- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
Ole Miss closed until February 8
Ole Miss announced Wednesday that its main Oxford campus will be closed for classes and events until at least Sunday, February 8.
“While our teams have worked tirelessly to restore operations, the impacts of this storm go far beyond our campus,” said Chancellor Glenn Boyce in a message to students. “The people of our city and county, including thousands of students and employees, are facing the loss of power and water, internet and cellular connectivity issues and intermittent access to food and fuel. Our focus remains on keeping our people safe, and that means acknowledging that we are part of a larger community in crisis.”
Boyce said updates will continue as recovery progresses “and as we are able to safely restore full operations. Until then, please continue to exercise caution, look out for one another and draw strength from the incredible community that surrounds us.”
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Shutdown looms again as Democrats oppose DHS, ICE funding
The Hill reports that “Congress lurched a day closer to a partial government shutdown on Wednesday after Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) laid out a list of major reforms that Democrats want to make to the Department of Homeland Security, proposals that will likely encounter resistance from President Trump.
“Democrats say they will block the six-bill government funding package the Senate will vote on Thursday, which includes the Homeland Security appropriations bill, putting Washington on the brink of another shutdown less than three months after the longest shutdown in American history,” The Hill reported. “Schumer is demanding that Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) split off the Homeland Security funding bill from the package and has promised that Democrats will cooperate to pass the other five spending measures by the Jan. 30 deadline.”
The Hill added, “Democrats want to end roving ICE patrols, tighten the rules for requiring search warrants before entering migrants’ homes, and ‘enforce accountability’ by establishing a universal code of conduct governing federal officers’ use of force. They also want to prohibit ICE officers from wearing masks and require them to wear body cameras and proper identification.”
2. FBI searches for ballots from 2020 election in Fulton County
As reported by the Washington Post, “The FBI executed a search warrant Wednesday at the elections warehouse of a Georgia county at the heart of right-wing conspiracy theories about the 2020 election, a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s efforts to challenge the narrative of his loss that year.”
“A bureau spokesperson confirmed that agents were conducting ‘court-authorized law enforcement action’ at the warehouse in Fulton County, home to most of Atlanta and more than 1 million residents. The spokesperson declined to provide more details about the operation,” WP reported.
WP continued, “A copy of the warrant obtained by The Washington Post said the search was part of a criminal investigation into possible violations of two federal laws: one regarding the retention and preservation of election records by officials and the other criminalizing efforts to defraud voters from an impartially conducted election. The warrant authorized agents to seize all physical ballots from the 2020 election, voting machine tabulator tapes, images produced during the ballot count and voter rolls from that year.”
Sports
1. Miss. State dominates LSU
Mississippi State is celebrating after a dominant 80-66 win over LSU in Baton Rouge on Wednesday night.
The Bulldogs hope the win gets them back on track after a rough start to the season. MSU sits at 11-10 overall and 3-5 in SEC play.
Mississippi State continues its road trip as the Bulldogs take on Missouri in Columbia on Saturday, January 31. Tipoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT, and the game will be aired on SEC Network.
2. Southern Miss softball sophomore named to Preseason All-Sun Belt Team
Southern Miss sophomore outfielder Hannah Christian named to Preseason All-Sun Belt Team, announced by the league office Wednesday morning.
Southern Miss Athletics said in her first season with the Golden Eagles, Christian led the team with a .350 batting average, 55 hits and 30 runs scored. She set the longest hitting streak by a freshman in program history with 15, recorded the most hits by a freshman in program history with 55 and was named First Team All-Sun Belt for her efforts.
Christian also utilized 17 walks, 12 hit by pitches and a .918 OBP to steal 12 bases on 16 attempts, the second most on the team. On the defensive side of the ball, she posted 68 put outs resulting in a .945 fielding percentage.
The team opens its season February 6 versus Southeast Missouri State at 4:30 p.m. CT.
Markets & Business
1. Tesla, SpaceX investing $2 billion each in Musk’s xAI
According to the Wall Street Journal, “Tesla reported a 61% drop in profit for the fourth quarter after losing its edge as the world’s leading electric-vehicle maker and said it would invest $2 billion in Elon Musk’s private artificial-intelligence firm, after shareholders’ views were mixed on the move.”
“The company said it entered into an agreement on Jan. 16 to invest in xAI’s Series E funding round. Tesla shareholders had previously voted down a proposal that asked the board to invest in the startup, with more ‘no’ votes and abstentions than ‘yes’ votes,” WSJ reported. “SpaceX also invested $2 billion in xAI, a competitor to OpenAI, The Wall Street Journal reported last year.”
WSJ noted, “Tesla’s business model will be tested over the next few months. Musk is turning his attention to expanding Tesla’s AI capabilities, but the company still has to compete in an increasingly crowded EV market with an aging vehicle lineup and fewer government subsidies to motivate buyers.”
2. Futures up after Fed leaves rates unchanged
CNBC reports that stock futures “were higher on Thursday as traders mulled over the release of earnings reports from major technology firms as well as the latest Federal Reserve interest rate decision.”
“In its post-meeting statement, the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee said that indicators are suggesting that ‘economic activity has been expanding at a solid pace’ and that the unemployment rate ‘has shown some signs of stabilization,’” CNBC reported. “Still, fed funds futures trading are still pricing in two quarter percentage point cuts by the end of 2026, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.”
“The Fed statement was largely as expected, and markets tend to move on surprises,” said Sameer Samana, Wells Fargo Investment Institute head of global equities and real assets, per CNBC. “We are looking to earnings and economic data to drive the next leg higher, but also would not be surprised to see some midterm-elections related volatility in 2026.”
Magnolia Tribune
