Illinois Reviews DOJ Threat Over Noncitizen Voting Letters

 

SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois State Board of Elections said Wednesday it is reviewing a July 7 letter from the U.S. Department of Justice that warned state election officials they could face criminal prosecution if they allowed noncitizens to vote. The letter, addressed to ISBE Executive Director Bernadette Matthews, requested information...

Cardinals snap skid with 5-1 win over Brewers

 

St. Louis. The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 5-1 Wednesday night, with Alec Burleson and José Fermín homering and Michael McGreevy pitching 6 1/3 innings. Masyn Winn and Jordan Walker produced early run-scoring doubles, and Burleson's sixth-inning homer provided the decisive margin in the game at Busch Stadium. The...

SC GOP sues to bar nonmembers from primaries

 

Columbia, South Carolina. The South Carolina Republican Party filed a 19-page federal lawsuit in early July seeking to restrict participation in its primary elections exclusively to registered Republican voters, a move Chairman Drew McKissick announced in a July 8 video. The complaint follows a yearslong party push to require party...

Washington: Supreme Court curbs independence of federal agencies

 

Washington, United States – The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a landmark 6-3 ruling in Trump v. Slaughter that reshapes the balance of power between the presidency and independent regulatory agencies. The Court held that statutory “for-cause” removal protections for Federal Trade Commission commissioners violate the Constitution’s separation of powers,...

Turkey summit sees Trump end Iran ceasefire

 

Ankara, Turkey – Global financial markets fell sharply on Wednesday, July 8, 2026, after U.S. President Donald Trump declared that the ceasefire between the United States and Iran was "over" during remarks on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Ankara. The announcement immediately unsettled investors as it signaled a...

United States measles cases reach 33-year high

 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on July 8 that measles cases have reached their highest level in 33 years, with 1,288 confirmed infections across 39 states so far in 2026. Authorities have identified 27 outbreaks, accounting for 88% of all cases, and confirmed three deaths. About...

New York skyscraper suffers structural failure, evacuations ordered

 

New York – A 37-story office tower at 235 East 42nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, which is being converted into luxury apartments, suffered a significant structural failure on July 7 when two support columns on the 21st and 22nd floors buckled, causing floors between the 21st and 26th levels to...

Texas Orders Probe Into Hospital Birth Tourism Ads

 

Mission, Texas. Governor Greg Abbott on Tuesday directed the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to immediately investigate Mission Regional Medical Center after media and social media posts showed billboards in Mexico advertising 'birth packages' for foreign nationals seeking to give birth in Texas, and after reports that the hospital...

Houston ICE shooting prompts investigation and bodycam questions

 

Houston: Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in east Houston on July 7 at about 6:50 a.m. during a targeted enforcement operation, ICE said. Neighbors reported hearing gunfire and described agents searching nearby grass and a curb for shell casings after the incident. In the days...

Minnesota woman pleads guilty for voicemails threatening speaker

 

Minnesota resident Rachel Marie Welsch, 43, pleaded guilty this year to one count of threats of violence after leaving a series of violent voicemails for Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth earlier this year. Prosecutors allege the calls occurred in January and February and referenced firearms and the speaker's lack of...