Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) sent messages to all members of Congress terminating their positions, stating “Your performance has not been adequate to justify further employment.” All Democratic and independent members of Congress, as well as two Republicans, found themselves locked out of their offices after everything inside had been confiscated.   read more

Bart catches a 3-eyed fish in the river near the power plant owned by the greedy Mr. Burns. He worries that he’ll have to pay millions of dollars to clean up the river— until Homer suggests if he ran for governor, Burns “could decide what’s safe and what isn’t” and not worry about the polluting. The joke was not that far off from today’s reality. In North Carolina, a longtime former employee of Duke Energy is now governor, Pat McCrory. Like Burns’ plant, Duke contaminated his state's water.   read more

A federally funded study shows the percentage of individuals who either own a gun or live with someone who does has declined from about 50% in late 1970s and early 1980s to only 32% by last year. The popularity of hunting has declined as well, going from 32% in 1977 to less than half that rate now. But records maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation show “an increase in the number of background checks being run, suggesting the total number of firearms being purchased is going up.”   read more

The liberal arts school was founded in 1996 as an institute and also operated as an Islamic seminary before transforming into a four-year college in 2009. It offers a B.A. in Islamic Law and Theology as well as courses in politics, astronomy, and American history, among others. "Religiously-affiliated colleges are plentiful in the United States, but the vast majority are Christian," said Jack Jenkins. "There are a few Jewish higher education institutions...and even some Buddhist schools.”   read more

Obama’s announcement targeted seven Venezuelan officials who are now subject to U.S. sanctions. The action provoked a fiery response from President Nicolas Maduro, who accused the U.S. of trying to meddle in his country’s internal affairs and undermine his government. The sanctions will not change the economic relationship between the two countries. The U.S. is Venezuela’s top trading partner, and the U.S. imports an average of 733,000 barrels of oil per day from the South American nation.   read more

One former FBI agent, Jane Turner, reported on colleagues who stole items from Ground Zero in New York in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. She was subsequently retaliated against by the bureau. “After making this whistleblower disclosure, she was given a ‘does not meet expectations’ rating, placed on leave, and given a notice of proposed removal,” the GAO reported. Turner won her case but couldn’t get her job back. “It cost me my career," she said   read more

The agricultural industry has long relied on immigrants, many of whom are undocumented, to pick crops, and Smith’s legislation would force farmers to end this practice.The AWC warned that “the economic impacts of this will spread far beyond the farm gate as Americans working in industry sectors both upstream and downstream of the farm will see their jobs threatened. Each of the 2 million hired farm employees supports two to three fulltime American jobs" in multiple sectors.   read more

The order affected several companies, including Chevron, drilling for oil in Kern County using injection wells. Officials said they had not discovered any contamination of aquifers in the drilling areas, but were merely taking precautions. “The protection of California’s groundwater resources — as well as public health — is paramount, particularly in this time of extreme drought,” said Steven Bohlen of the California Department of Conservation.   read more

“In light of the unsettled science, I am concerned that insurers could be denying claims based on the unsupported belief that these earthquakes were the result of fracking or injection well activity," said State Insurance Commissioner John Doak. Such policies include exceptions that allow insurers to deny claims for damage caused by man-made earthquakes. Those caused by fracking could fall into that category. With the increase in quakes in Oklahoma, sales of earthquake insurance have gone up.   read more

Documents show the ban had been in place since Governor Rick Scott took office in 2011. Investigators spoke with former DEP employees who confirmed that use of the terms were forbidden in any official emails, documents, or communications. "We were... no longer allowed to use [those] terms...or even ‘sea-level rise'...which was to be referred to as ‘nuisance flooding,” said Kristina Trotta. When her staff protested, they were told the order came “from the governor’s office.”   read more

The “Homeless Bill of Rights,” passed almost exclusively with Democratic votes, makes it more difficult for police to harass and move the homeless from public spaces. The ordinance says such individuals have the right to “move freely in public spaces” as well as receive equal treatment from city agencies and emergency medical care. It also assures a right to privacy for their personal property and requires 15 days notice before moving them from a camp.   read more

The decline in net farm income, which was $108 billion in 2014, is chiefly due to a drop in prices for feed grains. Dairy, poultry and pork prices have also fallen, although beef prices have remained high. Another factor expected to depress agricultural income is a drop in exports. The report said that they’ll be down 6% from 2014’s record $152.5 billion. However, farm asset values are expected to increase by 0.4% to a record $3.005 trillion in the United States.   read more

All profits from the store will go towards public health and safety expenses, and could allow North Bonneville to finally afford to have its own police department. Local businesses are excited about the new shop and are even teaming up for some promotional ideas. The Dam Roadhouse Restaurant, just down the street from Cannabis Corner, is creating coupons that will offer customers special deals for making purchases at both establishments. The shop may generate $2.7 million during its first year.   read more

The upcoming game between the Cosmos and the Cuban soccer team is the result of President Barack Obama last year restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba. The U.S. hasn’t had relations with its southern neighbor in 55 years. The last U.S. team to play before the break in relations between the two countries was in 1960, when the Class AAA Rochester Red Wings played a game on the island. In 1999, the Baltimore Orioles played Cuba’s national team in an exhibition game in Havana, and won, 3-2.   read more

While many Republican-run states are trying to restrict the number of people who vote, Oregon is going in the opposite direction. The legislation creates a system that will make it easier than ever for 300,000 to 400,000 potential voters to become actual voters. It authorizes the Driver and Motor Vehicle Services Division to electronically transfer motorists’ information to the office of the secretary of state, which keeps track of voter rolls.   read more

The pizza industry has two main political goals. The first is to fight off attempts to force calorie and nutrition information to be accessible to consumers. Big Pizza’s second goal is to roll back school lunch nutrition requirements that make the food less likely to be served in cafeterias. Rules that mandate maximum amounts of sodium and fat and require whole grains are anathema to frozen pizza makers.   read more

The DNC has spent $4.5 million since 2011 renting the White House for gatherings such as the president’s annual Christmas party and other events throughout the year. Republicans have also taken advantage of the White House when their party has been in office. From 2003 to 2006, the Republican National Committee paid $3.6 million for catering, meetings and decorations.   read more