Thursday, February 6

Author: Grace Thompson

Susan Smith, who drowned her two young children 30 years ago, denied parole
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Susan Smith, who drowned her two young children 30 years ago, denied parole

Columbia, S.C. Susan Smith was denied parole on Wednesday. She horrified the country thirty years ago when she pulled her car into a lake while her two young sons were inside and watched them drown. Through a video hookup, Smith, 53, begged to be released from prison. She had to persuade the seven-member panel that she was prepared to return to society after thirty years in prison. The panel unanimously voted nay. Before the parole board's decision, Smith, in tears, said that what she had done to 14-month-old Alex and 3-year-old Michael "was horrible." She replied, "I would give anything if I could go back and change it," as she wiped her eyes and removed her glasses. "I apologize. I am aware that is insufficient. Even though they are only words, they are from the bottom of my heart. Smi...
McDonald’s preparing a 2025 ‘McValue’ offering
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McDonald’s preparing a 2025 ‘McValue’ offering

McDonald's is planning inexpensive offers for 2025 in an effort to retain patrons who are tired of expensive dining establishments. According to CNBC, the firm is developing a new McValue strategy for the upcoming year that includes adding a buy one, get one free option for an additional $1 and maintaining the $5 value meal deal that was introduced this summer on the menu for the first half of the year. According to someone with knowledge of the situation, the buy one, get one free promotion includes a double cheeseburger, a McChicken sandwich, six pieces of chicken nuggets, and a small fry, or breakfast options like a sausage McMuffin, sausage biscuit, or sausage burrito and a hash brown. As part of the larger value approach, local value options, such as 10-piece nuggets for $1 and other ...
‘The Simpsons’ voice actor behind Milhouse character retires from show
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‘The Simpsons’ voice actor behind Milhouse character retires from show

The voice of some of The Simpsons' most recognizable characters is leaving the show. After 35 years, Pamela Hayden, who voiced Milhouse Van Houten and numerous other characters, announced her retirement from the program. She will make her final appearance on the FOX show on Sunday. It's time for me to put down my microphone, but how can I bid The Simpsons farewell? In a press release, Hayden stated. Not without difficulty. According to the show's creator, Matt Groening, Bart Simpson wanted a companion to chat to in the school cafeteria, so he created Milhouse, his unfortunate best friend. He also pays homage to previous President Richard Milhous Nixon with his name. According to a remark from Groening, "We gave him the name Milhouse because that was the most unfortunate name a child coul...
House Speaker Mike Johnson says he supports banning transgender women from using women’s bathrooms
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House Speaker Mike Johnson says he supports banning transgender women from using women’s bathrooms

On Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson stated that he is in favor of limiting the use of the Capitol's single-sex facilities, including restrooms, to people of that biological sex. This would essentially prevent the first transgender congresswoman from using the women's restrooms in the upcoming Congress. This week, Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., presented a resolution that would prohibit transgender women from accessing the Capitol's women's restrooms and other facilities. Rep.-elect Sarah McBride, D-Del., the first openly transgender person elected to Congress, is "absolutely" targeted by the bill, she said Tuesday. "Every Member office has its own private restroom, and unisex restrooms are available throughout the Capitol," stated Johnson, R-La., in a statement. "All single-sex facilities i...
Jan. 6 rioter is convicted of plotting to murder FBI agents who investigated him
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Jan. 6 rioter is convicted of plotting to murder FBI agents who investigated him

Washington A supporter of Donald Trump who was one of the first rioters to enter the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, was found guilty of planning to murder FBI special agents who were looking into his crimes there. Edward Kelley was found guilty on Wednesday of three additional charges: conspiracy to murder U.S. employees; solicitation to commit a crime of violence; and influencing or retaliating against federal officials by threat. Kelley was previously convicted last week of assaulting law enforcement officers and other offenses during the Capitol attack. The trial for the murder plan began Monday in Knoxville, Tennessee. After only an hour of deliberation, the jury found Kelley guilty on all three counts, according to Knoxville's NBC News station WBIR. One month after being sentenced...
California voters reject ballot measure to increase the state’s minimum wage
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California voters reject ballot measure to increase the state’s minimum wage

A ballot proposition that would have progressively raised California's minimum wage to $18 per hour was narrowly defeated by voters, according to NBC News' prediction on Wednesday. This is the first time since 1996 that a ballot initiative to increase the state minimum wage has failed nationally. The California bill, which was on the ballot as Proposition 32, called for raising the minimum wage to $18 per hour by 2026, making it the highest in the country. With 92% of the vote counted, 50.8% of voters supported the no vote, compared to 49.2% who supported the yes vote. Opponents said that enacting the legislation would have increased costs for firms, which would have likely led to employee terminations, while supporters claimed that it would have benefited workers. The measure's opponents,...
Election workers seek to hold Rudy Giuliani in contempt for continued defamatory comments
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Election workers seek to hold Rudy Giuliani in contempt for continued defamatory comments

Rudy Giuliani, the former attorney for Donald Trump, was held in civil contempt for continuing to falsely accuse the two former Georgia election workers of election fraud in the 2020 election after they won a defamation judgment against him worth over $150 million. A court-approved agreement in May stated that Giuliani "agreed to be bound by a permanent injunction prohibiting him from repeating the same or similar statements to the statements adjudged to be false and defamatory." However, according to documents filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., Giuliani has persisted in making false claims about Shaye Mosssay and Ruby Freeman online. According to the petition, "it took only six months for Mr. Giuliani to resume his defamatory campaign" against the mother and daughter, which inclu...
CEO makes largest-ever donation to ‘undervalued’ U.S. Soccer women’s and girls programs
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CEO makes largest-ever donation to ‘undervalued’ U.S. Soccer women’s and girls programs

Michele Kang, a philanthropist and businesswoman, recently made a landmark commitment to women's soccer. U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday that Kang, owner of the professional soccer team Washington Spirit, has donated $30 million to the organization's women's and girls' initiatives. It's the biggest gift a woman has ever given to women's soccer, girls' soccer, and the soccer organization. Kang expressed her hope that the donation will encourage other benefactors to support women's sports in a press release. According to Kang, women's sports have been neglected and underappreciated for far too long. According to the press release, Kang's donation will enable the organization to increase the number of camps it presently operates, reaching six per age group, with a focus on sponsoring those for ...
India’s 2nd-wealthiest person charged by U.S. in $250 million bribery scheme
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India’s 2nd-wealthiest person charged by U.S. in $250 million bribery scheme

The second-richest person in India, Gautam Adani, has been charged with fraud by U.S. authorities on charges that he and a number of accused co-conspirators attempted to bribe Indian officials with $250 million. The executives, the majority of whom are Indian, were charged by the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn, New York, on Wednesday with obtaining money from U.S. investors and other foreign lenders by making false and deceptive claims. Authorities also claim that the executives bribed Indian officials in order to secure billions of dollars in solar power contracts. In a statement released with the indictment, U.S. Attorney Breon Peace claimed that the defendants had planned a complex plot to bribe Indian government officials in order to obtain contracts valued at billions of dollars. ...
Supreme Court rejects RFK Jr. group’s attempt to protect anti-Covid-vaccine doctors from investigations
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Supreme Court rejects RFK Jr. group’s attempt to protect anti-Covid-vaccine doctors from investigations

Children's Health Defense, the anti-vaccine organization started by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., attempted to defend doctors under investigation in Washington state for allegedly disseminating false information regarding the Covid-19 virus, but the Supreme Court denied their request on Wednesday. On behalf of the court, Justice Elena Kagan rejected the emergency application. The plaintiffs' attorney, Rick Jaffe, stated, "We hope that one day the Supreme Court will clearly state that the Constitution does not permit the government to sanction the public viewpoint speech of physicians." Among the attorneys on the application was Kennedy, whom President-elect Donald Trump plans to appoint as the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Kennedy's organization and other plaintiffs co...