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Judge allows UFC cage matches to go ahead on White House lawn

The Ultimate Fighting Championship branded its upcoming mix martial arts fight on the White House South Lawn, on Thursday, June 11, 2026, as a celebration of America's 250th birthday. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom) The Ultimate Fighting Championship cage matches set to take place on the White House South Lawn on Sunday will go on as scheduled, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., ruled Friday. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta denied an emergency petition from two Virginia plaintiffs to stop the fight until the court litigates allegations that the Trump administration illegally allowed the Las Vegas-based sports promotion company to build its towering structure, called “The Claw,” on the White House grounds, and use the Ellipse and Lincoln Memorial for related events. UFC began constructing the 92-foot-tall, 154-foot-wide steel staging area on May 26, and corporate organizers were placing the final touches on the temporary 4,300-seat structure this week . According to g...

Alabama State Board of Education considers changes to world languages course of studies

The Alabama State Board of Education votes on Aug. 14, 2025. The board Thursday heard a presentation on proposed revisions to the state's world languages course. (Anna Barrett/Alabama Reflector) The Alabama State Board of Education Thursday heard a presentation on proposed revisions to the state’s world languages course of study ahead of a potential vote later this year. The course of study was last updated in 2017. Proposed changes would include “critical languages” including Chinese, Korean, Russian, and Japanese and a move from grammar-heavy instruction to a focus on proficiency. Critical languages are determined by the federal government based on their importance to diplomacy and national security. “We saw a shift in the tendency from grammatical instruction to more proficiency-based instruction, so we wanted to put attention closely on those areas, such as increasing target (language) communication, using authentic resources and also (using) proficiency-based assessments w...

What you need to know about the flesh-eating New World screwworm

Larvae hatch from New World screwworm eggs within about 24 hours before burrowing into the infested animal’s wound to feed on living flesh. (Photo courtesy of USDA) The New World screwworm has arrived in the United States. For years, ranchers across Southern states have prepared for a potential invasion of the flesh-eating parasite that can wreak havoc on livestock, pets and even humans. Though the United States went decades without a confirmed case of the invasive pest, it’s now made its way across the U.S.-Mexico border. Officials have confirmed one case in a New Mexico dog and five cases in Texas, including cattle, a dog and a goat. The New World screwworm poses potentially life-threatening risks to pets, wildlife and livestock. While the risk is concentrated in a few states, experts say a massive invasion could ripple across the American economy through higher grocery prices. Is it a fly or a worm? Contrary to its name, the screwworm grows into an adult fly that’s abo...

Inflation spiked to 4.2%, a three-year high, in May

Consumer price inflation reached 4.2% in May, the highest mark in three years, boosted largely by higher energy prices that have spiked because of the Iran war. (Photo by Niki Kelly/Indiana Capital Chronicle) Consumer price inflation reached 4.2% in May, the highest mark in three years, boosted largely by higher energy prices that have spiked because of the Iran war, according to federal numbers released on Wednesday. The higher year-over-year inflation rate was expected. But at more than double the Federal Reserve’s target rate of 2%, the new numbers dimmed hopes for a cut in the interest rate. The so-called core inflation rate, which excludes volatile food and fuel costs, was 2.9%. Apparel costs were up 4.8% and the cost of transportation services increased by 4.1%. Even before today’s report, the conservative-leaning American Enterprise Institute said that “Trump’s war of choice in Iran, coupled with his reckless budget and import tariff policies, offer strong arguments against ...

Billions for the next 3 years of Trump’s mass deportation campaign signed into law

On June 10, 2026, President Donald Trump signed into law a bill providing $70 billion for immigration enforcement and detention activites over the next three years. In this photo, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent watches a crowd of protesters at Delaney Hall in Newark, N.J., on May 25, 2026. (Photo by Ben Ackman/New Jersey Monitor) WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump significantly bolstered funding for immigration enforcement Wednesday when he signed into law a nearly $70 billion package that will keep key federal agencies operating without any new restrictions. Democrats pressed for guardrails after immigration officers shot and killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis in January. But when talks broke down, Republican lawmakers drafted their own bill without any additional constraints. “The bill provides crucial funding for domestic law enforcement investigations and combating child exploitation, continuing our work to restore law and order across our nation, a...

Federal judge blocks use of Alabama’s nitrogen gas execution protocol

A jury convicted Jeffery Lee, 50, of the 1998 murders of Jimmy Ellis and Elaine Thompson during a pawn shop robbery. Lee was scheduled to be executed by nitrogen gas on Thursday, but a federal judge Tuesday ruled that it constituted cruel and unusual punishment. (Alabama Department of Corrections) A federal judge Tuesday ruled that Alabama’s nitrogen gas execution protocol constituted “cruel and unusual punishment,” throwing future uses of the controversial method into doubt. U.S. District Court Judge Emily Marks, ruling a day after a three-judge panel found the method constituted a “substantial risk of serious harm” to Jeffery Lee, scheduled to be executed on Thursday, wrote that Lee’s proposal to be executed by firing squad was a feasible alternative method. “The state has failed to articulate a legitimate penological reason for refusing to adopt Lee’s proposed alternative,” Marks wrote. “Therefore, Lee has shown by a preponderance o...