Morning Headlines - Monday, Aug. 22, 2022

U.S. and World Headlines

The IRS Could Be On The Verge Of Changing The Way Americans File Their Taxes

The IRS could be on the cusp of revolutionizing the way that Americans file their taxes.

The Inflation Reduction Act signed into law by President Biden on Tuesday provided $80 billion in funding for the agency, including $15 million to deliver a report on a free, government-run tax e-filing system that tax simplification advocates have long argued for.

But the agency is on a tight deadline to deliver.

While most of the $80 billion for the IRS in the new legislative package goes out over the next decade, the agency has only about a year to turn in its e-filing report.

Polls Reveal Trump's FBI Search Bump

Early data show the Mar-a-Lago search may have bolstered former President Trump's strength in a potential 2024 GOP primary, even though his fight with the FBI could mean vast new legal jeopardy.

An NBC News poll out Sunday shows Trump tightening his hold on Republicans. Several polls show him rising against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who had been surging in key states.

Several anti-Trump GOP strategists say they're worried the FBI search put wind in Trump’s sails.

Large War Chests Didn't Keep Pro-Impeachment Republicans From Losing To Trump-Backed Challengers

GOP Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming spent $8 million in her reelection bid against primary challenger Harriet Hageman, who spent just $3.5 million on her campaign. Yet Cheney did something that well-funded incumbents rarely do: she lost.

Hageman's victory on Tuesday cemented a new political reality in the 2022 Republican primaries: Incumbency and large war chests, long considered to be among the biggest keys to electoral victory, are no longer a safeguard when it comes to candidates facing opponents backed by former President Donald Trump.

"With Donald Trump, the ice cube has not melted," longtime Republican donor Dan Eberhart told ABC News. "It sends a message that Trump is ascending and people that cross Trump will likely be pushed out of the party."

Why Democrats Are Feeling Better About Their Senate Odds

Democrats are growing increasingly optimistic about their chances of holding the Senate this year amid a spate of favorable public polling and signs that some of the GOP’s top candidates are struggling to get their campaigns off the ground.

To be sure, Democrats have zero margin for error. The Senate is split 50-50 and any misstep or error — forced or unforced — could hand Republicans the majority in November.

But for now, at least, strategists and operatives on both sides of the aisle say Democrats may have a real shot of defying the odds in what should be a brutal political environment for President Biden’s party.

Russia Launches Murder Investigation After Car Bomb Kills Daughter Of Key Putin Ally

The daughter of the Russian ultra-nationalist often referred to as “Putin’s brain” was killed Saturday after her car exploded in a possible contract killing, the country’s main investigative body said in a statement.

Daria Dugina “died on the spot” after the Toyota Land Cruiser she was driving exploded in Bolshye Vyazemy, a small village to the southeast of Moscow, Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement posted to its Telegram channel.

Wisconsin Headlines

Large-Scale U.S. Marshals Operation Ends In 260+ Arrests Throughout Eastern Wisconsin

The U.S. Marshals of the Eastern District of Wisconsin partnered with federal, state, and local law enforcement to remove violent criminals from communities throughout eastern Wisconsin over the summer.

The two-month initiative, ‘Operation Triple Beam Honey Badger,’ was conducted between May 22 and July 31. The operation aimed to arrest violent offenders and remove illegal guns and drugs from Wisconsin communities.

Wisconsin Public School District Affirms Ban On Teachers Displaying Pride Materials Or Identifying Their Pronouns In Emails

A ban on teachers displaying Pride materials in classrooms or writing their pronouns in email signatures will remain in place in a Wisconsin public school district following a contentious board meeting during which parents and students criticized the policy.

The prohibition is based on Kettle Moraine School District's decade-old policy that bans "partisan politics, sectarian religious views, or selfish propaganda." The new interpretation also bans teachers from putting their preferred pronouns in their email signatures.

"We're in a world where politics are highlighted, and it puts people in uncomfortable positions," superintendent Stephen Plum said in a July board meeting where the guidelines were first announced.

Murder Suspect From Wisconsin Found, Arrested In Ingram; Brother At Large

A suspect accused of shooting a Wisconsin man in the head earlier this year was found and arrested in Kerr County, while his brother, also wanted for murder, remains at large.

KCSO said Gustavo Cantu, 39, was apprehended during a traffic stop in Ingram on Saturday. Records show that he was charged with murder, drug possession, and bail jumping.

A possible accomplice, Naomi Rose Cadotte, 33, was in the car with him at the time and was also taken into custody on drug charges, KCSO said.

Vos Challenger Steen Announces Write-In Campaign For State Assembly

After losing to Assembly Speaker Robin Vos in the August primary election, Republican Adam Steen has announced he will run as a write-in candidate in November. 

Steen addressed a crowd of supporters in Burlington on Thursday, in which he said "the future of our country is at stake."

"This is not just an Assembly seat. This is the direction of our country," Steen said to a chorus of cheers. "I want the people to be able to choose their election representatives, I want them to know the truth about the people that are going to represent them."

Just a week before the August primary, Steen was endorsed by former President Donald Trump. That propelled him from political obscurity into the spotlight.

Two Wisconsinites Take Home Gold In USA Mullet Championship

The USA Mullet Championships concluded this past weekend, and with that, two Wisconsinites were crowned winners in their respective divisions.

Cayden Kershaw took home the gold in the teen's division, while Emmitt Bailey won the kid's division.

Kershaw is from Wausau, Wisconsin and received 3,215 votes. Bailey is from Menomonie and received 9,896 votes.