Two smaller companies, Oklo and TerraPower, along with Vistra, a large energy company, just signed agreements with Meta.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As an organization that has long defended the First Amendment rights of veterans and active-duty service members, The Rutherford Institute is raising serious concerns about attempts by the federal government to intimidate or punish military veterans—including by threatening to reduce their retirement grade and pay—for exercising their right to criticize the government. …

In my home state of South Carolina, a suspended Charleston County magistrate and an unnamed co-conspirator were indicted on federal child pornography charges by a federal grand jury.  There are multiple counts of child pornography that were unsealed in October 2025. Andrew Fancher has the story at FitsNews. A suspended Charleston County magistrate and an …

Zach Bryan’s “anti-ICE” song is finally here. The country music superstar released his sixth studio album, With Heaven On Top, earlier today, and it’s already making headlines. For one, many fans are noticing the Bruce Springsteen-inspired sound on much of the project, while others are talking about how produced this album sounds compared to Bryan’s past releases (Zach went ahead and announced an acoustic version of the album for those ready to complain). And though there’s plenty of songs that are worthy of discussion in the track list (“Skin” seems to be a straight shot at his ex-girlfriend, Brianna Chickenfry), the one that many were waiting to hear in full was Bryan’s politically charged “Bad News.” It was early in October when the country singer first shared a snippet of the song, and as you might imagine, the buzz around the song shot to the stratosphere. Now that it’s finally here, I thought it’d be appropriate to really break down the lyrics of the track that even got the attention of the Department of Homeland Security when it was initially teased. The first verse doesn’t necessarily touch on anything too political, though it does throw out a line about the police being “cocky mother*******,” which could be a reference to Bryan’s personal run in with the authorities in September of 2023. It could also just could be a shot at law enforcement in general: “Didn’t wake up dead or in jail Some out of town boys been giving us hell I got some bad news I woke up missing you My friends are all degenerates but they’re all I got The generational story of dropping the plot I heard the cops came Cocky mother******* ain’t they?” However, once the song gets to its second verse, it dives into the political side of things. Right off the bat, Bryan takes aim at the ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement). And towards the end of the verse, the country star reveals that the “Bad News” he’s singing about is the “fading of the red, white and blue.” He also seems to lament that Bruce Springsteen, who is famously anti-Trump, has lost some fans recently: “And ICE is gonna come, bust down your door Try to build a house no one builds no more But I got a telephone Kids are all scared and all alone The Boss stopped bumping, the rock stopped rolling The middle fingers rising and it won’t stop showing I got some bad news The fading of the red, white and blue” Obviously, that line about the “Immigration and Customs Enforcement” is timely, considering there’s much debate about how ICE handled a tense situation in Minneapolis, Minnesota early in January. Bryan couldn’t have ever guessed that his song – which he wrote months ago – questioning the organization would drop at such a charged time in the political climate. When “Bad News” gets to it’s chorus, it keeps things concise and inquisitive. It first harkens to the 1951 song by Woody Guthrie that everyone is familiar with: “This Land Is Your Land.” I’d argue that it’s an interesting juxtaposition. While that old, classic, patriotic song paints a more hopeful depiction of the United States, Zach’s song asks if the country we are living in is really as bad as it’s portrayed on the news: “This land’s your land This land mine too Is this all true, man? Or is it just bad news?” I also have to point out that the song’s sound and speed doesn’t necessarily match the somber tone the lyrics give off. That could be intentional, since Bryan is asking if it’s “all true” or if it’s “just bad news?” The rhythm of the song could represent an unwillingness to accept or be numb to with the current state of the world. In the verse following the chorus, Zach Bryan does take aim at the other side of the aisle (as he said he would when he defended the song during it’s initial backlash). There’s a quick line at the beginning that accuses the right of “turning red” and the left being “woke.” Then another portion brings attention to the overwhelming bad news that comes through our televisions, as Bryan says that every day he turns on the news, there’s news about gun violence: “Well, he said, she said, mirrors and smoke Right’s turned red and the left’s all woke Got some bad news I woke up missing you My friends are all degenerates, they’re all I got Every day on the news, someone else is shot I got some bad news The fading of the red, white and blue I served eight years just to be told That nobody cares and land’s all sold I got some bad news I woke up missing you.” All in all, I think “Bad News” can best be described as Zach Bryan’s general lament on the state of the world. Though I’m sure some will listen and take issue with certain portions, I’d say the 29-year-old artist does a decent job of touching on the feeling of hopelessness that some feel, and the overwhelming divisiveness of the United States of America. It’s not a rallying cry by any means. Zach seems to just be holding a mirror up to society, and capturing this moment in time through his music. And at the end of the day, isn’t that one of the critical roles of art? “Bad News” by Zach Bryan The post A Deep Dive Into Zach Bryan’s New “Anti-ICE” Song, “Bad News” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Amen to that, Megan… This weekend, Megan Moroney is the guest on iHeartCountry House Party, and in a clip shared to social media ahead of the full conversation airing this weekend, she spoke about how the women in country music are killing it right now… which is in large part thanks to artists like herself, as well as other mainstream stars like Ella Langley and Lainey Wilson, just to name a few. In fact, those three ladies were tied as the most-nominated artists at the CMA Awards this year, and have been absolutely killing it with country radio hits, and sold-out tours all over the world. Ella is already having a massive year, as her song “Choosin’ Texas” is at #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart right now, making her one of only 12 women this century to land a top-10 country hit on the all-genre chart. Lainey is the reigning Entertainer of the Year, and it’s really been cool to watch each of them rise to stardom and do it their own way with their own style. It’s a testament to their own hard work, as well as the women who laid the ground work and came before them, and Megan explained how “amazing” it is to see so many ladies in the genre crushing it, including many of the women I didn’t mentioned prior who also make great country music: “I think it’s amazing. We all have such distinct lanes too, and a unique perspective that I think just feels really authentic and thanks to social media, we can promote ourselves and get the word out abut our music that way. It’s just really cool to see so many women killing it, you know?” She added that they’re “giving the guys a run for their money,” and I wholeheartedly agree: “It’s like, we’re giving the guys a run for their money. We’re like, ‘Hello, we’re here. We’re very much here.'” As they should be… I also want to point out that, even when many online want to spin narratives that certain women don’t like each other, and speculate about drama they really don’t know anything about, it’s refreshing to see Megan uplift her female counterparts and acknowledge their success. Lainey called out the internet trolls during her recent Female Artist of the Year speech, and I think it’s really cool to see all of them supporting each other, whether or not they have had their own differences or issues in their personal lives. They’re all immensely talented, and I’m a fan of all three ladies, who are making all of us look good and I can’t wait to see what else they accomplish this year: @thebig98 Let’s go GIRLS!! This Saturday, we’re hanging with @Megan Moroney on iHeartCountry House Party with @Wayne D and @_ohheyyitstayy_ ♬ original sound – The BIG 98 Megan will release her third studio album Cloud 9 in February, then hit the road on the supporting tour in May which runs until October and also includes quite a few European dates. ANNOUNCED DATES FOR MEGAN MORONEY’S THE CLOUD 9 TOUR: MAY 29 | Columbus, OH – Schottenstein Center 30 | Indianapolis, IN – Gainbridge Fieldhouse JUNE 2 | Chicago, IL – United Center 5 | Baltimore, MD – CFG Bank Arena 6 | Greensboro, NC – First Horizon Coliseum 8 | Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena 12 | Louisville, KY – KFC Yum! Center 13 | St. Louis, MO – Enterprise Center 16 | Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena 18 | Milwaukee, WI – Summerfest 19 | Grand Rapids, MI – Van Andel Arena 20 | Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena JULY 7 | Boston, MA – TD Garden 9 | Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center 10 | Newark, NJ – Prudential Center 11 | Philadelphia, PA – Xfinity Mobile Arena 14 | Charlotte, NC – Spectrum Center 16 | Orlando, FL – Kia Center 17 | Tampa, FL – Benchmark International Arena 18 | Sunrise, FL – Amerant Bank Arena 24 | Monticello, IA – Great Jones County Fair 25 | Minneapolis, MN – Target Center 26 | Lincoln, NE – Pinnacle Bank Arena 28 | Denver, CO – Ball Arena AUGUST 1 | Portland, OR – Moda Center 2 | Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena 5 | Sacramento, CA – Golden 1 Center 7 | Los Angeles, CA – Crypto.com Arena 11 | Glendale, AZ – Desert Diamond Arena 14 | Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center 15 | Tulsa, OK – BOK Center 16 | Kansas City, MO – T-Mobile Center 18 | Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena 21 | Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena SEPTEMBER 13 | Oslo, NO – Sentrum Scene 15 | Stockholm, SE – Annexet 18 | Cologne, DE – Carlswerk Victoria 19 | Tilburg, NL – 013 Poppodium 21 | Paris, FR – Le Trianon 23 | London, UK – Eventim Apollo 26 | Manchester, UK – O2 Apollo 27 | Glasgow, UK – O2 Academy OCTOBER 1 | Belfast, UK – SSE ArenaThe post Megan Moroney Says The Women In Country Music Are “Giving The Guys A Run For Their Money,” And I’m Here For It first appeared on Whiskey Riff.