Both Popolo's and Leon Jr.'s appointments will require Senate confirmation.

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A Utah student decided to dedicate her master’s thesis to the pursuit of getting a historic piece of land art inscribed on the National Registry of Historic Places. Succeeding on all fronts, ‘Spiral Jetty,’ the famous creation on the shores of the Great Salt Lake, becomes the first feature of the Land Art movement to […] The post 50-Year-old ‘Spiral Jetty’ Spins into History as Great Salt Lake Artwork Makes US List of Historic Places appeared first on Good News Network.

Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., took office as Senate majority leader Friday, telling fellow senators in his introductory speech that he would be a moderating force in government as Republicans attempt to pursue an aggressive agenda in the wake of President-elect Donald Trump’s victory. Thune promised to protect the filibuster rule—which Trump has previously criticized—in order to maintain the Senate as a check on excessive government.  “The founders established safeguards, checks and balances throughout our government to keep the government in check and ensure that the rights of all Americans were protected. One of those safeguards was the United States Senate.” Thune specifically took aim at proposals to eliminate the filibuster rule, which he views as a valuable method to curb government overreach. “Unfortunately, today there are a lot of people out there who would like to see the Senate turn into a copy of the House of Representatives,” said Thune. “And that, Ms. President, is not what our founders intended or what our country needs.” Thune’s warning might set the stage for a showdown between himself and Trump, as the 45th president said in 2017 that “the very outdated filibuster rule must go,” in order to push a Republican agenda forward. It remains to be seen if Trump will again advocate abolishing the filibuster to advance his ambitious policies on immigration, trade and tax policy. “One of my priorities as leader will be to ensure that the Senate stays the Senate,” said Thune. “That means preserving the legislative filibuster, the Senate rule that today has perhaps the greatest impact on preserving the founders’ vision of the United States Senate.” So far, Trump has laid praise on the newly minted majority leader, saying on social media after his appointment that Thune will “do an outstanding job.” However, others within Trump’s circle have laid criticism on Thune’s appointment, such as Trump campaign ally Charlie Kirk of Turning Point USA, who tweeted in November, “It is totally unacceptable we do secret ballots to elect a Senate Majority Leader. They are afraid of you.” Thune and Trump have had a bittersweet relationship in the past, as Thune initially withheld his endorsement of Trump in the 2024 election cycle and attributed the GOP’s disappointing 2022 midterm results to the party’s identity being too bound to Trump. The strength of Thune and Trump’s relationship will play a crucial role in determining the effectiveness of Trump’s legislative agenda, as the incoming president attempts to shore up his coalition in both houses of Congress. The post Thune Officially Minted Senate Majority Leader, Promises to Keep Filibuster appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Police have described the suspect in the fatal stabbing of a postal worker in Harlem as transgender, according to a New York Post story published Friday afternoon."The repeat offender — who has been described by cops as a transgendered woman — now faces murder charges for the brutal knifing of Ray Hodges, an on-duty USPS letter carrier who was grabbing lunch at the deli at 168 Lenox Ave," the Post's story says.WABC said police found Hodges stabbed or slashed multiple times — including in the torso, arms, back, and neck — inside the establishment. In addition, the stabbing suspect — 24-year-old Jaia Cruz — was arrested at least five times before Thursday's fatal stabbing of Hodges, the Post added, citing law enforcement sources.The paper added that the suspect also has a history of knife violence.More from the Post:In July 2020, Cruz was caught waving an open box cutter at another person in Midtown West and shouting, “I’m going to cut him,” sources said. Cruz was ordered to get on the ground but refused.Cruz was ordered to get on the ground, but refused. She was then pulled away by officers and busted for resisting arrest.Just two weeks later, Cruz was arrested again for a 4:30 a.m. tag-team robbery — she and another individual used knives to steal a man’s phone and wallet after the victim invited the pair to “hang out.”During Thursday's fatal stabbing of Hodges, New York City police said he and Cruz seemingly argued over who ordered first at the deli before the dispute turned physical.Hodges, 36, of the Bronx, was working his postal route when he went to get lunch at Joe’s Grocery around 2:30 p.m., police told WPIX-TV.As Hodges was waiting to pay, an argument ensued over who was next in line, police told WPIX, adding that Cruz is accused of stabbing Hodges seven times. WABC said police found Hodges stabbed or slashed multiple times — including in the torso, arms, back, and neck — inside the establishment. Hodges was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, WABC said, adding that a weapon has been recovered.Investigators told WPIX a witness identified the suspect near the scene of the crime. Cruz was was charged with second-degree murder, police told WPIX.An initial story from the Post, citing sources, said "the knife-wielding suspect went crazy and gutted the victim in the stomach after he stepped in front of her in line, leaving his blood smeared all over the floors and glass door."The U.S. Postal Inspection Service told WPIX in a separate story that Hodges was a letter carrier and was on duty. WPIX said his postal cart was seen outside the deli.A friend of the person of interest told WABC that it's not in her friend's character to attack another person without a reason: "She's a nice young lady. She is not the type that just come out in the street and attacking people. This is just a bad neighborhood. What had happened, I have no idea because I was not around yet. I don't know. But I do know if she said it was in self defense, it was in self defense."Postal worker Kathy Singleton told WABC that Hodges "was a nice young man." Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The Wisconsin Elections Commission held a special meeting on Thursday after learning that 193 absentee ballots from the city of Madison were never counted in November's election.Of the uncounted absentee ballots, 125 were from Ward 56, 67 from Ward 65, and one from Ward 68.'That's very, very disturbing.'Elections Commission Chair Ann Jacobs (D) called the error "so egregious." She questioned why it took more than six weeks to report the issue to commissioners."We are the final canvassers," Jacobs said. "We are the final arbiters of votes in the state of Wisconsin, and we need to know why those ballots weren't included anywhere."Personnel with the Madison Clerk's Office reportedly first discovered some of the unprocessed ballots on November 12.While city officials learned of the oversight a week after the November election, the news did not become public until mid-December.The clerk's office released a statement announcing it would contact the affected voters and issue an apology."Moving forward, every polling location will receive a list of absentee envelope seal numbers that will be verified as counted on Election Day. The goal of the Clerk's Office is that each eligible voter will be able to cast a ballot and have that ballot counted. Falling short of this goal for the November 2024 Election, we sincerely apologize to our voters and will strive to make sure this never happens again," the statement read.The clerk's office noted that the uncounted ballots would not have impacted the outcome of any of the races.Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway (D) addressed the error in a separate statement, calling it "a significant departure from the high standard our residents expect.""Unfortunately, Clerk's Office staff were apparently aware of the oversight for some time, and the Mayor's Office was not notified of the unprocessed ballots until December 20," she said.Rhodes-Conway stated that the city would "conduct a thorough review."The commission typically opens investigations in response to complaints, and one has not yet been filed for the uncounted ballots. However, the commissioners voted unanimously this week to open an inquiry into the issue.During Thursday's commission meeting, Jacobs said, "Given the seriousness of what happened here, our lack of knowledge (and) information that was not given to us in a timely fashion, I think we need to do something more formal."Commissioner Don Millis (R) remarked, "My biggest concern is why it took a month and a half for this to come out.""That's very, very disturbing," he added.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The United States Department of Agriculture blamed a bird flu outbreak for skyrocketing egg prices over the last few weeks. The USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service said that egg production dropped by 4% in November to 8.92 billion. Of those, 7.68 billion were table eggs and 1.24 billion were hatching eggs. 'Production is extremely tight, probably at some of the lowest levels since avian flu started back in 2022.' The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that 128 million birds in all 50 states had been infected by the H5N1 bird flu, including commercial poultry, wild aquatic birds, and "backyard or hobbyist flocks." Californians have been forced to pay 70% more for eggs over the last month, according to price reporting service Expana. Other causes are also contributing to egg price hikes. In Michigan, a new law requires all stores to sell only eggs from cage-free sources. A Michigan State University study found that the law would require specialized labor and double the investment than that of traditional caged sources. The law was originally passed in 2009 but was delayed until the end of 2024. Eggs Unlimited global trade strategist Brian Moscogiuri told Axios that prices are hitting record highs for commodity eggs as well as cage-free eggs. "We're moving beyond the holiday baking season but at the same time, we are continuing to monitor avian flu and the impact on supply," he said. "Production is extremely tight, probably at some of the lowest levels since avian flu started back in 2022."In December, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) issued an emergency declaration over the spread of bird flu in order to activate state efforts to limit infections. "While the risk to the public remains low, we will continue to take all necessary steps to prevent the spread of this virus," said Newsom. Obama-era economic analyst Steve Rattner hoped the egg debacle would hurt President-elect Donald Trump. "With its inflationary impact on egg prices and increasing threat to public health, the bird flu could spell trouble for Trump, who promised to lower prices and has a dubious public health record," he posted on social media with a graph of egg prices. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!