Morning Headlines - Friday, April 4, 2025 | Recent News

Start your day informed with today’s must-read headlines from around Wisconsin and the world. And don’t forget to check out our Meme of the Day at the end for a little humor to go with your news!

U.S. and World Headlines

5 Surprises From Trump’s Sweeping New Tariffs

The unveiling of President Trump’s new tariffs included some big surprises as economists and trading partners sifted through which countries were hit the highest rates and who was spared.

Questions swirled over the calculations and decision-making process within the White House while administration officials and Republicans hit the airwaves to defend the tariffs, urging investors and the broader public to trust Trump as stocks plunged on Thursday morning.

Here are five surprises from Trump’s new tariffs.

Dow Plunges More Than 1,600 Points As Stocks Recoil From Tariff Shock

Stocks cratered in the U.S. on Thursday as anxious investors tried to assess the potential economic impact of the latest round of Trump administration tariffs.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 1,679 points, or 4%, to close at 40,546. The S&P 500 sank 274 points, or 4.8%, its biggest one-day drop since Covid-19 torpedoed financial markets in 2020. That amounts to a loss of roughly $2 trillion, according to data from FactSet.

RFK Jr. Said HHS Layoffs Are Needed As 'Americans Are Getting Sicker.' Here's What The Data Shows

About 10,000 people across the United States Department of Health and Human Services were laid off this week as part of a massive restructuring plan.

In a post on X on Tuesday afternoon, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the layoffs represented "a difficult moment for all of us" but that "we must shift course" because Americans are "getting sicker every year."

How The U.S. Public And AI Experts View Artificial Intelligence

With artificial intelligence no longer the stuff of science fiction, its benefits and risks are being debated by everyone from casual observers to scholars. A new Pew Research Center report examines the views of two key groups: the American public and experts in the field of AI.

These surveys reveal both deep divides and common ground on AI. AI experts are far more positive than the public about AI’s potential, including on jobs. Yet both groups want more personal control of AI and worry about lax government oversight.

Still, opinions among experts vary, with men more optimistic about AI than women.

Here are the key findings from surveys of U.S. adults and AI experts conducted in 2024, and in-depth interviews with experts.

Demand For Torpedo Bats Is Booming For Batmakers

Baseball bat manufacturers had little evidence to suggest a spike in sales was just around the corner when Major League Baseball’s newest season opened last week.

It had been four years since physicists working for MLB teams had begun chatting with Louisville Slugger about how to increase the exit velocity of batted balls. Those conversations helped create a shape — resembling a bowling pin, with a thicker middle and a tapered barrel.

Two People Missing After Boat Capsizes On Wisconsin River

Authorities are searching for two people who went missing after a boat capsized on the Wisconsin River Thursday afternoon.

According to the Wisconsin Dells Police Department, a call came in just before 4:30 p.m. reporting that a boat carrying three people had capsized on the river south of the Kilbourn Dam.

Officials said one person was able to safely swim to shore. The two other people were not seen after going under the water.

Walsh Bradley, Then Karofsky To Be Chief Justice Of The Wisconsin Supreme Court

The next chief justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court will come from the liberal majority of justices, as the court announced April 3 that the conservative who currently holds the mostly honorary position will be replaced.

The change in leadership comes two days after voters elected Democratic-backed Susan Crawford to the court for a 10-year term that begins in August. Her victory over an opponent endorsed by President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk keeps the current 4-3 liberal majority on the court.

Mexican Citizen Sentenced To Over 4 Years For Cocaine Trafficking

Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Eli Torres-Banos, 37, a citizen of Mexico, was sentenced yesterday by Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson to 51 months in federal prison for possessing 5 kilograms or more of cocaine intended for distribution. Torres-Banos pleaded guilty to this charge on January 14, 2025.

“Something Just Felt Off”: Nebraska Tip Leads To Missing Beaver Dam Teen Sophia Franklin; Gary Day Arrested

A woman who called 911 to report a possible sighting of a missing Beaver Dam teenager met Sophia Franklin at a truck stop.

As we first alerted you early Thursday morning, the missing, pregnant teen from Beaver Dam was found safe late Wednesday night, canceling an Amber Alert after two months.

The Beaver Dam police chief tells Action 2 News the woman struck up a conversation with Sophia and “something just felt off,” he said. She did a Google search and found a picture of Sophia and the man she was with, Gary Day, and called 911.

New Complaint Filed Over MPS Secret Gender Policy

There’s another alarm about another school’s gender policy in Wisconsin.

The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty on Thursday filed a complaint with the Department of Justice and the Department of Education against Milwaukee Public Schools over their Gender Support Plan and Gender Communication Plan.

“We write to notify your offices of an unlawful policy of the Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Public School District (“MPS”) to hide student gender transitions at school from their parents," WILL wrote in a letter to AG Pam Bondi's office, and to Education Secretary Linda McMahon. “MPS’s Gender Inclusion Guidance provides that students, of any age, are ‘entitled to be addressed by an affirmed name and pronoun(s) of their choice that correspond to their gender identity,’,” the letter states. “Indeed, the guidance warns ‘school personnel [to] be mindful not to reveal, imply, or refer to a student’s actual or perceived gender identity or gender expression when contacting parents/guardians when formal changes to official records have not been made.’”