Government & Politics
U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear challenge to NC state court’s oversight of redistricting
The U.S. Supreme Court announced last week that it will hear a North Carolina redistricting case that one prominent constitutional scholar described to The New York Times as “an 800-pound gorilla brooding in the background of election law cases working their way up from state courts.” In Moore v. Harper, North Carolina Republicans argue that […]
Nebraska agricultural producers so far reap $123 million from federal emergency disaster relief program
OMAHA — Nebraska agricultural producers have received $123 million of the $4 billion distributed nationally so far through a federal Emergency Relief Program designed to offset their losses due to natural disasters over the past two years. The program, along with another for livestock relief, are funded by the Extending Government Funding and Delivering Emergency […]
Retired soldier/Nebraska state senator sees no quit in Ukrainian forces
LINCOLN – As the saying goes, “Old soldiers never die — they just fade away.” But instead of fading away, 63-year-old Tom Brewer, a decorated and retired Army colonel and state senator, is headed to the front. Brewer, who was seriously wounded and earned two Purple Hearts during six deployments in Afghanistan, is scheduled to […]
Progressive group running $1 million in dark money ads against Bacon
OMAHA — A national group targeting swing-district Republicans in Congress said it is running $1 million in TV, digital and mail ads this summer against U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb. The group, Unrig Our Economy Nebraska, is the local offshoot of a national effort by progressive donors to push back against GOP messaging about the […]
Nebraska physicians fear in vitro fertilization, other care, in jeopardy if abortion banned
LINCOLN – Expressing fear for their patients and livelihoods, physicians who treat women experiencing difficult pregnancies or in need of reproductive services like in vitro fertilization are stepping into the political arena to oppose a ban on abortion. A group of specialists recently formed a political action committee, the Campaign for a Healthy Nebraska, in […]
National study predicts Nebraska’s future unemployment rate
Nebraska’s latest unemployment rate was 1.9% — which continues to be a record low for Nebraska, currently is the lowest of states in the country, and ties the record low for any state ever. A new study that looks at the future predicts that Nebraska in five years will have an even lower unemployment rate, […]
Metro marks 50th birthday with free fares for a day, new ORBT station and bus wrap art contest
OMAHA — Omaha’s public transit system celebrated its golden anniversary Friday with a day of fare-free rides and an announcement of a bus-wrapping art contest targeting area students. Metro also marked its 50-year milestone with the opening of its newest bus station — at Eighth and Farnam Streets, next to the newly re-opened Gene Leahy […]
Measure to hike Nebraska minimum wage appears ready to qualify for November ballot
LINCOLN — With a deadline looming, one Nebraska initiative petition drive appears poised to qualify for the November ballot, while another, to legalize medical cannabis, is facing “potential failure.” Thursday is the deadline for turning in signatures for ballot initiatives to qualify for the general election. On Friday, Raise the Wage Nebraska announced that it […]
Nebraska abortion rights advocates say they are ‘horrified’ but ready to help women find access to care
LINCOLN — Abortion rights advocates said Thursday that while they’re “horrified” by the recent Supreme Court ruling striking down the right to abortion, they stand ready to attempt to help women find access to abortion care elsewhere. Candi Jones of Survivors Rising, which helps victims of domestic violence, said she didn’t want to think about […]
It’s a bird, it’s a plane and no, that’s not a new bike trail in the middle of I-80
LINCOLN — No, that unusual-looking, 22-mile-long strip of fresh asphalt in the middle of the Interstate 80 median west of Lincoln is not a new bicycle trail. State transportation officials have been getting calls in recent weeks asking about “the new bike trail,” a strip of asphalt about three feet wide, recently laid down in […]
U.S. Supreme Court ruling expands states’ authority to prosecute crimes on tribal land
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that states can prosecute non-Native people who commit crimes against a Native person on tribal lands, a dramatic move for tribal sovereignty that undoes decades of practice. Victor Manuel Castro-Huerta, who is non-Native, was sentenced to 35 years in prison stemming from a 2015 child neglect conviction in Oklahoma […]
Flood’s close win over Pansing Brooks shows Democrats motivated, Republicans complacent
LINCOLN — Rural voters carried Republican State Sen. Mike Flood to a seat in Congress in Tuesday’s special election. But State Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks’ better-than-expected results in urban and suburban counties could spice up the pair’s rematch this fall. Flood collected more than 80% of the vote in five of the 1st Congressional District’s […]