Morning Headlines - Thursday, Jun. 25, 2026 | 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

Postal Service Says It Will Not Deliver Ballots If States Refuse To Turn Over Voter Lists Under Trump Proposal

Under a newly proposed rule, the U.S. Postal Service will refuse to deliver mail-in ballots in states that do not hand over a list of approved voters to the Trump administration, Postmaster General David Steiner told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday.

Democrats lambasted the proposed policy during the hearing, arguing the rule was unconstitutional and "another backdoor way of trying to influence this election."

'Fears Of 100,000 Dead' After Back-to-back Earthquakes Devastate Venezuela As Dramatic Images Show Collapsed Buildings

Two devastating earthquakes ripped through Venezuela on Wednesday evening, flattening buildings in Caracas and sparking fears that the disaster could leave up to 100,000 people dead.

Shocking footage and images revealed the aftermath of the back-to-back 7.1 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes, which forced panicked travellers to run for their lives as Simón Bolívar International Airport collapsed and parts of nearby cities were reduced to rubble.

Democrats Downplay Divisions After Left Wing Delivers Stunning Victories In New York

Democrats on Wednesday largely downplayed any hard feelings a day after a stunning trio of victories by anti-establishment candidates in New York that sent two House incumbents packing.

The wins by the three candidates supported by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) had a heavy left-wing tilt. Two were democratic socialist candidates, while the third ousted Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) with a campaign message heavy on criticism of the incumbent’s position on Israel.

Did The FBI's Bitcoin Tactic Hurt The Nancy Guthrie Investigation?

Authorities in the Nancy Guthrie abduction case are reportedly questioning how they handled her ransom.

According to Air Mail, the FBI and Pima County Sheriff’s Department had a chance to track Guthrie’s kidnapper through a Bitcoin wallet listed in a ransom note. Rather than pay the full $4 million they demanded, investigators sent just $152 to see if the suspects would move it through an exchange, allowing investigators to track it to the suspects.

Astronomers Find Biggest Super-Puff Planets Yet That Are Lighter Than Cotton Candy

Astronomers have uncovered a pair of giant planets that are lighter than cotton candy — super-puffs the size of Jupiter.

The featherweight pair — orbiting a star 1,110 light-years away — are the biggest exoplanets found to have less density than cotton candy.

That makes them the lightest known planets of their size, said the University of Oxford's George Dransfield.

Wisconsin’s SNAP Error Rates Are Low, According To Federal Review

The rate at which Wisconsin distributes too much or too little food assistance is among the lowest in the nation, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

According to the estimates measuring all states and U.S. territories, Wisconsin’s error rate for the last fiscal year was 5.72 percent. That’s just over half of the nationwide error rate of 10.62 percent.

Oracle Sues PSC, Seeking To Relax Data Center Rules

Oracle is suing the Public Service Commission in a bid to roll back credit rating requirements imposed by regulators on data center customers.

Commissioners in an April decision voted to require very large customers of We Energies to either post collateral for new power plants built to serve their energy needs or meet stringent credit rating, liquidity and tangible asset requirements.

Poll: Wisconsin Voters Support Ballot Drop Box Regulations

Voters in Wisconsin overwhelmingly support new rules for ballot drop boxes in the state.

A new poll (Question #28) shows Democrat, Republican, and independent voters all say they want to see ballot drop boxes “regulated.”

“The two questions that you can ask where Republicans and Democrats agree. Question A is, would you support the creation of statewide standards? Question B: Do you like puppies? Those are the only two,” pollster Dave Sackett joked at a WisPolitics lunch on Tuesday.

$20 By 2030? Progressive Think Tank Explores Raising Wisconsin’s Minimum Wage

A new report from a progressive think tank argues that hundreds of thousands of Wisconsin workers would benefit from raising the state’s minimum wage to $20 an hour by 2030.

For 17 years, Wisconsin’s minimum wage has sat at $7.25 an hour — the same as the federal minimum.

If that hourly wage had kept pace with inflation, it would have reached $10.60 in 2026, according to a recently released report from the High Road Strategy Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Wisconsin DOJ Charges Two People For Allegedly Defrauding Wisconsin Medicaid

Two people are facing criminal charges over alleged defrauding of Wisconsin Medicaid, according to a Wednesday press release from the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

Zambio Bell, 48 of Milwaukee, is charged with ten counts of Medical Assistance Fraud and one count of Theft by Fraud, and Carolyn Franco, 45 of Pueblo, CO, is charged with three counts of Medical Assistance Fraud and one count of Theft by Fraud.