by Lexi Churchill, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune This article is co-published with The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan local newsroom that informs and engages with Texans. Sign up for The Brief Weekly to get up to speed on their essential coverage of Texas issues. Two years ago, Texas lawmakers quietly cut millions of dollars in funding for kits intended to help track down missing kids, after ProPublica and The Texas Tribune revealed there was no evidence they had aided law enforcement in finding lost children. The company that made the kits had used outdated and exaggerated statistics on missing…
Author: Usama Nisar
Ivanka Trump is trying to expand Americans’ access to fresh produce through the company she co-founded two years ago. “So many of the challenges we face today — from rising healthcare costs and chronic disease to food waste and the pressure on small farmers — can be traced to a common root: how we grow, distribute, and access our food,” Trump posted Friday on Instagram. In 2023, Trump, President Donald Trump’s oldest daughter, co-founded Planet Harvest with Melissa Ackerman, who serves as its CEO. It’s described as a profit-for-purpose company with a mission to not only support small farmers but…
I’d argue that the living room is probably the coziest room in your house (okay, tied with the bedroom.) Living rooms do a lot of heavy lifting, after all. This is where you gather with family and friends at the end of the day, where you lounge and put your feet up with morning coffee, and pass popcorn during movie night. Creating a space that feels relaxed and inviting can really set the tone for intentional living, whether you want to converse, hang out or take an afternoon snooze. The start of a new season is also the perfect time…
In the latest blow to what was generally a functional government, President Donald Trump wants to eliminate the independent agency in charge of issuing recalls and protecting US citizens from harmful products. The Office of Management and Budget has suggested the responsibilities of the Consumer Product Safety Commission should be folded into “a nonexistent division within the Department of Health and Human Services,” according to a joint letter from lawmakers. And to seemingly start the process, Trump has fired the commission’s three Democratic members without cause, The Washington Post reports. Following a meeting with the Department of Government Efficiency, Commissioners…
Genre: Action, Superhero, Drama,Comedy Release Date: August 21, 2025 Director: James Gunn Cast: John Cena, Jennifer Holland, Steve Agee, Tim Meadows Plot Summary: The second season of the American superhero television series Peacemaker is based on the eponymous character from DC Comics. It is set in the DC Universe (DCU) and serves as a “soft reboot” of the series, which started as a spin-off from the 2021 DC Extended Universe (DCEU) film The Suicide Squad. The season continues the story of jingoistic mercenary Christopher Smith / Peacemaker. It is produced by DC Studios with James Gunn as showrunner. FILM RATING…
Printable shopping list This week’s meal plan is all about keeping things simple and delicious! I’ve rounded up a fresh batch of easy-to-make dinners that’ll make your weeknight cooking a breeze. These are the kind of meals your whole crew will devour—yes, even the picky ones! What’s for Dinner? Get ready for a week of dinners that do all the work so you don’t have to! This lineup is packed with quick-prep winners, slow cooker gems, and easy clean-up meals (hello, one-pan magic!). They’re low-effort, big on taste, and guaranteed to fill your house with the kind of mouthwatering smells that’ll have everyone asking,…
It’s Teacher Appreciation Week — a time when educators often receive apples, mugs and gift cards from students and their families. But union leaders say that, for many teachers, the outpouring of gratitude has not made up for the financial hardships and pressures they face the rest of the year. For years, K-12 teachers have dealt with multiple challenges at underfunded schools, such as low salaries, large class sizes and unreimbursed out-of-pocket costs for student supplies and snacks. Now, intense scrutiny of their teaching methods as well as proposed cuts by the Trump administration to federal funding for schools and education programs have left many teachers feeling…
By MIKE MAGEE This past week, Trump’s posting of himself as The Pope surfaced once again David French’s classic Christmas, 2024, New York Times column titled “Why Are So Many Christians So Cruel?” As I wrote at the time, “French and his wife and three children have experienced the cruelty first hand since he openly expressed his opposition to Donald Trump during the 2016 Presidential campaign. That resulted in threats to his entire family by white supremacists who especially targeted his adopted Ethiopian daughter. Ultimately, he was “cancelled” by his own denomination, the small (approximately 400,000 members), Calvinist “Presbyterian Church…
by Bianca Fortis ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published. Columbia University has agreed to a $750 million settlement with 576 patients of a former doctor who sexually abused them while working at the school. In 2023, a ProPublica investigation, published with New York Magazine, revealed how Columbia had ignored women, undermined prosecutors and ultimately protected a predator. Obstetrician-gynecologist Robert Hadden worked at the university for 20 years despite decades of complaints about him. The university had even cleared Hadden to see patients three days…
The Lego Group is continuing to build its empire, investing $366 million to build a new 2 million-square-foot warehouse in Prince George County, Virginia. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Thursday the warehouse will employ over 300. “The Lego Group is not just a household name, it’s a symbol of creativity, innovation and quality that resonates globally,” Youngkin said in a news release. “Three years after choosing Virginia to establish its U.S. manufacturing plant, the Lego Group’s decision to expand into Prince George County is an exciting new chapter in this partnership, bringing 305 new, high-quality jobs to the region. “As the Lego…
