- 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. MHP reports holiday enforcement numbers
The Mississippi Highway Patrol says it issued 6,662 citations over the Thanksgiving holiday enforcement period. The agency also made 80 arrests for impaired driving and cited 629 motorists for occupant restraint violations.
The total number of citations issued were down slightly from 2023, when the agency reported 6,766.
The agency noted that 187 crashes were investigated, 48 of which involved injuries. There were 2 fatalities, one in Leake and one in Marshall counties.
In 2023, there were 169 crashes and 3 fatalities.
2. Flesher named Outstanding Accounting Educator
Ole Miss has announced that the American Accounting Association presented its Outstanding Accounting Educator Award for 2024 to Dale Flesher, associate dean and professor emeritus in the university’s Patterson School of Accountancy The presentation came at the group’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
The university said Flesher’s 56-year career includes 42 years as an Ole Miss faculty member. He previously held positions at Appalachian State University and Ball State University. He has taught more than 10,000 students at the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels and also has served on 56 dissertation committees.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Trump says there’ll be “Hell to pay” if Hamas doesn’t release hostages by inauguration day
President-elect Donald Trump said “there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity” if all the hostages were not released by his inauguration on Jan. 20, as reported by USA Today.
He went on to say in a TruthSocial post that “those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit” in American history if Hamas militants do not release every remaining Oct. 7, 2023, hostage before he’s sworn into office next month.
“Trump’s latest social media missive suggesting the U.S. could retaliate directly against Hamas followed an announcement on Monday from the Israeli Defense Forces that U.S.-Israeli citizen Omer Neutra had died during the militants’ surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and his body was being held in Gaza,” USA Today reported.
2. Biden Administration sending $725 million more in military aid to Ukraine
Newsweek reports that the U.S. has announced a fresh aid package for Ukraine worth $725 million as President Joe Biden rushes to funnel resources to Kyiv in the final weeks of his administration.
“The latest tranche of military aid includes ammunition for Ukrainian-operated High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems; deliveries of in-demand artillery shells, such as 155 mm; and missiles for the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems operating in Ukraine,” Newsweek reported. “Washington also plans to send Stinger missiles for man-portable air defense systems and nonpersistent land mines, designed to deactivate after a certain period of time, the Pentagon said.”
Newsweek went on to note that “the U.S. supplies about half of the military aid Kyiv receives. It has provided more than $60 billion since February 2022.”
Sports & Entertainment
1. Conerly Trophy winner to be announced
The winner of the 2024 C Spire Conerly Trophy recognizing the state’s top college football player will be announced at a special ceremony on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024, at the Sheraton Flowood The Refuge Hotel.
The event will be hosted by CBS football analyst Charles Davis.
Nominees for this year include:
Alcorn State University – Xzavier Vaughn (Quarterback)
Belhaven University – Wyatt Beck (Linebacker)
Delta State University – Kelvin Smith (Running Back)
Jackson State University – Irv Mulligan (Running Back)
Millsaps College – Nehemiah Coalson (Linebacker)
Mississippi College – Brennan Blake (Defensive Lineman)
Mississippi State University – Isaac Smith (Safety)
Mississippi Valley State University – Nathan Rembert (Wide Receiver)
University of Mississippi – Jaxson Dart (Quarterback)
University of Southern Mississippi – Bryce Lofton (Punter)
You can watch the ceremony here.
2. Baseball America ranks Rebels’ baseball signees as 9th best class in nation
Ole Miss Athletics says the newest group of Rebels in their 2025 baseball signing class has been named the 9th best in the country by Baseball America.
The full 2025 signing class consists of 10 Rebels: Noah Allen, Bryden Bull, Evan Farrow, Grayson Gibson, Cannon Goldin, Blake Ilitch, Coy James, Leo Odom, Kelven Perera, and Luke Romine.
“After putting together the fourth-ranked 2024 recruiting class, there appears to be more high-quality talent on its way to Oxford,” wrote Baseball America’s Peter Flaherty. “Coy James leads the way, and the 6-foot shortstop is armed with an advanced offensive acumen. He’s an aggressive hitter who generates consistent hard contact and flashes pull-side power that shows up in-game. James has good hand-eye coordination, and his ability to adjust allows him to get his barrel on the ball even when he doesn’t get his best swing off.”
Markets & Business
1. Investors looking for another Fed rate cut
The Wall Street Journal reports that investors are increasingly confident the Federal Reserve is heading toward an interest-rate cut three-peat. WSJ’s news comes after Fed governor Christopher Waller said he was leaning toward cutting again this month.
“Policy is still restrictive enough that an additional cut at our next meeting will… allow ample scope to later slow the pace of rate cuts, if needed,” Waller said Monday, according to WSJ.
WSJ continued, “Fed-funds futures indicate traders now see a 73% chance of another 0.25 percentage point cut in December, up from 59% a week ago. That would mark a third consecutive decrease, and would take rates down by a total of 1 percentage point for the year.”
2. Trump seeks to block Nippon Steel from buying U.S. Steel
According to FoxBusiness, President-elect Trump said Monday he would use a series of tax incentives and tariffs to block Nippon Steel’s planned $14 billion purchase of American manufacturing company U.S. Steel.
“I am totally against the once great and powerful U.S. Steel being bought by a foreign company, in this case Nippon Steel of Japan,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social, as reported by FoxBusiness.
FoxBusiness noted, “Nippon Steel seeks to close the deal before Trump is sworn in as president again on January 20, although President Biden and a powerful U.S. labor union also oppose the takeover. Nippon Steel is confident the deal can be finished by the end of the year.”
Magnolia Tribune
