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Several Republican-led states rebrand Pride Month

City officials from Lansing, Mich., raise a Pride flag over the Lansing City Council at the beginning of this month. Some Republican governors are relabeling June, widely recognized as Pride Month, with conservative-friendly monikers such as “Nuclear Family Month.” (Photo by Katherine Dailey/Michigan Advance) A half dozen Republican governors are pushing alternative labels for June, which is widely recognized in the United States as Pride Month. Without explicitly tying their efforts to a replacement of Pride Month — which celebrates the LGBTQ+ community — GOP governors in states including Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Nebraska, Tennessee and Utah have labeled June with conservative-friendly monikers that celebrate one type of family unit: a man and woman who are married with children. The proclamations don’t carry the weight of law, but they are public statements about the kind of families that leadership in those states want to promote. In Tennessee , GOP state lawmakers passed a ...
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Trump changes pregnancy-prevention program to promote childbearing

A couple sits with their newborn inside their Bentonville, Arkansas, home. The Trump administration is shifting the federal Title X program, which has traditionally provided access to contraception, toward an emphasis on childbearing. (Photo by Antoinette Grajeda/Arkansas Advocate) A federal poverty-fighting program focused on reducing unintended pregnancies is about to undergo a major overhaul. Reproductive health clinics use Title X federal grant money to provide birth control, cancer screenings and testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections to people with little or no health insurance. Title X money cannot be used for abortions. The Guttmacher Institute estimates that Title X, which was signed into law by Republican President Richard Nixon in 1970, has prevented almost 20 million unintended pregnancies and 9 million abortions. It has also helped reduce child poverty, according to the group, which supports abortion rights. But President Donald Trump has taken aim ...
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FEMA nominee pressed on whether Trump favors disaster funding requests from GOP states

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, on Feb. 20, 2026. (Photo by Shauneen Miranda/States Newsroom) WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Federal Emergency Management Agency testified before a U.S. Senate committee Wednesday that if confirmed he would ensure natural disaster recovery efforts are “objective” and “fair.”  Cameron Hamilton, who worked as acting head of the agency before being fired and ultimately nominated for Senate confirmation by the president, faced criticism from members of both political parties about the agency’s response time. But it was Democrats who repeatedly pressed Hamilton about whether states controlled by Republicans should receive a disproportionately higher number of disaster declarations than blue states.  “I certainly appreciate your concern,” Hamilton said. “What I can tell you is that if confirmed, my focus will be to ensure that FEMA is objective, is fair and reasonable, follows the law, and is consistent in the approach t...
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Montgomery lawsuit challenges Tommy Tuberville’s residency

U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, Republican nominee for Alabama governor, speaks to reporters after voting in Auburn, Alabama on May 19, 2026. Tuberville, who has long faced residency questions, was sued in Montgomery County Circuit Court, marking the fourth challenge of its kind. (Anna Barrett/Alabama Reflector) Key points A lawsuit filed in Montgomery County Circuit Court alleges that U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, the Republican nominee for governor, has not lived in Alabama for seven years as required by the Alabama Constitution. Tuberville has faced several questions over his residency in recent years. The Alabama Republican Party on Sunday dismissed a challenge brought by Ken McFeeters, who ran against Tuberville in the Republican primary in May. Barry Ragsdale, an attorney representing the plaintiffs in the case, said the lawsuit, which incorporates news reports touching on residency, would address an issue that “has not been flushed out.” A spok...
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Calmer hurricane season expected in Atlantic as worries over federal response persist

Damaged signpost from Hurricane Ian in North Port, Florida, on Sept. 30, 2022. (Photo by Mitch Perry/Florida Phoenix) WASHINGTON — The Atlantic Ocean is predicted to have a tamer-than-usual hurricane season this year, but experts say it’s necessary to remain vigilant as it can take only one serious storm to cause significant damage.  But with many of the nation’s climate and weather-focused and emergency response agencies facing proposed  funding cuts, some policy analysts are warning that states’ ability to respond to serious weather events could be weakened.   The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts there will likely be between eight and 14 named storms, with between three and six of those becoming hurricanes, this season.  NOAA estimates there will be between one and three serious hurricanes — those ranging from Category 3 to Category 5, which brings winds higher than 157 mph. An average hurricane season has about 14 named storms and three serious hurricane...
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Gov. Kay Ivey makes four appointments to the Alabama Public Service Commission

Members of the Alabama Public Service Commission prepare for the regular monthly meeting on Thursday, June 4, 2026. Gov. Kay Ivey Wednesday appointed four new members of the Alabama Public Service Commission under the terms of a law passed in the spring. (Ralph Chapoco/Alabama Reflector) Gov. Kay Ivey Wednesday appointed four people to the Alabama Public Service Commission, under a law passed in the spring that significantly expanded membership of the utility regulator. The appointments, coming one day after GOP voters rejected the second of two sitting PSC incumbents, include Lt. Gen. Ron Burgess (ret.);  Fred Johnson, former CEO of Farmers Telecommunications; Demarcus Joiner, an attorney with Maynard Nexen in Birmingham  and Alabama State University President Quinton T. Ross Jr. “For Alabama to remain the best state in which to live, work and raise a family, we need good people serving in public office, including on our Public Service Commission. I am proud to tap these four experi...
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Barry Moore wins Alabama GOP, Everett Wess wins Democratic nominations for U.S. Senate seat

Attorney Everett Wess and U.S. Rep. Barry Moore won the Democratic and Republican nominations for U.S. Senate on June 16, 2026, in runoff elections. (Wess photo courtesy of candidate, Moore photo and graphic by Anna Barrett/Alabama Reflector) U.S. Rep. Barry Moore, R-Enterprise, won the Alabama Republican nomination for U.S. Senate Tuesday night, defeating former Navy SEAL Jared Hudson. He will face attorney Everett Wess, who defeated small business owner Dakarai Larriett in the Democratic runoff on Tuesday. As of 10:09 p.m., Moore, who was boosted by an endorsement from President Donald Trump, had 173,262 votes, about 55.8% of the total . Hudson, a Navy SEAL veteran, had 137,267   votes, about 44.2% of the total, according to unofficial returns. Moore won counties in the Wiregrass, where he currently represents in the U.S. House of Representatives. He also had strong support along the coast and in the northwest corner of the state.  Wess won the Democratic nomination with 48,996 vo...
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