Morning Headlines - Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023 | Recent News

U.S. and World Headlines

GOP Sets Political Trap For Democrats With Israel Bill

House Democrats will face a tough vote this week when Republicans, led by newly minted Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), consider a $14.3 billion Israel aid bill that includes cuts to IRS funding to pay for the package but no assistance to Ukraine.

The vote is sure to highlight the long-standing chasm between Israel’s staunchest Democratic allies, including President Biden, and pro-Palestinian liberals who have accused Israeli leaders of human rights abuses and war crimes in Gaza. Illustrating that divide, 15 Democrats last week declined to endorse a nonbinding resolution proclaiming U.S. support for Tel Aviv following Hamas’s deadly attacks last month.

FBI Director Warns Hamas Attack On Israel Could Inspire Terrorism On American Soil

The FBI is now probing individuals associated with Hamas and whether rogue actors could be planning violence within the US, Director Christopher Wray told Congress on Tuesday.

He warned that Hamas' attacks on Israel would inspire attacks throughout the world.

'We assess that the actions of Hamas and its allies will serve as an inspiration the likes of which we haven’t seen since ISIS launched its so-called caliphate years ago,' Wray told the Senate Homeland Security Committee.

House Vote On Expelling Santos Could Come As Soon As Today

The House Ethics Committee said Tuesday it will announce its "next course of action" in its investigation into embattled Rep. George Santos by Nov. 17.

The update from committee leaders comes ahead of a possible floor vote on a resolution to expel the New York Republican from Congress as federal charges against him accumulate.

House Ethics chairman Michael Guest of Mississippi and the panel's top Democrat, Rep. Susan Wild of Pennsylvania, said investigators have contacted about 40 witnesses, reviewed more than 170,000 pages of documents and authorized 37 subpoenas. They said the investigation has taken "countless hours" and involved "a significant amount" of resources.

Student Loan Payment Restart Has Been Marred By Errors, From Late Notices To Incorrect Bills

The first month of repayments since the end of a three-year pandemic pause on federal student loans has been filled with mishaps, including incorrect billing amounts and late notices for bills coming due, according to government officials.

Among the issues: 830,000 people missed their first payment since the pause was lifted after a loan servicer failed to send out timely notices to 2.5 million borrowers, the U.S. Department of Education said on Monday.

Some people received their bills just seven days before payment was due, despite the Education Department requiring at least 21 days' notice.

Household Child Care Costs Spiked More Than 30% Since 2019

The average child care payment is up 32% from 2019, according to new data from the Bank of America Institute. The price surge outpaced overall inflation; the Consumer Price Index was up 20% over the same period.

Rising costs pose a threat to the remarkable progress that women, particularly mothers, have made in the U.S. labor force.

The report looked at anonymized data from 68 million Bank of America accounts, and analyzed those where customers paid for child care.

Evers Backs Revised Brewers Bill, Says He’s Lobbying Dems To Support It

Gov. Tony Evers says he believes the $646 million Brewers stadium maintenance bill that cleared the Assembly on a bipartisan vote is a good deal for taxpayers as well as Milwaukee, and he’s lobbying Senate Dems to back the bill.

Evers told WisconsinEye he’s “encouraging people that I can influence on the Senate side” to support the bill. Evers said he backs the current version and would likely support proposed changes in the Senate such as adding a ticket tax to non-Brewers events and requiring an audit of the stadium district’s finances.

“My goal is to sign that bill, period,” Evers told WisEye on Friday. The video was posted Monday morning.

Judge Hears Arguments In Lawsuit Seeking To Expand Wisconsin Absentee Voting

A Dane County judge heard arguments Tuesday as Republicans seek to quash a lawsuit that would expand absentee voting in Wisconsin.

Progressives sued the Wisconsin Elections Commission in July to challenge absentee voting requirements in the closely-fought state. That includes a ban on absentee ballot drop boxes that went into effect last year following a 4-3 decision from Wisconsin's Supreme Court.

The lawsuit, which was filed on behalf of the Democratic political action committee Priotities USA, the progressive Wisconsin Alliance for Retired Voters and a retired voter who lives in Dane County, argues such restrictions violate the right to vote as outlined in the state's Constitution.

Wisconsinites Can Get Expert Help While Registering For Health Care Coverage During Open Enrollment

Gov. Tony Evers is encouraging Wisconsinites to sign up for health care coverage during open enrollment. If they don't know what to do, experts are there to help.

Starting Wednesday, open enrollment begins. Until Jan. 15, 2024, state residents can enroll in a health plan on the individual health insurance marketplace.

Anyone who already has health insurance can renew, update or upgrade their plans during this time.

Denver Man Charged With 2016 Murder Of Girlfriend On Amtrak Train In Wisconsin

Prosecutors charged a Denver man with murder on Tuesday in connection to the 2016 death of his girlfriend on an Amtrak train in Wisconsin.

According to Denver District Attorney Beth McCann, Angelo Mantych has been charged with first-degree murder of 28-year-old Marina Placensia. She was the mother of four young children, three of whom she had with Mantych.

Prosecutors say on August 30, 2016, Placensia, her four children, and Mantych boarded an Amtrak train in Wisconsin and headed for Denver. They lived in Wisconsin at the time. When the train arrived at Denver's Union Station on September 1, Placensia was dead.

Tiffany Questions City Council On Chippewa Valley Refugee Resettlement

Congressman Tom Tiffany (WI-07) sent a letter to the Eau Claire City Council President demanding transparency for residents on a controversial non-governmental organization plan to resettle a large number of refugees potentially from Somalia, Syria, and other unstable countries in the Eau Claire area.

In particular, Rep. Tiffany asks that city officials provide residents of Eau Claire and the broader Chippewa Valley with a robust opportunity to submit public comment on any resettlement plans and to conduct a full assessment of the costs of any such resettlement to Wisconsin taxpayers.