- 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. Jackson bank robber in custody
A Jackson bank robber is in custody, according to the Department of Public Safety.
A spokesperson for DPS said that at approximately 8:19 p.m., Capitol Police, with the assistance of Jackson Police Department, Brandon Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, arrested 45-year-old Wilbert Lindsey Ransom in Brandon, Mississippi, in connection to the bank robbery that occurred Tuesday in Jackson at 302 W. Woodrow Wilson Avenue.
DPS said Ransom is charged with armed robbery.
No further comment was forthcoming from DPS as of late Tuesday night.
2. MS Insurance Commissioner reminds residents to check insurance ahead of Hurricane season
With Hurricane season starting Sunday, Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney is reminding residents to review their insurance coverage.
“While there is no specific ‘hurricane’ insurance, there is multiple peril insurance that covers wind damage or hail damage caused by a hurricane or other named storms. A standard homeowner’s policy covers damage from wind and hail and does not cover flood,” said Insurance Commissioner Chaney.
The department said there is also specialized coverage. Named Storm Deductibles are deductibles that apply to any Named Storm as designated by the National Weather Service. Named storm deductibles are typically a percentage of the value of the dwelling that is insured. This is different from other peril or wind deductibles, which are usually expressed as a specific dollar amount.
Flood insurance is not covered under most homeowner insurance policies. Flood insurance is typically purchased as a separate, stand-alone policy and has a 30-day waiting period. You can contact your insurance agent to discuss flood insurance or purchase it through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Trump says Putin ‘playing with fire’
As the New York Times reports, “President Trump accused President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia of ‘playing with fire’ on Tuesday, a day after the president claimed he was considering placing additional sanctions on Russia for its bombardment of civilian targets in Ukrainian cities.”
“But after four months of empty threats against Mr. Putin, it remained to be seen whether Mr. Trump’s latest harsh comments were an indicator of a new aggressive phase against Russia or another fakeout in the conflict,” NYT reported.
NYT went on to report, “Mr. Trump’s statement immediately prompted a response from Dmitri Medvedev, the deputy chairman of the Kremlin’s security council, who appeared to warn Mr. Trump about escalating tensions to the point of war.”
2. Democrats’ problems run deeper than money
The Hill reports that Democrats say the party’s problems run much deeper than raising money.
“Operatives and donors in the party say they’ve concluded their messaging and failures to connect with voters are the roots of their deeper issues,” The Hill reported. “Yet that could also cause some financial issues. With the midterm elections inching closer, some Democratic donors say they will refuse to write checks until the party gets its act together.”
“Nothing raises money more than winning,” said John Morgan, a major Democratic donor, per The Hill. “When sports teams are losing, even the people with season tickets don’t go.”
Sports
1. PRCC beats East Central to head to NJCAA DII World Series Semifinal
No. 2 Pearl River topped in-state foe No. 6 East Central in a walkoff RBI double to advance the Wildcats to the NJCAA Division II World Series Semifinal.
PRCC will take on the winner of No. 6 East Central and No. 7 Southeastern Thursday at 7 p.m.
The 2025 NJCAA DII World Series in Enid, Oklahoma will be broadcast live on the NJCAA Network at NJCAA.org/network.
2. Ole Miss golf finishes 3rd at NCAA Championship
Ole Miss Athletics says the No. 3 Ole Miss men’s golf team’s historic season came to a close Tuesday night in the semifinals of the NCAA Championships at Omni La Costa Resort and Spa, in Carlsbad, California. The No. 8 seeded Rebels fell to No. 4 Oklahoma State 3-2 in match play.
The school said the 3rd place finish at the NCAA Championship ties the best finish by an Ole Miss team in program history. The Rebels finished 4th in the 1985 Championship which included only four rounds of stroke play. The match play appearance marked the first in program history for the Rebels, whose previous best finish since the format began in 2009 was 14th back in 2022. It marked the second straight year the No. 8 seed took down the top seed in the quarterfinals. Last year, No. 8 Georgia Tech posted a 3-1 win over No. 1 seed Illinois.
Markets & Business
1. Wall Street betting worst of trade war over
The Wall Street Journal reports that “Wall Street is betting that the worst of President Trump’s trade war is in the rearview mirror.”
“The latest example came Tuesday, when news of easing trade tensions between the U.S. and the European Union powered a 2% increase in the S&P 500. It was the largest single-day gain since May 12, when a rollback of tariffs between the U.S. and China spurred an even larger market rally,” WSJ reported.
WSJ added, “Few think the trade tensions have dissipated, or won’t spark near-term stock declines going forward. But many said the worst fears of U.S. restrictions permanently reordering global trade have moderated, and the economic blow is unlikely to be as damaging as it appeared when Trump announced sweeping tariffs on April 2.”
2. Mortgage rates rise to highest level since January
CNBC reports that mortgage rates rose for the third straight week last week “to the highest level since January, but some homebuyers were undeterred.”
“Mortgage applications to purchase a home climbed 2% compared with the previous week and were 18% percent higher than the same week one year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index,” CNBC reported. “This as the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances, $806,500 or less, increased to 6.98% from 6.92%, with points decreasing to 0.67 from 0.69, including the origination fee, for loans with a 20% down payment.”
CNBC noted, “Applications to refinance a home loan took the rate increase harder, falling 7% for the week. Refinance demand was, however, still 37% higher than the same week one year ago.”
