Briefs
With shutdown looming, Golden, joined by Bacon and others, introduces temporary bipartisan spending deal
Amid the looming prospect of a government shutdown, U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat representing Maine’s 2nd District, introduced Monday a bipartisan short-term spending bill dubbed the Bipartisan Keep America Open Act. “The only way to avert a shutdown is to come to the table to negotiate a bipartisan agreement,” said Golden, who introduced the measure […]
State senator who is member of Oglala Lakota Tribe is chosen for ‘courage’ award from Standing Bear group
LINCOLN — State Sen. Tom Brewer of Gordon, a member of the Oglala Lakota Tribe, is being honored for his involvement in several Native American initiatives. The Chief Standing Bear Project has chosen Brewer for its annual “Prize for Courage” to be awarded during a banquet on Indigenous People’s Day, Oct. 9, in Lincoln. Larry […]
More public input sought on Nebraska’s broadband needs, and on preliminary plan for spending federal/state funds
LINCOLN — Nebraskans have at least three options right now for providing input on how the state plans to spend millions of dollars to improve high-speed internet service. Nebraskans can submit comments until Oct. 14 about the State Broadband Office’s initial proposal to spend $405 million it was allocated via the federal Broadband Equity, Access […]
Growing pessimism found in latest annual poll of rural Nebraskans
LINCOLN — There’s increased pessimism about the present and future of rural Nebraska, according to the latest Rural Poll conducted by a wing of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The poll, now in its 28th year, found that 27% of respondents indicated that they are worse off today than five years ago, which is an increase […]
Mountain lion shot in Valentine after multiple sightings and disruption of a golf tournament
LINCOLN — A 103-pound mountain lion was shot and killed Thursday on the northern edge of Valentine, only a couple of days after the cat had disrupted a local golf tournament. The cat, identified as a “subadult” male, had been spotted on a trail camera crossing the eighth-hole green on Tuesday morning while an invitation […]
Students urged to get involved, ‘use their voice’ to address climate change
LINCOLN — For years, attorney/activist Ken Winston said he had been attending board meetings of the Lincoln Electric System to urge action to combat climate change. But nothing seemed to happen, Winston said, until a young woman brought nearly 21 people to one of the meetings, after promising to do that to mark her 21st […]
Kansas county scuttles talk of converting Leavenworth jail to ICE detention center
Leavenworth County officials voted unanimously Wednesday to halt discussions over whether to convert a former private federal jail into a detention center for immigration enforcement. For years, CoreCivic, the nation’s largest private prison operator, ran a federal pretrial detention center in Leavenworth for individuals charged with — but not convicted of — federal crimes from Kansas, […]
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds’ husband diagnosed with lung cancer
Iowa first gentleman Kevin Reynolds, husband of Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, has been diagnosed with lung cancer. The governor’s office shared the medical diagnosis Thursday, along with a statement from Gov. Reynolds about her spouse’s plans for treatment. “We’re grateful to the incredible medical team caring for Kevin,” she said in a statement. “Our doctor […]
$1.1 million federal grant to revive neglected Omaha park is linked to new affordable housing
OMAHA — A $1.1 million federal grant announced Friday will help resurrect a long-neglected North Omaha park and mesh with a $25 million affordable housing development rising nearby. Myott Park, near 52nd Street and Sorensen Parkway, is to expand and be revived with a new amphitheater, picnic pavilions, walking and cycling trails and courts for […]
Biden administration to create new gun violence prevention office
WASHINGTON — The White House Thursday announced the formation of an Office of Gun Violence Prevention that will help states and local governments as they implement a gun safety legislative package President Joe Biden signed into law last year. Lacking additional action in Congress to curb gun violence, “the Office of Gun Violence Prevention along […]
Protesters of Lincoln development found guilty of refusing a police order and blocking a public roadway
LINCOLN — A judge ruled Thursday that two protesters were guilty of obstructing a Lincoln development near a decades-old site of Native American sweat lodge ceremonies. Lancaster County Judge Timothy Phillips, after hearing testimony on two days, ruled that Erin Poor and Wyatt Nelson violated two misdemeanor city ordinances: refusing a police order and blocking […]
U.S. House passes Wounded Knee memorial bill
The U.S. House approved by voice vote Wednesday a bill that would help protect land at the site of the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre in South Dakota, where an estimated 350 Lakota were killed by U.S. soldiers. The site is within the Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River […]