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Denver city council members speak out about migrant crime
(The Center Square) – Two city of Denver council members are speaking out about the correlation between the migrant crisis and the increase in crime in some districts throughout Denver. This is according to a July 10 Safety, Housing, Education & Homelessness Committee meeting, where council members heard from Sarah Plastino, the director of the newcomer program for the city and county of Denver, about three migrant-related contracts that would cost the city roughly $17 million of the city’s $90 million 2024 funds already set...
Secret Service faces tough questions after Trump assassination attempt
(The Center Square) – The U.S. Secret Service is facing an array of tough questions, calls for accountability, firings and investigations this week as well as public feuding with local law enforcement. House Oversight Republicans launched an investigation into the U.S. Secret Service after the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on Saturday. President Joe Biden has also asked for an independent review. While there are a myriad of...
North Carolina election board approves Kennedy's party
(The Center Square) – We the People is now an official party in North Carolina, the North Carolina Board of Elections voted on Tuesday. In the same meeting, the board denied access to the Justice for All Party. We the People, which supports Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for president, was approved 4-1. Justice for All Party, which supports Cornel West for president, was denied 3-2. The decisions impact each respective...
Ex-fire chief to spend 60 days in jail for working two jobs
(The Center Square) – A former small-town fire chief in north central Ohio will spend 60 days in jail after pleading guilty to working full-time jobs for multiple public agencies simultaneously. Matthew Wells, who served as chief of the Crestline Fire Department, must also pay more than $26,000 in restitution and be under community control for 48 months. He also won’t be able to be employed in the public sector again, according to Ohio Auditor Keith Faber. ...
Report: Michigan CPS not up to standards 6 years after a state audit
(The Center Square) – A recent report on Michigan’s Child Protection Agency shows organizational issues that have been going on for at least six years. An audit completed in 2018 revealed a failure to conduct background checks, major delays in abuse investigations, failure to meet with some victims, and a lack of safety plans for identified victims. The updated report, conducted by the nonpartisan Office of the Auditor General, reveals these issues have not been addressed. ...
Yost rejects proposed amendment for no title
(The Center Square) – A plan to ask Ohio voters to strip away immunity from government and public employees for civil rights violations didn’t make it past the first step. Attorney General Dave Yost rejected a petition for a constitutional amendment because it did not contain a title. “The lack of a title alone provides sufficient cause to reject the submitted petition, and the petition is rejected on that basis,”...
Poll: Inflation, immigration, economy are top concerns of voters
(The Center Square) – Likely voters across the country continue to be most concerned about inflation, the economy and illegal immigration. This fresh data comes even as experts say inflation is slowing, indicating that Americans are still feeling the pinch of high prices. The Center Square Voters’ Voice Poll, conducted prior to the weekend assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, found that likely voters said inflation/price increases (45%), illegal...
Blackburn promises return to prosperity under Trump
(The Center Square) – Americans should be united against the economic policies of the Democrats, Tennessee Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn says. She spoke Monday at the Republican National Convention, a night themed “Make America Wealthy Again,” in Milwaukee, Wis. “Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, their high inflation, high interest, high taxes, and green new scam are destroying small businesses,” the first-term senator up for reelection said. “Biden and Harris outsourced our energy...
Illinois quick hits: Storms, tornadoes cause damage; City leaders under scrutiny for drinking while on duty;
Storms, tornadoes cause damage Severe storms rolled through Illinois Monday night, with several tornadoes suspected of touching down in spots. Wind gusts as high as 100 mph were detected in some areas. The National Weather Service issued 13 tornado warnings in the Chicago area alone. A tornado has been confirmed in Oswego, where residents woke up to major storm damage. The storms produced heavy rain which caused flooding in many areas, including Fulton County, which saw more than 4 inches of rain. In Will County,...
Property reassessment uncertainty kills growth in Pennsylvania
(The Center Square) — Pennsylvania school districts and local governments depend on property taxes to keep them going, but the commonwealth has caused a headache by not requiring regular property reassessments. It’s the only state in the country that lets counties decide — and some go decades without a reassessment. The result, as Sen. Katie Muth, D-Royersford, said during a Democratic Policy Committee on Monday, is “a lopsided tax system”...
New York attorney general sues county over transgender law
(The Center Square) — New York Attorney General Leticia James is suing Nassau County over the newly signed law banning transgender female athletes from competing in women's sporting events at county facilities. The lawsuit, which was filed on Monday alongside a similar complaint by the New York chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, targets a law approved by the Nassau County Legislature in June banning transgender girls and women from competing at county facilities on teams and leagues, which Nassau County Chief Executive Bruce...
Report: Alaska ranks in bottom 10 of states for low sales taxes
(The Center Square) - Alaska does not have a statewide sales tax but allows local sales taxes, unlike other states with no sales tax, according to a report from the Tax Foundation. Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon do not have local sales taxes and are tied for the lowest combined sales taxes in the country, according to the State and Local Sales Tax Rates, Midyear 2024 report. Alaska ranks...
MPS recall group threatens class action lawsuit
(The Center Square) – The group driving the Milwaukee school board recall is now looking to file a class-action lawsuit. The MPS School Board Recall Collaborative said it has filed formal complaints against the city’s school board with the Wisconsin Board of Ethics, the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office, and the U.S. Department of Education against Milwaukee’s elected school board members. The group is alleging “malfeasance, illegal and unethical activities that cannot be denied by any of the Board members.” ...
Aftermath of attempted Trump assassination impacts political rhetoric in Illinois
(The Center Square) – Politics continue in the aftermath of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump with both sides in Illinois taking stock of the temperature of the rhetoric this election cycle. In Pennsylvania Saturday, a Trump rally attendee was shot and killed and Trump was injured after a would-be assassin opened fire minutes into the former president’s speech to a crowd in an open air field. The assailant was shot and killed by law enforcement. ...
Emotional Trump, running mate Vance welcomed to convention
(The Center Square) – Former President Donald Trump made his first appearance at the Republican National Convention on Monday evening, just two days after an assassination attempt. Trump was joined by his running mate announced just hours earlier, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio. Trump's entrance for the final hour was greeted with thunderous applause, emotion, and nearly brought the nation's 45th president to tears. The crowd begged for Trump to...
Two days after being shot, Trump in gallery during RNC primetime
(The Center Square) – Former President Donald Trump made his first public appearance Monday at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee since he was grazed in the ear by a would-be assassin's bullet at a campaign rally Saturday in Pennsylvania. Wearing a bandage on his right ear, Trump was greeted with thunderous applause by delegates and other supporters inside the convention hall Monday night. He was shown on live feeds listening to the convention's first-day primetime speakers, often standing and clapping in support. ...
Greene: Embrace the spirit of hope, even after assassination attempt
(The Center Square) – America should embrace the spirit of hope, even after the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump over the weekend, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene said Monday night. Greene was on stage early for the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wis., just hours after Trump announced Ohio's J.D. Vance as his running mate. This is “a somber moment for our nation . . . I thank...
Robinson encourages delegates to join 'the brave heart of our time'
(The Center Square) – No lightning bolts, just solid campaign stumping on party values was spoken by North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson on Monday evening at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wis. Calling party presidential nominee the “brave heart” the country needs, Robinson shared the shortened version of his tragic family upbringing with an alcoholic and abusive father. He told of a chance gas station meeting with a man facing bankruptcy he recently encountered on the campaign trail; his shot at history as...
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The Center Square reports on state- and local-level government and economic news. A taxpayer sensibility distinguishes our work from other coverage of state and local issues.
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