovation that informed future NASA missions.

“Known for his wit, this unforgettable astronaut was nicknamed Smilin’ Jim by his fellow astronauts because he was quick with a grin when he had a particularly funny comeback.

“Jim also served our country in the military, and the Navy has lost a proud academy graduate and test pilot. Jim Lovell embodied the bold resolve and optimism of both past and future explorers, and we will remember him always.”

For more information about Lovell’s NASA career, and his agency biography, visit:

<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We are saddened by the passing of Jim Lovell, commander of Apollo 13 and a four-time spaceflight veteran.<br><br>Lovell&#39;s life and work inspired millions. His courage under pressure helped forge our path to the Moon and beyond—a journey that continues today. <a href="https://t.co/AjT8qmxsZI">https://t.co/AjT8qmxsZI</a> <a href="https://t.co/jBlxzgrmSk">pic.twitter.com/jBlxzgrmSk</a></p>&mdash; NASA (@NASA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NASA/status/1953893398995243332?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>The following is a statement from acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy on the passing of famed Apollo astronaut Jim Lovell. He passed away Aug. 7, in Lake Forest, Illinois. He was 97 years old.</p><p>“NASA sends its condolences to the family of Capt. Jim Lovell, whose life and work inspired millions of people across the decades. Jim’s character and steadfast courage helped our nation reach the Moon and turned a potential tragedy into a success from which we learned an enormous amount. We mourn his passing even as we celebrate his achievements.</p><p>“From a pair of pioneering Gemini missions to the successes of Apollo, Jim helped our nation forge a historic path in space that carries us forward to upcoming Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond.</p><p>“As the Command Module Pilot for Apollo 8, Jim and his crewmates became the first to lift off on a Saturn V rocket and orbit the Moon, proving that the lunar landing was within our reach. As commander of the Apollo 13 mission, his calm strength under pressure helped return the crew safely to Earth and demonstrated the quick thinking and innovation that informed future NASA missions.</p><p>“Known for his wit, this unforgettable astronaut was nicknamed Smilin’ Jim by his fellow astronauts because he was quick with a grin when he had a particularly funny comeback.</p><p>“Jim also served our country in the military, and the Navy has lost a proud academy graduate and test pilot. Jim Lovell embodied the bold resolve and optimism of both past and future explorers, and we will remember him always.”</p><p>For more information about Lovell’s NASA career, and his agency biography, visit:</p>

Astronaut Jim Lovell, famed Apollo 13 commander, dies at 97

The Department of State and the Department of Justice are announcing a reward offer increase of up to $50 million under the Narcotics Rewards Program (NRP) for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Nicolás Maduro for violating U.S. narcotics laws, according to a statement from agency.

For over a decade, Maduro has been a leader of Cartel de los Soles, which is responsible for trafficking drugs into the United States.&nbsp; On July 25, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury designated Cartel de Los Soles as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).&nbsp;

Since 2020, Maduro has strangled democracy and grasped at power in Venezuela.&nbsp; Maduro claimed to have won Venezuela’s July 28, 2024, presidential election but failed to present any evidence that he had prevailed.&nbsp; The United States has refused to recognize Maduro as the winner of 2024 election and does not recognize him as the President of Venezuela.&nbsp;

Today’s reward offer is authorized by the Secretary under the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.state.gov/releases-bureau-of-international-narcotics-and-law-enforcement-affairs?results=30&amp;currpage=2&amp;totalpages=2&amp;coll_filter_year&amp;coll_filter_month&amp;coll_filter_speaker&amp;coll_filter_country&amp;coll_filter_release_type=1438&amp;coll_filter_bureau&amp;coll_filter_program&amp;coll_filter_profession" target="_blank">NRP</a>, which supports law enforcement efforts to disrupt transnational crime globally and bring fugitives to justice as a key pillar of President Trump’s “America First” priorities.&nbsp; If you have information, please contact the DEA by phone (voice, WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram, or text) at +1-202-681-8187, or by&nbsp;<a href="mailto:CartelSolesTips@dea.gov">email</a>.&nbsp; If you are located outside the United States, you may also visit the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.&nbsp; If you are in the United States, you can also contact the local DEA field office.

ALL IDENTITIES ARE KEPT STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL.&nbsp; Government officials and employees are not eligible for rewards.

<p>The Department of State and the Department of Justice are announcing a reward offer increase of up to $50 million under the Narcotics Rewards Program (NRP) for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Nicolás Maduro for violating U.S. narcotics laws, according to a statement from agency.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Today, <a href="https://twitter.com/TheJusticeDept?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheJusticeDept</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/StateDept?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@StateDept</a> are announcing a $50 MILLION REWARD for information leading to the arrest of Nicolás Maduro. <a href="https://t.co/D8LNqjS9yk">pic.twitter.com/D8LNqjS9yk</a></p>&mdash; Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) <a href="https://twitter.com/AGPamBondi/status/1953583017353466306?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 7, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>For over a decade, Maduro has been a leader of Cartel de los Soles, which is responsible for trafficking drugs into the United States.&nbsp; On July 25, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury designated Cartel de Los Soles as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).&nbsp;</p><p>Since 2020, Maduro has strangled democracy and grasped at power in Venezuela.&nbsp; Maduro claimed to have won Venezuela’s July 28, 2024, presidential election but failed to present any evidence that he had prevailed.&nbsp; The United States has refused to recognize Maduro as the winner of 2024 election and does not recognize him as the President of Venezuela.&nbsp;</p><p>Today’s reward offer is authorized by the Secretary under the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.state.gov/releases-bureau-of-international-narcotics-and-law-enforcement-affairs?results=30&amp;currpage=2&amp;totalpages=2&amp;coll_filter_year&amp;coll_filter_month&amp;coll_filter_speaker&amp;coll_filter_country&amp;coll_filter_release_type=1438&amp;coll_filter_bureau&amp;coll_filter_program&amp;coll_filter_profession" target="_blank">NRP</a>, which supports law enforcement efforts to disrupt transnational crime globally and bring fugitives to justice as a key pillar of President Trump’s “America First” priorities.&nbsp; If you have information, please contact the DEA by phone (voice, WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram, or text) at +1-202-681-8187, or by&nbsp;<a href="mailto:CartelSolesTips@dea.gov">email</a>.&nbsp; If you are located outside the United States, you may also visit the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.&nbsp; If you are in the United States, you can also contact the local DEA field office.</p><p>ALL IDENTITIES ARE KEPT STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL.&nbsp; Government officials and employees are not eligible for rewards.</p>

🎥U.S. offers $50M reward for arrest of Venezuelan President 

EXPANDING INVESTMENT CHOICES FOR 401(K) PLANS:&nbsp;Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order to allow 401(k) investors to access alternative assets for better returns and diversification, according to a statement from the White House.

PROMOTING RETIREMENT SECURITY THROUGH DIVERSIFIED INVESTMENTS:&nbsp;President Trump wants to give American workers more investment options in order to attain stronger and more financially secure retirement outcomes.

BUILDING WEALTH AND SECURING RETIREMENT FOR ALL AMERICANS:&nbsp;&nbsp;President Trump is delivering on his promise to enhance financial opportunities and retirement security for all Americans, ensuring they can build wealth and thrive.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1620732850317.jpg" alt="Image Pixaby" />
                        <figcaption>Image Pixaby</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>EXPANDING INVESTMENT CHOICES FOR 401(K) PLANS:&nbsp;Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order to allow 401(k) investors to access alternative assets for better returns and diversification, according to a statement from the White House.</p><ul>
                        <li>The Order directs the Secretary of Labor to reexamine the Department of Labor’s guidance on a fiduciary’s duties regarding alternative asset investments in ERISA-governed 401(k) and other defined-contribution plans.</li><li>The Order instructs the Secretary of Labor to clarify the Department of Labor’s position on alternative assets and the appropriate fiduciary process associated with offering asset allocation funds containing investments in alternative assets.</li><li>The Order directs the Secretary of Labor to consult with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other federal regulators to determine whether parallel regulatory changes should be made at those agencies to give effect to the purpose of the Order.</li><li>The Order directs the Securities and Exchange Commission to facilitate access to alternative assets for participant-directed defined-contribution retirement savings plans by revising applicable regulations and guidance.</li>
                    </ul><p>PROMOTING RETIREMENT SECURITY THROUGH DIVERSIFIED INVESTMENTS:&nbsp;President Trump wants to give American workers more investment options in order to attain stronger and more financially secure retirement outcomes.</p><ul>
                        <li>More than 90 million Americans participate in employer-sponsored defined-contribution plans, and most of those are currently restricted from investing in alternative assets, unlike wealthy investors and retirement plans for government workers.</li><li>Alternative assets, such as private equity, real estate, and digital assets, offer competitive returns and diversification benefits.</li><li>Regulatory overreach and litigation risks have limited ERISA-governed plan fiduciaries from including alternative assets in their investment portfolios, hindering workers’ retirement growth.</li><li>President Trump is expanding access to these assets to ensure a dignified and comfortable retirement for all Americans.</li>
                    </ul><p>BUILDING WEALTH AND SECURING RETIREMENT FOR ALL AMERICANS:&nbsp;&nbsp;President Trump is delivering on his promise to enhance financial opportunities and retirement security for all Americans, ensuring they can build wealth and thrive.</p><ul>
                        <li>President Trump’s Department of Labor has already rescinded guidance put place by the Biden Administration regarding digital assets.</li><li>President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill delivers on his promise to ensure retirees can keep more of their hard-earned benefits.</li><li>President Trump promised to make the United States the “crypto capital of the world,” emphasizing the need to embrace digital assets to drive economic growth and technological leadership.</li><li>Through tax cuts and deregulation, President Trump is delivering on his promise to Make America Wealthy Again, empowering workers to save and invest more for their retirement.</li>
                    </ul>

Trump signs order providing new options for your 401(k)

August 7, 2025 (Omaha, Neb.)&nbsp;&nbsp;— The Nebraska State Patrol is investigating an incident in which a subject died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after fleeing a traffic stop.

At approximately 1:30 a.m. today, a trooper performed a traffic stop on a Ford F-150 pickup on westbound I-80 near 96th&nbsp;Street in Omaha. During the traffic stop, the trooper observed the driver to be impaired and saw open alcohol containers in the vehicle. The driver, an adult male, then accelerated and fled westbound. The driver was the lone occupant of the pickup. The trooper initiated a pursuit.

The vehicle fled northbound on Interstate 680. As the vehicle continued northbound, the Omaha Police Department’s Able 1 joined the pursuit from the air. Another trooper was able to successfully deploy stop sticks to slow the vehicle.

Just after the vehicle passed Blair High Road, still traveling on I-680, the driver began firing multiple shots out the driver’s side window and drove down the south embankment, crashing into a tree at the backyard of a residence near North 88th&nbsp;and Sunrise Streets. Able 1 advised that the driver did not exit the vehicle. Additional troopers and OPD officers arrived on scene to establish a perimeter.

After several attempts to communicate with the driver, a drone was deployed and observed the driver motionless inside the vehicle. An OPD K9 unit approached the pickup and found the driver with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. The driver was transported to the Nebraska Medical Center where he died a short time later. The driver’s name will be released following the family notification process.&nbsp;A rifle was located inside the vehicle.

No troopers or officers fired shots at any point during the incident. The incident remains under investigation, with assistance from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Omaha Police Department. The pursuit lasted approximately ten minutes.&nbsp;

<p><i>Story by Nebraska State Patrol</i></p><p>August 7, 2025 (Omaha, Neb.)&nbsp;&nbsp;— The Nebraska State Patrol is investigating an incident in which a subject died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after fleeing a traffic stop.</p><p>At approximately 1:30 a.m. today, a trooper performed a traffic stop on a Ford F-150 pickup on westbound I-80 near 96th&nbsp;Street in Omaha. During the traffic stop, the trooper observed the driver to be impaired and saw open alcohol containers in the vehicle. The driver, an adult male, then accelerated and fled westbound. The driver was the lone occupant of the pickup. The trooper initiated a pursuit.</p><p>The vehicle fled northbound on Interstate 680. As the vehicle continued northbound, the Omaha Police Department’s Able 1 joined the pursuit from the air. Another trooper was able to successfully deploy stop sticks to slow the vehicle.</p><p>Just after the vehicle passed Blair High Road, still traveling on I-680, the driver began firing multiple shots out the driver’s side window and drove down the south embankment, crashing into a tree at the backyard of a residence near North 88th&nbsp;and Sunrise Streets. Able 1 advised that the driver did not exit the vehicle. Additional troopers and OPD officers arrived on scene to establish a perimeter.</p><p>After several attempts to communicate with the driver, a drone was deployed and observed the driver motionless inside the vehicle. An OPD K9 unit approached the pickup and found the driver with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. The driver was transported to the Nebraska Medical Center where he died a short time later. The driver’s name will be released following the family notification process.&nbsp;A rifle was located inside the vehicle.</p><p>No troopers or officers fired shots at any point during the incident. The incident remains under investigation, with assistance from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Omaha Police Department. The pursuit lasted approximately ten minutes.&nbsp;</p>

Man deceased from self-inflicted gunshot wound following pursuit

WASHINGTON — U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will waive age limits for new applicants so even more patriots will qualify to join ICE in its mission to arrest murderers, pedophiles, gang members, rapists, and other criminal illegal aliens from America’s streets, according to a media release from the agency.

All ICE law enforcement recruits will be required to go through medical screening, drug screening, and complete a physical fitness test.

“We are ENDING the age cap for ICE law enforcement,”&nbsp;said&nbsp;Secretary Noem.&nbsp;“Qualified candidates can now apply with no age limit.&nbsp;<a href="https://join.ice.gov/">JOIN.ICE.GOV</a>.”

"In the wake of Biden’s open borders disaster, our country&nbsp;needs dedicated Americans to join ICE to remove&nbsp;the worst of the worst out of our country."

Backed by significant new funding through the recently signed One Big Beautiful Bill,&nbsp;ICE is offering a robust package of federal law enforcement incentives, including:

ICE encourages Americans with a commitment to public safety, national service, and upholding the rule of law to apply today to jumpstart a fulfilling career in federal law enforcement.

<p>WASHINGTON — U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will waive age limits for new applicants so even more patriots will qualify to join ICE in its mission to arrest murderers, pedophiles, gang members, rapists, and other criminal illegal aliens from America’s streets, according to a media release from the agency.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">You spoke, we listened and we took action – the age cap for joining ICE has now been REMOVED.<br><br>We must Defend the Homeland.<a href="https://t.co/3c7b0Ry86A">https://t.co/3c7b0Ry86A</a> <a href="https://t.co/xEeCXwnjTR">pic.twitter.com/xEeCXwnjTR</a></p>&mdash; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) <a href="https://twitter.com/ICEgov/status/1953080223827705972?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>All ICE law enforcement recruits will be required to go through medical screening, drug screening, and complete a physical fitness test.</p><p>“We are ENDING the age cap for ICE law enforcement,”&nbsp;said&nbsp;Secretary Noem.&nbsp;“Qualified candidates can now apply with no age limit.&nbsp;<a href="https://join.ice.gov/">JOIN.ICE.GOV</a>.”</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Protect. Serve. Deport. <a href="https://t.co/nZkBEj3GGi">https://t.co/nZkBEj3GGi</a> <a href="https://t.co/2nNr5nh3vx">pic.twitter.com/2nNr5nh3vx</a></p>&mdash; Homeland Security (@DHSgov) <a href="https://twitter.com/DHSgov/status/1952771243112862206?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>"In the wake of Biden’s open borders disaster, our country&nbsp;needs dedicated Americans to join ICE to remove&nbsp;the worst of the worst out of our country."</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/smcq5ynxLB">https://t.co/smcq5ynxLB</a> <a href="https://t.co/bpElwEIiou">pic.twitter.com/bpElwEIiou</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953263174087786644?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 7, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>Backed by significant new funding through the recently signed One Big Beautiful Bill,&nbsp;ICE is offering a robust package of federal law enforcement incentives, including:</p><ul>
                        <li>A maximum $50,000 signing bonus</li><li>Student loan repayment and forgiveness options</li><li>25% Law Enforcement Availability Pay (LEAP) for HSI Special Agents</li><li>Administratively Uncontrollable Overtime (AUI) for Enforcement Removal Operations (ERO) Deportation Officers</li><li>Enhanced retirement benefits</li>
                    </ul><p>ICE encourages Americans with a commitment to public safety, national service, and upholding the rule of law to apply today to jumpstart a fulfilling career in federal law enforcement.</p>

Now teenagers and seniors can be ICE agents

<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🚨 <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: &quot;Today, <a href="https://twitter.com/Apple?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Apple</a> is announcing that it will invest $600 billion in the United States over the next four years — that&#39;s $100 billion more than they were originally going to invest.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/Xzjjek0Qwd">pic.twitter.com/Xzjjek0Qwd</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953203962795962563?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/Apple?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Apple</a> CEO <a href="https://twitter.com/tim_cook?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@tim_cook</a> presents <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> with a gift made with the glass that Apple will be manufacturing in Kentucky 🇺🇸 <a href="https://t.co/N2doBsPNEa">pic.twitter.com/N2doBsPNEa</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953206264298954857?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">WATCH: <a href="https://twitter.com/Apple?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Apple</a> CEO <a href="https://twitter.com/tim_cook?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@tim_cook</a>&#39;s full remarks from the Oval Office: <br><br>&quot;I&#39;m very proud to say that today, we&#39;re committing an additional $100 billion to the United States, bringing our total U.S. investment to $600 billion... We believe deeply in the promise of this great nation.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/XZgY250nJk">pic.twitter.com/XZgY250nJk</a></p>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1953210002359107907?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Apple is expanding our US commitment to $600 billion over the next four years. And our new American Manufacturing Program will bring even more jobs and advanced manufacturing to the US. <a href="https://t.co/6KWkTGJN3O">pic.twitter.com/6KWkTGJN3O</a></p>&mdash; Tim Cook (@tim_cook) <a href="https://twitter.com/tim_cook/status/1953196912410345798?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

🎥 $100 billion investment: Apple CEO brings gift to White House

Five soldiers were shot but are in stable condition

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/ross-williams/">Ross Williams</a><br><a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/">Georgia Recorder</a>

An Army sergeant who is accused of opening fire on five of his fellow soldiers at Fort Stewart in southeast Georgia Wednesday used his personal weapon in the shooting, according to the installation’s commanding general.

Sgt. Quornelius Radford, who was assigned to a unit within the second Brigade Combat Team, allegedly shot five soldiers late Wednesday morning, according to Brig. Gen. John Lubas, the installation’s commanding general. All five victims were in stable condition.

Lubas, the installation’s commanding general, said other soldiers were able to physically subdue Radford until law enforcement officers arrived and took Radford into custody nearly 40 minutes later.

“The shooting occurred at the soldier’s place of work. It did involve his co-workers,” Lubas told reporters Wednesday afternoon. “We’re still not certain about the motivations, but again, he’s been interviewed by Army investigators, and we believe we’ll gain more information here shortly.”

Lubas said the weapon used in the shooting is believed to be a personal handgun, but he said how the firearm ended up at the workplace is still under investigation.

“I’m very confident in the security of this installation. We’ve got a great partnership with local law enforcement,” Lubas said. “As you can see here at our gates, we have armed guards in protective equipment.

“This one’s a bit difficult, and we’re going to have to determine how he was able to get a handgun to his place of place of duty,” he said.

Law enforcement was dispatched for a possible shooting at 10:56 a.m., the base was placed on lock down at 11:04, medical personnel were dispatched at 11:09 and a suspect was apprehended at 11:35 a.m.

Fort Stewart is the largest Army installation east of the Mississippi River and is home to the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division and about 10,000 troops and family members. It is located in Hinesville about 40 miles southwest of Savannah.

Georgia leaders including Gov. Brian Kemp denounced the shooter and offered thanks for the law enforcement and emergency personnel.

“As we remain in close contact with law enforcement on the ground, Marty, the girls, and I are saddened by today’s tragedy at Ft. Stewart,” Kemp said in a statement on social media. “We are keeping the victims, their families, and all those who answer the call to serve in our hearts and prayers, and we ask that Georgians everywhere do the same.”

The base is represented by Republican Congressman Buddy Carter, who offered a statement in support of the victims and first responders.

Georgia Democratic Congressman Sanford Bishop said the effects of the attack will reverberate beyond Georgia.

“The events today will not only be felt at Fort Stewart but across our entire military,” Bishop said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the casualties and all those impacted by this unfortunate occurrence.”

President Donald Trump has been briefed on the shooting, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said federal law enforcement agents are providing support.

Georgia Recorder Editor Jill Nolin contributed to this report.&nbsp;

FORT STEWART, Georgia– Five Soldiers were shot Wednesday in an active shooter incident in the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team area, according to a media release from the base. All Soldiers were treated on-site and moved to Winn Army Community Hospital for further treatment. There was no active threat to the community.

Law enforcement was dispatched for a possible shooting in the 2nd ABCT complex at 10:56 a.m. The shooter was apprehended at 11:35 a.m.

The installation was locked down at 11:04 a.m. and Fort Stewart lifted the lockdown of the main cantonment area at 12:10 p.m. 2nd ABCT complex is still locked down.

 Emergency medical personnel were dispatched to treat the wounded Soldiers at 11:09 a.m.

Check the Post for additional details as they become available.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1754497102931.png" alt="Courtesy photo" />
                        <figcaption>Courtesy photo</figcaption>
                    </figure><h2>Five soldiers were shot but are in stable condition</h2><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/author/ross-williams/">Ross Williams</a><br><a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/">Georgia Recorder</a></p><p>An Army sergeant who is accused of opening fire on five of his fellow soldiers at Fort Stewart in southeast Georgia Wednesday used his personal weapon in the shooting, according to the installation’s commanding general.</p><p>Sgt. Quornelius Radford, who was assigned to a unit within the second Brigade Combat Team, allegedly shot five soldiers late Wednesday morning, according to Brig. Gen. John Lubas, the installation’s commanding general. All five victims were in stable condition.</p><p>Lubas, the installation’s commanding general, said other soldiers were able to physically subdue Radford until law enforcement officers arrived and took Radford into custody nearly 40 minutes later.</p><p>“The shooting occurred at the soldier’s place of work. It did involve his co-workers,” Lubas told reporters Wednesday afternoon. “We’re still not certain about the motivations, but again, he’s been interviewed by Army investigators, and we believe we’ll gain more information here shortly.”</p><p>Lubas said the weapon used in the shooting is believed to be a personal handgun, but he said how the firearm ended up at the workplace is still under investigation.</p><p>“I’m very confident in the security of this installation. We’ve got a great partnership with local law enforcement,” Lubas said. “As you can see here at our gates, we have armed guards in protective equipment.</p><p>“This one’s a bit difficult, and we’re going to have to determine how he was able to get a handgun to his place of place of duty,” he said.</p><p>Law enforcement was dispatched for a possible shooting at 10:56 a.m., the base was placed on lock down at 11:04, medical personnel were dispatched at 11:09 and a suspect was apprehended at 11:35 a.m.</p><p>Fort Stewart is the largest Army installation east of the Mississippi River and is home to the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division and about 10,000 troops and family members. It is located in Hinesville about 40 miles southwest of Savannah.</p><p>Georgia leaders including Gov. Brian Kemp denounced the shooter and offered thanks for the law enforcement and emergency personnel.</p><p>“As we remain in close contact with law enforcement on the ground, Marty, the girls, and I are saddened by today’s tragedy at Ft. Stewart,” Kemp said in a statement on social media. “We are keeping the victims, their families, and all those who answer the call to serve in our hearts and prayers, and we ask that Georgians everywhere do the same.”</p><p>The base is represented by Republican Congressman Buddy Carter, who offered a statement in support of the victims and first responders.</p><p>Georgia Democratic Congressman Sanford Bishop said the effects of the attack will reverberate beyond Georgia.</p><p>“The events today will not only be felt at Fort Stewart but across our entire military,” Bishop said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to the casualties and all those impacted by this unfortunate occurrence.”</p><p>President Donald Trump has been briefed on the shooting, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said federal law enforcement agents are providing support.</p><p>Georgia Recorder Editor Jill Nolin contributed to this report.&nbsp;</p><p>-----------------</p><p>FORT STEWART, Georgia– Five Soldiers were shot Wednesday in an active shooter incident in the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team area, according to a media release from the base. All Soldiers were treated on-site and moved to Winn Army Community Hospital for further treatment. There was no active threat to the community.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The President has been briefed on the shooting at Fort Stewart in Georgia. The White House is monitoring the situation.</p>&mdash; Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) <a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec/status/1953135134665802048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Our federal law enforcement agents in Georgia are coordinating to provide support as the situation at Fort Stewart develops.<br><br>I am praying for all the victims and for our troops at the base.</p>&mdash; Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) <a href="https://twitter.com/AGPamBondi/status/1953137964168405387?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FFortStewartHunterArmyAirfield%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0696cnEND7m9ujYRCsx5nonjp4fmurusZBqGcSzKdntmdhoWDX67gD57gysUrbLCLl&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="679" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div><p>Law enforcement was dispatched for a possible shooting in the 2nd ABCT complex at 10:56 a.m. The shooter was apprehended at 11:35 a.m.</p><p>The installation was locked down at 11:04 a.m. and Fort Stewart lifted the lockdown of the main cantonment area at 12:10 p.m. 2nd ABCT complex is still locked down.</p><p> Emergency medical personnel were dispatched to treat the wounded Soldiers at 11:09 a.m.</p><p>Check the Post for additional details as they become available.</p>

Army sergeant accused of using personal handgun in shooting at Fort Stewart in Georgia

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/author/cindygonzalez/">Cindy Gonzalez</a><br><a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2022/02/08/state-approved-use-of-pesticide-coated-seed-corn-for-ethanol-plant-a-decade-ago/">Nebraska Examiner</a>

OMAHA — Nebraska reportedly is being considered as a home to one of the state-run, federally funded migrant detention centers that U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem hopes to launch across the country in the likeness of “Alligator Alcatraz.”

Noem, in an interview with CBS News&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alligator-alcatraz-model-kristi-noem-homeland-security/" target="_blank">published Monday</a>, said she hopes to establish a handful of similar detention centers near airports and jails in other states in the coming months, using Florida’s so-called “Alligator Alcatraz” in the Everglades as a model. She said she had already appealed to governors and state leaders.&nbsp;

And CBS said potential sites already under consideration include Nebraska, Arizona and Louisiana.

Many states that support President Donald Trump’s mission of securing the border have empty or underused prison-like facilities, Noem noted. She said locations Homeland Security is considering are by airports and runways, which she said would help cut costs through “quick turnarounds.” U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operates under the umbrella of Homeland Security.

State-owned property that could fit her site preferences could include land near the Omaha Correctional Center by Eppley Airfield and the Nebraska National Guard base near the Lincoln airport.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen’s office shared a statement Tuesday, saying that his team “continues to be in communication with federal partners on how Nebraska can best assist in these efforts.”

Pillen spokeswoman Laura Strimple said the governor is “<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/01/24/pillen-orders-nebraska-agencies-to-fall-in-line-with-trump-immigration-crackdown/">staunchly committed&nbsp;</a>to keeping Americans safe, our nation’s&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/pillen-visits-nebraska-national-guard-on-texas-mexico-border-with-speaker-arch-sen-tom-brewer/">borders secure”</a>&nbsp;and getting criminals “off our streets.”

She said it was premature to comment on potential detention operations, adding: “Gov. Pillen will make details public at the appropriate time.”

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1751400984359.png" alt="White House image" />
                        <figcaption>White House image</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/author/cindygonzalez/">Cindy Gonzalez</a><br><a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2022/02/08/state-approved-use-of-pesticide-coated-seed-corn-for-ethanol-plant-a-decade-ago/">Nebraska Examiner</a></p><p>OMAHA — Nebraska reportedly is being considered as a home to one of the state-run, federally funded migrant detention centers that U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem hopes to launch across the country in the likeness of “Alligator Alcatraz.”</p><p>Noem, in an interview with CBS News&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alligator-alcatraz-model-kristi-noem-homeland-security/" target="_blank">published Monday</a>, said she hopes to establish a handful of similar detention centers near airports and jails in other states in the coming months, using Florida’s so-called “Alligator Alcatraz” in the Everglades as a model. She said she had already appealed to governors and state leaders.&nbsp;</p><p>And CBS said potential sites already under consideration include Nebraska, Arizona and Louisiana.</p><p>Many states that support President Donald Trump’s mission of securing the border have empty or underused prison-like facilities, Noem noted. She said locations Homeland Security is considering are by airports and runways, which she said would help cut costs through “quick turnarounds.” U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operates under the umbrella of Homeland Security.</p><p>State-owned property that could fit her site preferences could include land near the Omaha Correctional Center by Eppley Airfield and the Nebraska National Guard base near the Lincoln airport.</p><p>Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen’s office shared a statement Tuesday, saying that his team “continues to be in communication with federal partners on how Nebraska can best assist in these efforts.”</p><p>Pillen spokeswoman Laura Strimple said the governor is “<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2025/01/24/pillen-orders-nebraska-agencies-to-fall-in-line-with-trump-immigration-crackdown/">staunchly committed&nbsp;</a>to keeping Americans safe, our nation’s&nbsp;<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/pillen-visits-nebraska-national-guard-on-texas-mexico-border-with-speaker-arch-sen-tom-brewer/">borders secure”</a>&nbsp;and getting criminals “off our streets.”</p><p>She said it was premature to comment on potential detention operations, adding: “Gov. Pillen will make details public at the appropriate time.”</p><p>An ICE spokesperson told the Examiner in a statement Tuesday that the agency could not confirm “individual pre-decisional conversations” but said it would “confirm that ICE is exploring all options to meet its current and future detention requirements.”</p><p>The agency blamed the Biden administration’s border policies, and added: “ICE is proud to say we have enhanced enforcement and routine daily operations that have resulted in a significant number of arrests” necessitating greater detention capacity.</p><p>Noem’s strategy reportedly builds upon the “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration detention center that opened last month at a jetport in the South Florida marshlands. It was built in just days and has the capacity to house at least 3,000 migrants.</p><p>The effort would be assisted by the $45 billion set aside for ICE in President Donald Trump’s recently adopted “big beautiful bill.”</p><p>Nebraska State Sen. Terrell McKinney of North Omaha, a legislative watchdog on criminal justice issues, criticized the notion of Nebraska as a host site.&nbsp;</p><p>“The idea of Nebraska operating a state-run detention facility is crazy and should not move forward,” he said. “Our focus should be on addressing the current budget deficit and reversing the decline of our state’s economy, both of which will only worsen with proposals like this.”</p><p>McKinney said that under the Trump administration, “enforcement efforts have expanded far beyond individuals labeled as criminals.”</p><p>“Many law-abiding immigrants are being unjustly detained and torn away from their families,” he said.</p><p>Nebraska State Sen. Margo Juarez was terse in her reaction. Her South Omaha area district includes the worksite where a June 10 high-profile immigration raid took place, the largest enforcement operation in Nebraska since Trump took office the second time.</p><p>“There is no way we will welcome an Alcatraz,” Juarez said. “Look elsewhere.”</p><p>More than 70 undocumented immigrants were apprehended during the ICE-led raid at Glenn Valley Foods. Roughly 25 of the workers are still being detained at a North Platte jail, hours from where their families live. That jail contracts with the federal government to hold ICE detainees who are in removal proceedings.</p><p>Douglas County officials had previously opted not to renew a federal contract under which it was paid to hold ICE detainees at its Omaha jail.</p>