Geoff Bennett:
Other Tennessee officials are more critical. The mayor of Shelby County, which includes Memphis, criticized the move in a social media post, saying: “No one here is happy, not happy at all with the occupation, armored vehicles, semiautomatic weapons, and military personnel in fatigues.”
This week, Memphis police reported a decrease across all major crime categories in the first eight months of 2025 compared to previous years.
Missouri’s Senate passed a redistricting plan today that could help Republicans pick up an additional seat in Congress. Once signed by the governor, it would make Missouri the third state to change its maps ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Texas has already passed a measure that would help Republicans pick up five seats. California countered with a similar plan to aid Democrats, though it still needs voter approval.
Opponents of Missouri’s measure are trying to push back, though. They have launched a petition effort to try to force a statewide referendum on the new map.
The Environmental Protection Agency moved today to stop the collection of emissions data from some 8,000 U.S. facilities. The proposal, which still needs to be finalized, would end a program that requires coal-burning power plants and other industrial facilities to report their greenhouse gas emissions. Since 2010, the government has used this data to assess the environmental impact of those sites.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said the requirement is — quote — “nothing more than bureaucratic red tape that does nothing to improve air quality.” Critics say the proposal could hurt efforts to fight climate change.
Many of the nation’s universities are on heightened alert heading into the weekend after a series of fake threats led schools to cancel classes and even send students home. At least six historically Black colleges and universities have been the targets of such threats in recent days. A similar incident happened at the University of Massachusetts, Boston.
At the U.S. Naval Academy in Maryland, a midshipman and law enforcement officer were injured after a false report of an active shooter caused confusion on that campus. Both are now in stable condition. The threats come amid heightened tensions following the murder of Charlie Kirk on a campus in Utah, though the FBI says there have been no credible threats so far.
The U.N. General Assembly says it’s endorsing what it calls tangible and irreversible steps for a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians. Today’s declaration was boycotted by the U.S. and Israel. It comes ahead of a gathering by world leaders at the U.N. later this month, where Britain, France, and others are expected to formally recognize a Palestinian state.
Ahead of that, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is heading to Israel next week to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to Israeli security. Meantime, in Gaza today, health officials say Israeli strikes killed at least 40 people, most of them in Gaza City. Residents say they are caught in the crossfire.
Fawzi Medna, Resident of Targeted Neighborhood (through interpreter): People are in the streets. Where are they supposed to go? Please look. Where are the people going? We are exhausted. We are unarmed. We belong to no one. We are civilians.
