- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
1. Murrah High student named a National Student Poet
The National Student Poets Program (NSPP), a partnership of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, has named five high schools students as National Student Poets. Murrah High School’s Nadia Wright in Jackson is one of them. She will be the poet for the Southeast.
Wright will spend the next year appearing at readings and workshops at libraries, museums, and schools, and participate in a range of regional literary and arts events in her role. She will also receive $5,000.
2. Heidelberg elects new Mayor
Robert Barnett won a special election runoff on Thursday to become the town of Heidelberg’s new mayor.
Barnett will serve the remaining term after the death of Mayor David Taylor, set to end in July 2025.
Seven votes separated Barnett from his opponent Shana Taylor, with Barnett winning 132-125 votes.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Helene floods Southeast, at least 3 dead
Hurricane Helene came ashore near Perry, Florida around 11 pm Thursday night as a Category 4 storm. Storm surge, heavy rains and strong winds have reportedly left at least 3 people dead in the Southeast.
According to the Weather Channel, over 2 million people are without power in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina.
Emergency response crews are beginning to assess damage as the sun rises. Officials are asking residents to stay inside as flooding persists.
As of the 5am advisory from the National Hurricane Center, Helene has been downgraded to a Tropical Storm as it sits near Atlanta.
2. Harris walking back EV push?
According to the Wall Street Journal, Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris’s history of promoting electric-vehicle mandates and the Biden administration’s push to bring more EVs into the nation’s fleet despite sluggish sales has put Democrats on the defensive.
“When Vice President Kamala Harris first sought the presidency in 2019, she called for tough emissions standards for automakers that would have required all new vehicles to emit zero emissions by 2035,” WSJ reported. “In recent weeks, she has quietly walked back that stance as consumer demand for electric cars cools and pressure on the issue from Donald Trump heats up.”
WSJ added, “Trump has bashed so-called ‘EV mandates,’ casting the zero-emission cars as vehicles of the elite and warned of the prospects of China overtaking the U.S. industry.”
Sports & Entertainment
1. Ole Miss, Miss. State open SEC play Saturday
The 4-0 No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels are set to host the 2-2 Kentucky Wildcats in their first SEC conference game of the season. Kickoff will be at 11am and aired on ABC/ESPN+.
Also in action Saturday is the 1-3 Mississippi State Bulldogs who travel to Austin to take on undefeated No. 1 Texas Longhorns. Kickoff is set for 3:15pm with the game airing on the SEC Network.
2. MGCCC continues to roll in JUCO action
MGCCC Bulldogs are No. 4 in NJCAA Division 1 for a reason – they are solid on both sides of the ball. On Thursday, MGCCC rolled over rival Pearl River 41-14 to remain undefeated at 5-0.
In other JUCO action on Thursday night:
- Itawamba beat MS Delta 35-17
- Northwest outlasted Northeast 28-20
- Southwest poured it on Southwest 42-16
- East Central topped Hinds 42-13
- Holmes took down Jones 35-22
Markets & Business
1. Investors await August inflation report
CNBC reports that stock futures traded near the flatline Friday as Wall Street awaits a key inflation reading.
“Traders are awaiting the release of August’s personal consumption expenditures price index, due at 8:30 a.m. ET. The so-called PCE is the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation metric, and policymakers and Wall Street alike are hoping for figures that show a cooling trend,” CNBC reported. “Economists polled by Dow Jones expect that headline PCE rose at a 2.3% annualized pace, and that it gained 0.1% from the prior month.”
CNBC also noted that the three major indexes “are higher for the week, with the S&P 500 up nearly 0.8% and the 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average on pace to rise 0.3%. The Nasdaq Composite is on track for a roughly 1.4% week-to-date advance.”
2. Lutnik says Harris’ economic plan would kill innovation in America
Howard Lutnick, CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, sat for an interview Thursday on FoxBusiness‘ “Mornings with Maria” saying Vice President Kamala Harris’ economic plan “will literally kill the venture capital business.”
“You will literally kill the innovation business in America. No venture capital, no Amazon, no Google, no Microsoft, millions of employees gone. Why? Because all they do is stare at Elon Musk’s money and want to seize it. ‘Look, he’s got unrealized capital gains,’” Lutnick explained on FoxBusiness. “You can’t say you’re trying to innovate when you’re trying to destroy innovation in America. And that’s what she’s trying to do.”
Harris’ economic plan on her website mentions “imposing a 25% ‘minimum’ tax on wealthy households and increasing taxes on capital gains and dividends for households making more than $1 million from 20% to 28%,” FoxBusiness reported.
Lutnick praised the tax record under Trump’s first administration, saying, “He will drive down the cost of energy, and he will drive down corporate taxes, which means they will build factories here, bring back farming. Tariffs will protect our farmers. Manufacturing will employ our people and energy will drive down our costs.”
Magnolia Tribune
