JQJO — Your world, one story at a time · Page 982

WASHINGTON — A federal grand jury indicted a 33-year-old Ohio man on Feb. 6 for threatening to kill U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance during the vice president’s January visit to Ohio, the Justice Department said. Shannon Mathre of Toledo was arrested by U.S. Secret Service agents after the indictment alleged he said he would “find out where he is going to be and use my M14 automatic gun and kill him.” Prosecutors reported finding multiple digital files of child sexual abuse material during the investigation. Mathre remains in custody pending a detention hearing. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.

California — Governor Gavin Newsom declared Feb. 8 'Bad Bunny Day' Saturday ahead of the Super Bowl halftime show, and public discussion intensified this week. A BetOnline analysis of 170,000 geotagged X posts identified Utah as most likely to boycott. Bad Bunny, announced as the halftime headliner in September, has criticized the Trump administration and spoken on immigration; supporters including Tim Cook amplified praise. Conservatives publicly criticized the selection and some promoted boycotts. On Sunday at Levi's Stadium Bad Bunny performed a live all-Spanish set with surprise guests and tributes to Puerto Rico. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.

Washington: President Trump said Friday that the US and Iran held an indirect dialogue in Oman and will hold more talks early next week. Trump called the Muscat-mediated meeting on Friday 'very good' and warned of 'very steep' consequences if Iran fails to reach a deal on its nuclear program, saying a US naval group will deploy to the region. US officials included special envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner and CENTCOM commander Brad Cooper. Tehran described a positive atmosphere while retaining enrichment limits; Washington announced sanctions and an executive order enabling tariffs. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.

Toledo, Ohio — Authorities arrested Shannon Mathre, 33, after a grand jury indicted him for allegedly threatening to kill Vice President JD Vance during Vance’s January visit to northwest Ohio. The indictment quotes Mathre saying he would find Vance’s location and use an M14 automatic gun to kill him; Secret Service agents arrested Mathre on Friday. Investigators reported locating digital files of child sexual abuse material during probe. Mathre appeared in court and remains held pending a Feb. 11 detention hearing; the charge carries up to five years’ imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.

United States. President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday removing an additional 25% tariff that the administration imposed on Indian imports in August 2025 over New Delhi's purchases of Russian oil. The White House said India committed to stop directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil, to purchase U.S. energy products, and to enter a framework expanding defense cooperation over the next ten years. The order ends the extra duty effective at 12:01am Eastern Time on Saturday and notes reciprocal tariff reductions will follow. Implementation and monitoring provisions were described. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Nashville Electric Service restored nearly all power this week after Winter Storm Fern knocked out electricity for hundreds of thousands; crews repaired broken poles, cleared vegetation, and demobilized mutual-aid lineworkers. Officials reported outages peaked at about 230,000 across 294 square miles and said 99.9% of customers regained service as crews fixed hundreds of broken poles. Metro police reported at least five storm-related deaths. Sumner County officials sought NES board representation and considered leaving the utility. NES said it will review tree trimming and study burying lines to improve resilience. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.

Beverly, Mass. — On Feb. 6, 2026, Axcelis Technologies and Veeco Instruments announced that stockholders approved all proposals tied to their pending merger at separate special meetings. Each company said final voting results will appear in Form 8‑K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Both firms stated the transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval from the State Administration for Market Regulation in China. The companies reaffirmed an expected closing in the second half of 2026. The announcements were issued today via company press releases and wire services. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.

Washington — The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on 15 entities, two individuals and 14 vessels tied to Iran's petroleum and petrochemical trade, the State Department said. Spokesperson Tommy Pigott said the designations target a shadow fleet and illicit networks that generated revenue used for repression inside Iran and destabilising activities abroad. The move followed indirect talks in Oman between US envoys and Iran's foreign minister and will block transactions with the listed vessels and intermediaries. The administration described the step as part of a maximum-pressure campaign to cut Tehran's revenue streams. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.

Washington, President Donald Trump shared a Truth Social video Thursday evening that briefly depicted former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama with their faces superimposed on apes while The Lion Sleeps Tonight played. The 62-second clip promoted unproven 2020 election fraud claims; only the Obamas' image appeared in the version Trump posted. The White House defended the post as an internet meme and called criticism fake outrage. Bipartisan lawmakers and civil rights leaders condemned the imagery, and the post was deleted Friday, which officials attributed to a staff error. Based on 8 articles reviewed and supporting research.

United States officials accused China of conducting a secret nuclear explosive test in 2020 and urged broader multilateral arms-control talks after the New START treaty expired this week. U.S. Under Secretary Thomas DiNanno said one yield-producing test occurred on June 22, 2020, and asserted attempts to obfuscate seismic signals. Secretary of State Marco Rubio pledged a modernized, credible U.S. nuclear deterrent and called for multilateral negotiations including all major nuclear powers. The announcements followed the lapse of the U.S.-Russia New START accord and calls for expanded verification and international strategic stability mechanisms. Based on 6 articles reviewed and supporting research.