Morning Headlines - Monday, Jul. 10, 2023 | Recent News

U.S. and World Headlines

Investigation Finds Clarence Thomas Accepted More Undisclosed Gifts From Wealthy Friends Through Elite Association

A New York Times investigation revealed that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas was brought access to the wealthy through relationships he built with members of the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans.

The Times reported that just months after Thomas joined the bench in 1991, he was welcomed into the Horatio Alger Association, a nonprofit scholarship organization, where he forged relationships with a select group of largely wealthy conservatives. This organization granted him access to wealthy friends who gifted Thomas with vacation retreats and V.I.P. tickets to sporting events, as well as invited him to parties, according to The Times.

Jill Biden Taking ‘Bidenomics’ Tour To 2024 Battleground States

First Lady Jill Biden will travel to 2024 presidential battleground states over the next two weeks to aid the White House’s effort to promote “Bidenomics.”

Biden will visit Augusta, Georgia; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Columbus in increasingly Republican-leaning Ohio to tout the president’s Investing in America agenda, according to a White House official.

Georgia and Pennsylvania — two states President Joe Biden narrowly won in 2020 — are seen as potentially pivotal to the success of his reelection bid.

Biden Meets With King Charles In London Ahead Of Key NATO Summit

President Joe Biden kicked off the first full day of his trip to Europe with a visit to London, where he is meeting with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and King Charles III.

The war in Ukraine will be at the top of the agenda for Biden and Sunak ahead of a key NATO meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital, although Biden has said the war would need to end before the alliance can consider asking Kyiv to join.

The meeting comes after the Pentagon announced the United States would provide cluster munitions to Ukraine to boost its military in the fight against Russia — a move Sunak has made clear he disapproved of.

Warning: Student Loan Cliff Ahead

There's a big economic shock coming this fall for both the economy and millions of American households — the resumption of student loan payments.

For millions of individuals that means real and often painful cuts to spending — cuts that will translate to a slowdown for the economy overall.

Americans with student loan debt tend to be younger, with lower incomes — they're spending a higher share of their income already, so an additional monthly payment will hurt.

Larry Nassar Stabbed Multiple Times At Florida Federal Prison

Disgraced sports doctor Larry Nassar, who was convicted of sexually abusing female gymnasts, was stabbed multiple times during an altercation with another incarcerated person at a federal prison in Florida, sources told The Associated Press.

Two people familiar with the matter told The AP the attack happened Sunday at United States Penitentiary Coleman in Florida. The people said he was in stable condition Monday.

One of the people said he had been stabbed in the back and in the chest.

Attorney Shares Next Steps In Mukwonago School District Bathroom Policy Lawsuit

The family suing the Mukwonago School District over a new bathroom policy is now waiting for the next steps from a federal judge, according to their attorney.

This week, Judge Lynn Adelman of the Eastern District granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting the school district from implementing its bathroom policy against an 11-year-old transgender girl.

Northwoods League Umpire Killed In Car Crash On Way To Mallards Game

An umpire for the Northwoods League, the collegiate summer league in which the Madison Mallards play, died Sunday in a car crash, according to a press release from the league.

Umpire Conor McKenzie died while on his way to umpire the Sunday matchup between the Mallards and the Wausau Woodchucks. The league postponed the game.

The league said that two other umpires travelling with McKenzie "are in stable condition."

Wisconsin Judge: Lawsuit To Repeal Abortion Ban Can Continue

A judge refused Friday to toss out a lawsuit challenging Wisconsin's 174-year-old abortion ban, keeping the case inching toward the state Supreme Court in a state where debate over abortion rights has taken center stage.

Wisconsin lawmakers enacted statutes outlawing abortion in all cases except to save the mother's life in 1849, a year after Wisconsin became a state. The U.S. Supreme Court's landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling legalizing abortion had nullified the ban, but legislators never repealed it. Then, the high court's decision last June to overturn Roe v. Wade reactivated the statutes.

Average Income Taxes In Wisconsin To Go Down $3 A Month Under Cut Signed By Evers

Income taxes in Wisconsin will go down an average of $3 a month under the greatly reduced tax cut Democratic Gov. Tony Evers signed into law after rejecting a much larger cut Republicans wanted, an analysis released Friday shows.

The average tax cut under the income tax cut as signed by Evers on Wednesday is $36, or just under 1 percent of the total net tax owed, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau. Under the GOP plan as passed by the Legislature, taxes would have been cut an average of $573 or just over 15 percent.

Evers and Democrats said the GOP tax cut benefited the wealthy at the expense of the middle class.

Under the Republican plan, households earning between $60,000 and $70,000 a year — roughly the median in Wisconsin — would have seen a $249 tax cut. Under the law as signed by Evers, their cut will be $44.

Wisconsin Woman Charged With Pocketing Thousands In Honor Flight Donations

Prosecutors have charged a Wisconsin woman with pocketing tens of thousands of dollars in donations meant for a program that flies veterans to Washington, D.C.

Joni Nogay of Cudahy was charged June 22 with felony theft in a business setting of between $10,000 and $100,000. She could face up to 10 years in prison and $25,000 in fines if she is convicted. She made her initial court appearance Thursday, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.