Author: Grace Thompson

In one of the most prolific “swatting” cases ever prosecuted, a teenage “serial swatter” pleaded guilty Wednesday to making hoax threats to schools, religious institutions and government officials about mass shootings and bombings across the country. Alan Filion, 18, of Lancaster, California, pleaded guilty to four counts of making interstate threats, the Justice Department said. Filion faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for each charge, federal prosecutors said. From August 2022 to January, Filion made more than 375 swatting and threat calls, including calls in which he claimed to have put bombs in place, threatened to detonate bombs or carry out mass shootings, officials said. He became a “serial swatter” — making false accusations to send law enforcemen...

An eighth grade transgender boy, who was allegedly threatened with expulsion for using the boys restroom, is suing his South Carolina school district and the state over a budget rule that restricts accommodations for transgender students. In a federal lawsuit filed Tuesday, John Doe, a pseudonym for a 13-year-old student in the Berkeley County School District, said that administrators told him in August he could only use the girls restroom or a single-occupancy toilet in the nurse’s office due to a new state rule. The school suspended him for a day when administrators later caught him using the boys restroom, and the principal warned that the punishment could escalate to expulsion if he did it again, according to the suit. “I am bringing this lawsuit because rules like this are damag...

Some Republican senators expressed surprise and said they had little knowledge about who exactly President-elect Donald Trump's pick f or s ecretary of d efense is. “Wow,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said after Trump announced former National Guard member and Fox News host Pete Hegseth as his choice for the high-ranking job. “I’m just surprised, because the names that I’ve heard for secretary of defense have not included him,” Murkowski said. Trump on Tuesday called Hegseth, 44, “tough, smart and a true believer in America First.” Some senators did not know who Hegseth is or much about him. “Who?” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said when he was asked about the choice. “I don’t know Pete. I just don’t know anything about him.” Foll...

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday that he will nominate Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., to be the 87th attorney general of the United States in a move that could fill the nation's top law enforcement position with an ardent supporter who was once criminally investigated by the department he would oversee. No charges were filed in the case, which was investigated by the FBI and centered on allegations of sex trafficking. It ended last year . Afterward, Gaetz called for abolishing the bureau. “I don’t care if it takes every second of our time and every ounce of our energy, we either get this government back on our side or we defund, get rid of, abolish the FBI,” Gaetz said at last year's Conservative Political Action Conference. House Spe...

WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans selected Sen. John Thune of South Dakota to be their leader in the next Congress, three sources with knowledge of the vote said, replacing longtime leader Mitch McConnell, who is stepping down after a record 18 years. Thune, the Senate Republican whip, ran against two other senators: John Cornyn of Texas, a former whip, and Rick Scott of Florida, an underdog candidate who just won a second term. Thune, first elected to the Senate in 2004, has climbed his way up the leadership ladder, previously serving as chair of the Republican conference and chairing the Commerce Committee before ascending to the position of whip in 2019. Thune ran for leader on a platform of carrying out President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda, although the two men have not always ...

WASHINGTON — The new Senate Republican majority promises to leave the filibuster in place, retaining the 60-vote threshold to pass most legislation — even if it stands in the way of the Trump agenda it hopes to advance. Shortly after he was elected as the next majority leader , Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., responded clearly and unequivocally when he was asked Wednesday whether the filibuster would remain unchanged on his watch. “Yes,” he told reporters. In interviews this week, several Republican senators representing various ideological factions said they support preserving the filibuster rule as they prepare to take full control of Washington with President-elect Donald Trump back in the White House, a Senate majority of 52 or 53 seats and a narrow House majority . ...

If gifting were a one-time thing, it would be relatively easy. But finding the best gifts for her year after year — whether you’re shopping for your sister, mom , best friend, wife, whomever — can be increasingly tough. If you hit it out of the park with a present they loved in the past, how will you possibly top it? Or: Did they actually adore that pet portrait, or were they just being nice? The good news is that there are a ton of options out there, including great gifts you might not have thought of. Whoever you’re shopping for, it helps to have a starting point — which is exactly what this gift guide is. Scroll ahead to shop the best gifts for her. SKIP AHEAD The best gifts for her in 2024 | Why trust NBC Select? Selec...

WASHINGTON — Special counsel Jack Smith and his team plan to resign before President-elect Donald Trump takes office, a source familiar with the matter said. Smith’s office has been evaluating the best path for winding down its work on the two outstanding federal criminal cases against Trump , as the Justice Department’s longstanding position is that it cannot charge a sitting president with a crime. The New York Times first reported on Smith's plans to step down. The looming question in the weeks ahead is whether Smith's final report, detailing his charging decisions, will be made public before Inauguration Day. The special counsel's office is required under Justice Department regulations to provide a confidential report to Attorney General Merrick Garland, w...