Several wildfires that ravaged Nebraska for nearly two weeks have burned upward of 800,000 acres. One of the fires became the largest in state history. Fortunately, the fires are reaching full containment. Nebraska's four major blazes, which are blamed for at least one death and have burned nearly 800,000 acres, are described by Gov. Jim Pillen as "the largest wildfires in our history." https://t.co/bpnbSWr8oS — NBC News (@NBCNews) March 18, 2026 KNOP shared further: The Morrill Fire saw minimal fire activity and has burned 642,000 acres, according to Watch-Duty. The fire is now 98 percent contained. The fire was caused by an electrical fire that was sparked by high winds. It covered parts of Keith, Arthur, Grant, Garden and Morrill counties. South of I-80, the Cottonwood Fire near Brady and Gothenburg is still under investigation. The fire is now 98 percent contained and evacuation orders in the area have been lifted. The fire has burned 129,000 acres. The Road 203 Fire within the Nebraska National Forest has burned 35,000 acres across Thomas, Custer, Logan and Blaine counties. The fire is now 90 percent contained. Over the weekend, three unoccupied firefighter vehicles were burned and destroyed, but nobody was injured. The Anderson Bridge Fire west of Valentine is 100 percent contained, with 17,000 acres burned. “Today, @SecRollins saw firsthand how much damage and devastation the recent wildfires brought to farmers and ranchers across Nebraska. Most importantly, she witnessed how our first responders and volunteers stepped up, working around the clock to keep our communities safe,” Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) said. “I am thankful for Secretary Rollins’ leadership and will be working closely with @USDA and @TeamPillen to make sure those impacted get the assistance they need,” she continued. Today, @SecRollins saw firsthand how much damage and devastation the recent wildfires brought to farmers and ranchers across Nebraska. Most importantly, she witnessed how our first responders and volunteers stepped up, working around the clock to keep our communities safe. I am… pic.twitter.com/tgHWTuji3J — Senator Deb Fischer (@SenatorFischer) March 23, 2026 “I was in Nebraska today, meeting the farmers and ranchers devastated after the Morrill Fire tore through 643,000 acres in western Nebraska, the largest wildfire in state history. These families lost everything: their hay, their grazing land, their entire way of life. With nowhere left to turn, they faced an overwhelming road ahead. But they didn’t face it alone,” Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said. “Neighbors from Craig and Oakland saw the need and answered. One simple Facebook post sparked a convoy of 22 semis rolling across the state, delivering more than 700 bales of donated hay straight into the hands of those who had nothing left. That’s how it works out here: when you lose everything, your neighbor shows up and helps carry the load. No questions, no hesitation, just quiet strength and open hands,” Rollins continued. “We help our neighbor. We do what’s right. And we know they’ll have our backs when the burden is ours. This is the unbreakable heart of America,” she added. This is rural America—the very fiber that holds our nation together. I was in Nebraska today, meeting the farmers and ranchers devastated after the Morrill Fire tore through 643,000 acres in western Nebraska, the largest wildfire in state history. These families lost… https://t.co/kFK3gbTPIW — Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) March 24, 2026 NBC News has more: An estimated 300 residents in the area of the fire were under evacuation orders but were allowed to return to their homes, according to the Morrill Fire incident command team. The same incident command team is fighting the Cottonwood Fire, said to have consumed 131,259 acres with 40% containment. The Road 203 Fire in Nebraska National Forest had spread across 35,386 acres by Tuesday, but firefighters had it 36% contained, according to its incident command team. The cause is believed to be a prescribed burn on March 10 that re-emerged as the Road 203 fire on March 12, according to the team. The Anderson Bridge Fire, which erupted March 12 in Samuel R. McKelvie National Forest, has burned 17,400 acres amid 60% containment Tuesday, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association. The national forest is closed through April 13 to ensure public safety and allow fire crews to pass unabated, the U.S. Forest Service said. A cause was unavailable. The fires thrive on the western side of the state, with Nebraska National Guard personnel, Iowa National Guard personnel — including two of its Black Hawk helicopters — federal commanders, Federal Emergency Management Agency officials and more than 700 firefighters assigned, according to state officials and the incident command team. Pillen declared a state of emergency for fire-affected counties last week. On Tuesday, he signed an executive order that aims to cut red tape in providing feed and other needed supplies to the state’s livestock as flames consume its grazing land. First Alert 6 shared video coverage:

Acting TSA Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill testified before Congress on Wednesday amid the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown. “Acting TSA Administrator Ms. Ha Nguyen McNeill testifies before Congress that TSA is currently suffering the longest wait times in agency history, with callout rates hitting 40-50% at some airports and more than 480 employees quitting since the shutdown began. McNeil testifies that TSA has been shut down for half of fiscal year 2026, and $1 billion in TSA paychecks will be missed if the shutdown isn’t ended by Friday,” Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin wrote. “She testified that to make ends meet, TSA officers have been selling blood and plasma and sleeping in their cars. Some have received eviction notices, missed bill payments and accrued late fees, damaged their credit, and have defaulted on loans, but are ‘still expected to perform at the highest level,'” he continued. BREAKING: Acting TSA Administrator Ms. Ha Nguyen McNeill testifies before Congress that TSA is currently suffering the longest wait times in agency history, with callout rates hitting 40-50% at some airports and more than 480 employees quitting since the shutdown began. McNeil… — Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) March 25, 2026 NBC News shared further: Homeland Security Committee Chair Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., called Democratic lawmakers’ actions regarding the Department of Homeland Security shutdown “reckless, dangerous and unacceptable” in his opening statement at a hearing with senior DHS officials. Garbarino accused Democrats of choosing to shut down the department “and weaken our national security posture for their own political gain.” Democrats had rejected bids to fund the entire department, insisting on reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Meanwhile, Republicans have rejected Democrats’ efforts to fund the Transportation Security Administration. NBC News reported yesterday that Senate Republicans are hopeful about a potential path forward to reopen the department, which would involve funding most of DHS, except for certain ICE operations, which they would try to pass through a special budgetary process without needing Democratic support. “Recent developments in the Senate are showing some potential momentum towards hopefully ending this harmful shutdown soon,” Garbarino said. “If a deal is proposed, we look forward to reviewing it quickly. But the fact is that DHS is still shut down today, and we should never have been in the position in the first place.” Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., cast blame on Republicans for the shutdown, also arguing that “they are complicit in causing irreparable damage over the 15 months to DHS, its mission and its workforce.” Thompson, the top Democrat on the committee, emphasized that lawmakers in his party “want to fund TSA, FEMA, CISA and the Coast Guard, and have repeatedly offered bill to do just that,” which Republicans rejected. FEMA is the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and CISA is the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Watch McNeill’s statement below: BREAKING: TSA officers are being forced to sleep in their cars, sell their blood and plasma, and take on second jobs as they deal with the financial fallout of the ongoing DHS shutdown. "Many in our workforce have missed bill payments, received eviction notices, had their cars… pic.twitter.com/77f6QKHyDR — Fox News (@FoxNews) March 25, 2026 The hearing follows the Trump administration sending ICE agents to over a dozen airports across the country. Here Are The Airports Where ICE Agents Will Help TSA CNN noted: Meanwhile, in the airports, hours long lines have wrapped around terminals as travelers wait to get into fewer lanes managed by fewer TSA officers. Some checkpoints have been closed, and the agency has even warned screening could be stopped at some small airports, effectively shutting them down. “In the past, wait times, excessive wait times, have put pressure on Congress to find a deal. But Congress should be so lucky that it’s just wait times that pressures them to a deal, and not something worse happening, like a security lapse,” said Erik Hansen, senior vice president and head of government relations for the US Travel Association. In some respects, the long lines are a sign officers are trying to maintain standards. Passengers can’t simply be sped through the lines faster. “We need not only to be vigilant, but extra vigilant,” Pistole said. Yet, he worries the massive lines created when the reduced number of screeners follow the essential rules could create additional vulnerabilities. Watch additional coverage below:

President Trump has appointed the first members of his “President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST).” “Established by Executive Order, PCAST brings together the Nation’s foremost luminaries in science and technology to advise the President and provide recommendations on strengthening American leadership in science and technology,” the White House stated. “The Council will be co-chaired by David Sacks and Michael Kratsios,” it added. The following individuals have been appointed: Marc Andreessen Sergey Brin Safra Catz Michael Dell Jacob DeWitte Fred Ehrsam Larry Ellison David Friedberg Jensen Huang John Martinis Bob Mumgaard Lisa Su Mark Zuckerberg JUST IN – Trump to appoint Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison and Jensen Huang to the Science and Technology Advisory Board — WSJ pic.twitter.com/5sHijJ0tkJ — Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) March 25, 2026 More from the White House: Under President Trump, PCAST will focus on topics related to the opportunities and challenges that emerging technologies present to the American workforce, and ensuring all Americans thrive in the Golden Age of Innovation. PCAST may be composed of up to 24 members. Additional members will be appointed in the near future along with information about the Council’s first meeting. Since President Franklin D. Roosevelt created his Science Advisory Board in 1933, each President has established his own PCAST advisory committee of scientists, engineers, and industry leaders. “Today, we welcome the first wave of extraordinary members to President Trump’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). Rooted in the tradition FDR began in 1933, PCAST unites America’s brightest minds to advise the President on the most pressing national issues in science and technology,” Kratsios commented. “Under @POTUS, PCAST will focus on the opportunities and challenges that emerging technologies present to the American worker and how to best ensure the U.S. continues to lead in the Golden Age of Innovation,” he added. Today, we welcome the first wave of extraordinary members to President Trump’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). Rooted in the tradition FDR began in 1933, PCAST unites America’s brightest minds to advise the President on the most pressing national issues in… — Director Michael Kratsios (@mkratsios47) March 25, 2026 Reuters noted: The council is expected to play a key role in shaping Washington’s response to intensifying global competition in artificial intelligence, particularly with China, where state-backed firms have advanced AI capabilities.

A California gubernatorial debate was called off because of criticism that the stage would only feature white candidates who qualified for the event. The debate was set to be co-sponsored by the University of Southern California and the Los Angeles TV station KABC. BREAKING: University of Southern California (@USC) has CANCELED their planned CA gubernatorial debate because… The only candidates attending were White people. No, this isn't a joke. — Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) March 24, 2026 NBC News explained further: The sprawling field includes eight prominent Democrats and two major Republicans, as well as several other lesser-known candidates. USC had faced condemnation for using polling and fundraising criteria for participation in the debate that had resulted in the exclusion of all the nonwhite gubernatorial candidates. In a statement from late Monday night, USC said that the “concerns about the selection criteria” for the debate had “created a significant distraction from the issues that matter to voters.” “Unfortunately, USC and KABC have not been able to reach an agreement on expanding the number of candidates at tomorrow’s debate. As a result, USC has made the difficult decision to cancel tomorrow’s debate and will look for other opportunities to educate voters on the candidates and issues,” the university said in that statement. The school added that it “vigorously defends the independence, objectivity, and integrity” of the formula it used to determine whether candidates qualified for the debate, saying it was “based on extensive research and enjoys broad academic support.” According to ABC7 Los Angeles, six of the candidates in the wide-open race qualified for the event. “THEY CANCELLED THE DEBATE. So we’re holding our own. Tonight on X Spaces — all candidates welcome. California deserves answers, not silence,” said Steve Hilton, a Republican candidate. THEY CANCELLED THE DEBATE. So we’re holding our own. Tonight on X Spaces — all candidates welcome. California deserves answers, not silence. Link below pic.twitter.com/IcdlGWhhTS — Steve Hilton (@SteveHiltonx) March 24, 2026 More from ABC7 Los Angeles: The debate was scheduled to air on ABC7 Los Angeles, in addition to the ABC stations in San Francisco and Fresno, with six of the candidates in the race. Those candidates were selected according to objective criteria widely used to set debate participation nationwide based on polling and fundraising. Many scholars have come forward to defend the methodology, saying its criteria are “among the most widely accepted indicators of candidate viability in both academic research and applied practice.”

Dr. Robert Malone is stepping away from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s vaccine advisory panel. Malone’s departure follows a federal judge ruling that Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s appointment of vaccine advisory committee members likely violated federal law. The ruling invalidated all the votes made by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) since the remaking of the panel. HHS Vaccine Policy Changes Blocked By Federal Judge Roll Call shared further: Malone was one of several picks by Kennedy in a controversial reworking of the entire Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices last year. Malone said Tuesday that he won’t be a part of any attempt to reform the panel after a feud with HHS personnel on whether the court ruling would be appealed. A federal judge last week blocked the vaccine panel’s controversial changes to the childhood vaccine schedule and called into question the panel’s validity, essentially kneecapping it from any future actions. Malone posted on social media that the decision wouldn’t be appealed, which was contradicted by HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon. "After Andrew trashing me with the press, I am done with the CDC and ACIP," Malone said via text message, according to the outlet. "That was the last straw," he continued. "Suffice to say I do not like drama, and have better things to do," Malone added. Godspeed @RWMaloneMD