- 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. Horhn appoints Brackney as JPD chief
On Friday, Jackson Mayor John Horhn announced the appointment Dr. RaShall M. Brackney as the next Chief of Police for the Jackson Police Department (JPD), following a national search that included community input, screening, and multiple rounds of interviews.
The appointment will be submitted to the Jackson City Council for confirmation.
According to Horhn, Dr. Brackney brings more than three decades of law enforcement leadership, academic work, and community-centered public safety experience. She is a retired veteran of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, where she served for over 30 years in a series of command and leadership roles. She later served as Chief of Police at George Washington University and as Chief of Police for the City of Charlottesville, Virginia.
“From the start of this search, our focus has been finding the right leader to build trust, reduce crime, and strengthen the partnership between our officers and the residents they serve,” said Mayor Horhn. “Dr. RaShall Brackney has spent her career working at the intersection of public safety and community trust, and she knows effective policing depends on accountability and transparency. Her experience running complex departments, her national reputation as a public safety expert, and her commitment to listening to residents make her the right choice to lead the Jackson Police Department.”
2. Fitch, Ring partner to provide cameras to domestic violence survivors
On Monday, Attorney General Lynn Fitch announced, in partnership with Ring (an Amazon Company) and the Mississippi Coalition Against Domestic Violence (MCADV), a new community initiative to support domestic violence survivors in Mississippi by providing 1,000 Ring X Line Devices that include a Basic Protect Subscription.
Additionally, Ring will provide a $25,000 donation to help support MCADV’s mission and ongoing impact across the State.
“This partnership is about giving survivors the tools, support, and added peace of mind as they work toward healing,” said Attorney General Fitch. “These cameras are an important part of a safety plan, so instead of fearing every knock or doorbell ring, a survivor can know exactly who is on the other side. Thank you to Ring and the MCADV for your commitment to protecting survivors in Mississippi and ensuring that we can hold offenders accountable.”
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Senate GOP, Democrats at odds over DHS, ICE as shutdown nears
The Hill reports that “President Trump’s allies in the Senate are planning to go to war with Democrats this week over proposed immigration enforcement reforms, working closely with White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller to play offense on what has been a strong issue for the president.”
“These Senate conservatives are gearing up to fight any potential deal with Democrats that would rein in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers by requiring them to obtain judicial search warrants and prohibiting them from wearing masks,” The Hill reported. “Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.), meanwhile, are under intense pressure from the Democratic base to either reach a bipartisan deal to overhaul ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) or force a shutdown of the Homeland Security Department.”
The Hill noted, “This has lawmakers in both parties bracing for a shutdown later this week.”
2. Trump administration unwinding Biden’s climate regulations
As reported by the New York Times, “In the summer of 2022, Democrats in Congress were racing to pass the biggest climate law in the country’s history and President Joseph R. Biden Jr. was declaring that global warming posed a ‘clear and present danger’ to the United States.”
“But behind the scenes, four Trump administration veterans were plotting to obliterate federal climate efforts once Republicans regained control in Washington, according to documents reviewed by The New York Times and interviews with more than a dozen people familiar with the matter,” NYT reported. “Two of them, Russell T. Vought and Jeffrey B. Clark, were high-profile allies of Donald Trump. Mr. Vought, who has railed against ‘climate alarmism,’ and Mr. Clark, who has called climate rules a ‘Leninistic’ plot to seize control of the economy, drafted executive orders for the next Republican president to dismantle climate initiatives.”
NYT continued, “The other two, Mandy Gunasekara and Jonathan Brightbill, were lesser-known conservative attorneys with long histories of fighting climate initiatives. Ms. Gunasekara, a onetime aide to the most vocal global warming denialist in the Senate, and Mr. Brightbill, who had argued in court against Obama-era climate regulations, collected an ‘arsenal of information’ to chip away at the scientific consensus that the planet is warming, documents show. Their efforts are now paying off. In the coming days, the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to revoke a determination that has underpinned the federal government’s ability to fight global warming since 2009.”
Sports
1. Dean hired to lead Statesmen football
Delta State University Director of Athletics Mike Kinnison announced last week the hiring of David Dean as the 20th head football coach in program history.
Dean arrives at Delta State with more than 35 years of collegiate coaching experience, including over two decades as a head coach, and a proven track record of sustained excellence at the national level.
Over his career, Dean has compiled a 127–47 record as a head coach, captured three NCAA Division II National Championships, earned a national runner-up finish, and won seven Gulf South Conference championships. His success places him as the second-winningest head coach in GSC history, one of the most competitive leagues in Division II football.
2. Ole Miss internship combines sports, statistics analysis
Ole Miss announced that its School of Applied Sciences has recently partnered with Pro Football Focus for remote internship opportunities that allow students to combine their love of sports and statistics while building real-world skills that can help them kick-off careers. Pro Football Focus collects and analyzes vast amounts of data in football.
“I met with a staff member of PFF and realized this would be an excellent fit for some of our students who are interested in working in football, coaching or analytics,” said Brennan Berg, professor and sport management program director. “This program offers a unique chance to develop valuable analytical skills, enhance football knowledge and gain real-world experience in data collection and game analysis all while balancing academic commitments.”
Ole Miss said the internship consisted of watching live college and professional football games, gathering data on every play and submitting data into an online program quickly and accurately.
“The statistics collected were similar to what people see when looking up gamebooks during a live game – such as yards on a catch, who caught the ball and who threw the ball – with the addition of tracking other information such as throw spots, catch spots, types of drop-back and trick plays, Miller said,” as shared by Marisa Atkinson for Ole Miss. “The data is sent to teams to use however they wish, including for scouting purposes or self-evaluation.”
Markets & Business
1. Inflation rising?
According to the Wall Street Journal, “January’s inflation numbers land on Friday and the consensus calls for a moderate 0.3% monthly rise in consumer prices that cools the annual inflation rate to 2.5%.”
“Still, many on Wall Street are bracing for an unpleasant surprise. In recent years, inflation in January has tended to come in relatively hot. Last year, the consumer-price index, which tracks the cost of a basket of goods and services, rose more in January than in any other month,” WSJ reported. “The same thing happened in 2023. January wasn’t the hottest month for inflation in 2024, but it was close.”
WSJ added, “If that happens again, it will be seen as proof that companies are passing President Trump’s tariffs on to consumers. Some Federal Reserve officials have cited this possibility as a reason to be cautious about further interest-rate cuts.”
2. Dow hits new record high
CNBC reports that “U.S. stock futures were little changed on Tuesday after the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit a fresh all-time high.”
“Tech stocks rallied Monday, building on their Friday comeback and helping lift the overall market. Investors are hopeful the market can sustain its upward advance after last week’s sell-off — led by fears around software and megacap tech — failed to meaningfully hurt the market on a technical basis,” CNBC reported. “Indeed, the S&P 500 has managed to recover support above its 50-day and 100-day moving averages, after dipping below them last week, and many asset classes are outperforming the index — bullish signals as far as traders are concerned.”
CNBC went on to report, “The latest retail sales report will be released Tuesday morning and is expected to show a 0.5% monthly gain, or 0.3% when excluding auto-related items. Investors are awaiting the big jobs report on Wednesday, and the consumer price index on Friday.”
Magnolia Tribune
