Morning Headlines - Monday, Jul. 17, 2023 | Recent News

U.S. and World Headlines

Trump And Allies Forge Plans To Increase Presidential Power In 2025

Donald Trump and his allies are planning a sweeping expansion of presidential power over the machinery of government if voters return him to the White House in 2025, reshaping the structure of the executive branch to concentrate far greater authority directly in his hands.

Their plans to centralize more power in the Oval Office stretch far beyond the former president’s recent remarks that he would order a criminal investigation into his political rival, President Joe Biden, signaling his intent to end the post-Watergate norm of Justice Department independence from White House political control.

Trump and his associates have a broader goal: to alter the balance of power by increasing the president’s authority over every part of the federal government that now operates, by either law or tradition, with any measure of independence from political interference by the White House, according to a review of his campaign policy proposals and interviews with people close to him.

GOP Senators Rattled By Radical Conservative Populism

Republican senators say they’re worried that conservative populism, though always a part of the GOP, is beginning to take over the party, becoming more radical and threatening to cause them significant political problems heading into the 2024 election.

GOP senators are saying they’re being increasingly confronted by constituents who buy into discredited conspiracy theories such as the claim that Democrats stole the 2020 presidential election or that federal agents incited the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Which Presidential Candidates Raised The Most From April Through June?

Former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis led the 2024 Republican field in fundraising, reflecting their polling positions so far. Only one other candidate, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, raised more than $5 million in individual contributions.

Other GOP candidates in the lower tier of polling have been ramping up their small-dollar donor operations in order to fulfill the Republican National Committee's donor threshold to qualify for the first debate in late August.

Meanwhile, President Biden's campaign announced he raised $72 million, in conjunction with his joint fundraising committee and the Democratic National Committee. He entered July with a substantial cash on hand amount: $77 million.

Below is a snapshot of what the campaigns reported raising in the second fundraising quarter.

Why People Love Sharing Their Locations, Despite The Risks

Young people are increasingly sharing their locations digitally to track or be tracked by loved ones (and sometimes looser acquaintances) — creating an evolving culture around apps like Find My Friends.

While people who use the apps shared positive experiences, privacy experts have been apprehensive about indefinite location sharing. Nearly 80% of people have location sharing activated on their phones some of the time, and 16% have it activated all of the time.

"It's a safety measure, and I wish I had taken it sooner," said Kelsey King, 30, who started sharing her location indefinitely with about a dozen friends last month.

Alcaraz Outlasts Djokovic In Epic Wimbledon Final

In a brilliant, gutsy performance Sunday in the Wimbledon final, world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz won his second Grand Slam title in less than a year, defeating seven-time Wimbledon champ Novak Djokovic 1-6, 7-6 (6), 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 and ending the 36-year-old Serbian's quest for the calendar Grand Slam in 2023.

The match lasted four hours and 42 minutes and was the third-longest final in Wimbledon history.

Wisconsin Dairy Groups Sue DNR Over Wastewater Discharge Permit Requirement For CAFOs

A law firm with ties to the state's largest business lobby is suing the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources on behalf of dairy groups. The suit targets rules requiring factory farms to obtain permits aimed at keeping manure out of waterways.

In May, the WMC Litigation Center filed the lawsuit in Calumet County Circuit Court on behalf of the Wisconsin Dairy Alliance and Venture Dairy Cooperative. In Wisconsin, large farms known as concentrated animal feeding operations, or CAFOs, are required to get wastewater discharge permits, and must take certain steps to prevent manure from polluting water. Those include farms with 1,000 animal units or more, which is equal to 700 milking cows.

Alexandria Woman Sentenced In Fatal Crash In Wisconsin

A woman from the area has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for a drunken-driving crash along I-94 near Hudson, Wisconsin that left a Minnesota man dead last fall. Amber Pospisil, 32, of Alexandria, was reportedly driving eastbound in the westbound lanes of I-94 when her car struck an SUV driven by Mark Filbrandt, 54, from Robbinsdale. The crash took place last October. Filbrandt reportedly died at the scene.

Pospisil pleaded no contest to second-degree homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle. Her sentencing hearing took place on Friday. Pospisil had a previous conviction for drunk driving in Minnesota.

Dominican National Extradited To Face International Narcotics Trafficking Charges In Milwaukee

Gregory J. Haanstad, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced the successful extradition of Rafael Dario Gonzalez-Amparo (a/k/a “Rafa,” a/k/a “Sisi”) from the Dominican Republic based on a superseding indictment returned in Milwaukee. On July 14, 2023, Gonzalez-Amparo had his initial appearance and arraignment before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen C. Dries in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Gonzalez-Amparo was ordered temporarily detained. His detention hearing is scheduled for July 19, 2023.

On November 8, 2022, a grand jury had returned a superseding indictment against Gonzalez-Amparo, alleging one count of international drug trafficking conspiracy and one substantive count of international drug trafficking.

La Crosse Man Charged With Drug Crimes

In an indictment returned on June 28, 2023 by a federal grand jury sitting in Madison, Wisconsin, a La Crosse, Wisconsin man is charged with possessing methamphetamine for distribution and maintaining a drug house. The indictment is announced by Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin.

The indictment charges Alfredo Almanza, 42, with possessing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. The indictment alleges that he possessed the methamphetamine on March 22, 2023. The indictment also charges him with using and maintaining a place in La Crosse from March 15 to March 22, 2023, for the purpose of distributing and using methamphetamine.

Tiffany, Fitzgerald Demand DOJ Investigation Into The Nude Exploitation Of 10-Year-Old Minor At Madison’s Naked Bike Ride

Representatives Tom Tiffany (WI-07) and Scott Fitzgerald (WI-05) requested a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into the incident that involved a nude 10-year-old girl on a bicycle at the World Naked Bike Ride in Madison, WI. The representatives also call on the DOJ to leverage appropriate charges on those responsible for endangering and exploiting a minor.

“The world is in a very dark place when parents and event organizers allow a 10-year-old’s indecent exposure in a public bike ride,” said Congressman Tiffany. “It’s immoral, harmful, and obscene. Those who allowed it should be held accountable.”

The letter specifically requests a response to the following questions:

If you get this, you probably grew up in the 90's.