- 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. MLBC elects new leadership
This week, the Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus (MLBC) elected a new slate of officers to lead the organization for the next two years.
State Rep. Kabir Karriem (D) will serve as Chairman of the MLBC. He will be joined by the following officers:
• Sen. Rod Hickman (D), Vice Chairman
• Rep. Zakiya Summers (D), Secretary
• Rep. Tamarra G. Butler-Washington (D), Assistant Secretary
• Rep. Oscar Denton (D), Treasurer
• Rep. John Faulkner (D), Parliamentarian
• Rep. Robert Sanders (D), Sergeant at Arms
• Sen. Gary Brumfield (D), Chaplain
“We are united as one caucus, with a shared commitment to the issues and aspirations of the approximately 1.1 million Black people in Mississippi,” Karriem said in a statement.
2. Magnolia Beef and Poultry Expo coming to Laurel
The Ag Department announced Thursday that the annual Magnolia Beef & Poultry Expo will take place Thursday, April 10, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Magnolia Center at the Laurel Fairgrounds.
Beef and poultry producers from across the state will have the opportunity to attend educational seminars and browse the trade show. The trade show, featuring a variety of agribusinesses and organizations, opens at 8:00 a.m.
Dr. Michael Czarick, Senior Public Service Associate in the Department of Poultry Science at the University of Georgia, will present two educational seminars – Myth of Weed, Seed, and Chicken Litter at 9:45 a.m. and Summertime Ventilation in Poultry Houses at 11:15 a.m.
This year, the Magnolia Beef and Poultry Expo Producer of the Year will be recognized. The Producer of the Year will be a producer actively involved in the beef and/or poultry industry in Covington, Jasper, Jones, Newton, Rankin, Scott, Simpson and Smith Counties. The 2025 Producer of the Year will be awarded a Polaris Sportsman 450 H.O. sponsored by Pro Flow Motorsports.
This free event is open to the public. Door prizes will be awarded throughout the day.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Trump withdraws Stefanik’s UN nomination over thin House majority
President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he was withdrawing his nomination of New York Congresswomen Elise Stefanik to be ambassador to the United Nations over fears that the House’s slim Republican majority would be threatened by her absence.
As The Hill reported, “In his statement announcing the move, Trump said the congresswoman would ‘rejoin the House Leadership Team.’ Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) echoed that plan, saying he would ‘invite her to return to the leadership table immediately.’ But it is unclear where Stefanik will fit in after relinquishing the position of House GOP conference chair, which she held for nearly four years, upon her nomination for U.N. ambassador.”
The Hill went on to note that “Trump indicated that Stefanik may be called to leave the House again in the future,” saying, “I look forward to the day when Elise is able to join my Administration in the future. She is absolutely FANTASTIC.”
2. Trump orders an end to collective bargaining with federal unions
The New York Times reports that President Trump instructed a broad swath of government agencies on Thursday “to end collective bargaining with federal unions, a major escalation in his effort to assert more control over the federal work force.”
“Mr. Trump framed the order as critical to protect national security. But it targets agencies across the government, including the Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, State, Treasury and Energy, most of the Justice Department, and parts of the Departments of Commerce, Homeland Security, and Health and Human Services,” NYT reported, adding, “To claim authority to cancel the union contracts under the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, Mr. Trump expanded the list of agencies exempt from provisions of laws governing federal labor relations for national security reasons. In doing so, he adopted an expansive view of national security, one that encompasses agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Science Foundation, the U.S. International Trade Commission and the Federal Communications Commission.”
NYT also noted, “After Mr. Trump signed the order, the affected agencies filed a lawsuit on Thursday in Texas against the unions representing federal employees, seeking to rescind their collective bargaining agreements.”
Sports
1. Weather could impact Big 3 college baseball this weekend
Severe weather is forecasted for much of Mississippi this weekend, meaning college baseball games could be cancelled or rescheduled to accommodate. Here’s a look at the Big 3’s slate of games as known Friday morning:
- No. 13 Southern Miss is hosting South Alabama with Game 1 Friday at 6 p.m. Games 2 is set for Saturday at 2 p.m. and Game 3 will be Sunday at 1 p.m.
- No. 15 Ole Miss got its weekend series with Florida underway on Thursday, winning 7-5 over the Gators. Games 2 and 3 of the series have been moved to a doubleheader starting Friday at 3 p.m. with 45 minutes between 9-inning games.
- Mississippi State’s matchup at LSU began Thursday, with the Bulldogs losing 8-6 in Game 1. State continues its series at 6:30 p.m. on Friday and at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
2. Shuckers to host PRCC for exhibition ahead of Opening Day
Ahead of their Opening Day on April 4, the Biloxi Shuckers have announced a 7-inning exhibition game against the Pearl River Community College Wildcats on Wednesday, April 2 at Keesler Federal Park at 6:35 p.m.
The match-up marks the third consecutive year that the two teams will meet in the pre-season tune-up for the Double-A Affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers based in Biloxi.
The Shuckers are set to begin their 10th anniversary season on the Coast in 2025. Their Opening Day game will be played in Pensacola next Friday.
Markets & Business
1. Futures down as inflation report drops Friday morning
CNBC reports that stock futures were flat Friday “as investors grappled with ongoing tariff uncertainty and awaited the release of a key inflation measure.”
“Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped 19 points, or 0.04%. S&P 500 futures dipped 0.1%, and Nasdaq 100 futures traded 0.2% lower,” CNBC reported. “February’s personal consumption expenditures price index is due at 8:30 a.m. ET and could confirm whether investors should be concerned about sticky inflation, especially after the Federal Reserve recently raised its inflation forecast.”
CNBC noted, “The report comes after a losing session for the major averages. On Thursday, the 30-stock Dow fell about 155 points, or 0.4%. The S&P 500 slid 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.5%.”
2. Bank of America CEO talks auto tariffs
Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan told FoxBusiness Bank of America analysts think the new 25% tariff on passenger vehicles, light trucks and some auto parts imported into the U.S. “will cause car prices to go up and purchase of vehicles to slow down.”
“I think the concept wasn’t a surprise. It was in the campaign, it’s been talked about, but the reality is now coming, and so people are starting to make adjustments and trying to figure out what it all means,” Moynihan said Thursday on “The Claman Countdown” on FoxBusiness.
“When they think about it more broadly, it may add a quarter percent inflation. It may slow down some growth in places like Japan because they export more to the United States, but overall, these things are absorbed over time,” Moynihan said. “But until they’re figured out, nobody really knows that, and these are unprecedented waters in terms of amounts and different pieces and things like that.”
FoxBusiness noted that the auto tariff “is slated to come into force early next week.”
