- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
GO VOTE, MISSISSIPPI!
In Mississippi
1. Stallworth goes through to American Idol Top 20
Moss Point native Daniel Stallworth advanced to the Top 20 on “American Idol” Monday night.
The Top 30 finalists performed in Hawaii before the judges made the cut to the Top 20.
Stallworth sang a rendition of Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” before the judges and their families.
2. Generational change a factor in MS midterms?
As reported by the New York Times, “Voters will weigh in on Tuesday in two elections in the South that could offer clues to both political parties about the sentiments driving this year’s midterm cycle: how strongly Democrats are seeking generational change, and how willing Republicans are to heed President Trump’s endorsement.”
“Mississippi and Georgia will hold contests less consequential than those that took place earlier this month in Texas and North Carolina, and many of the races on Tuesday are not expected to be particularly competitive,” NYT reported. “For instance, Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi is expected to easily fend off her primary challenge from Sarah Adlakha, a businesswoman, in her safely Republican seat.”
NYT continued, “But two races stand out: the special election to fill the vacant seat of former Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene in rural northwest Georgia, and the re-election bid of Representative Bennie Thompson, 78, who is fighting to fend off a younger Democrat who is trying to make an issue of Thompson’s age.”
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Trump pushes GOP to pass SAVE Act
Politico reports that “President Donald Trump told House Republicans Monday to pass a major partisan elections bill a third time with new provisions, saying it should be the GOP’s ‘No. 1 priority’ ahead of the midterm elections.”
“The president spent 13 minutes at the close of a nearly hourlong address making crystal-clear he expects Speaker Mike Johnson and other top leaders to meet his demands. The House has already two passed versions of what is now called the ‘SAVE America Act’ that would institute tough new citizenship and photo ID requirements for voting,” Politico reported. “But Trump asked the gathered lawmakers to add in provisions curbing mail voting and targeting transgender rights — even it means abandoning the remainder of their legislative agenda before the November elections.”
“Let’s go for the gold,” he said. “It’s actually a matter in a serious way of national survival. We can’t have these elections going on like this anymore.”
2. Justice Jackson criticizes SCOTUS’ emergency docket orders
According to the Washington Post, “Liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson sharply criticized the Supreme Court on Monday for being quick to issue rulings that have temporarily allowed some of President Donald Trump’s controversial policies to stand while legal challenges against them play out in the courts.”
“The justices have signed off on the administration’s ban on transgender soldiers in the military, the firing of independent agency heads and the gutting of the Education Department, among other rulings that cleared the way for the president’s priorities through the court’s emergency docket,” WP reported.
“This uptick in the court’s willingness to get involved with cases on the emergency docket is a real, unfortunate problem,” Jackson told an audience during a talk with conservative Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh, per WP. “I think it is not serving our court or our country well at this point.”
WP went on to report, “Jackson’s comments came in response to Kavanaugh’s assertion that the Supreme Court had treated Trump and Democratic President Joe Biden similarly on the emergency docket. Kavanaugh pointed out that the justices had allowed a number of Biden policies to go forward as well, including access to the abortion drug mifepristone and military vaccine mandates.”
Sports
1. Southern Miss opens season with best start in over 20 years
Southern Miss baseball will host in-state foe Ole Miss in a 6 p.m. Tuesday contest at Pete Taylor Park/Hill Denson Field in Hattiesburg.
The school says the Golden Eagles (14-2) have enjoyed a 4-1 homestand, which includes a win over Top 10 opponent Mississippi State last Tuesday and a three-game sweep over North Alabama over the weekend.
The current Southern Miss record has tied them with their best 16-game start with the 1995 and 2004 squads that also opened the year with the same record.
2. Miss. State up to No. 3, Southern Miss at No. 7 in latest Top 25 rankings
Mississippi State baseball moved up one spot while Southern Miss jumped three spots in this week’s D1 Baseball’s Top 25.
Mississippi State (14-2) is now ranked No. 3 in the nation with Southern Miss (14-2) coming in at No. 7.
For the second week, Ole Miss (15-2) did not crack the Top 25 after being No. 25 three weeks ago.
Mississippi State plays Tulane in Biloxi on Tuesday. Southern Miss is hosting Ole Miss on Tuesday.
Markets & Business
1. Futures flat after wild session
CNBC reports that stock futures “were relatively unchanged on Tuesday as oil prices fell after a wild session as traders kept a close eye on the latest developments out of Iran.”
“Oil prices, which had been on a tear of late, fell broadly. West Texas Intermediate futures lost 6% to trade around $88 per barrel. Brent crude shed 7% to roughly $91 a barrel,” CNBC reported.
CNBC noted, “Those moves come after President Donald Trump on Monday evening said, ‘We’re achieving major strides toward completing our military objective,’ reinforcing earlier comments that the military campaign could soon end. Speaking at a press conference at his golf club near Miami, Trump also said, ‘We are also focused on keeping energy and oil flowing to the world.'”
2. China’s exports surge to start year
The Wall Street Journal reports that “China’s shipments of goods abroad surged at the beginning of the year and its trade surplus rose, showing the country’s export juggernaut is chugging along ahead of President Trump’s visit to Beijing later this month.”
“After China’s record $1.2 trillion trade surplus in 2025, the latest numbers suggested friction is likely to continue with the U.S., Europe and other trading partners,” WSJ reported.
WSJ added, “In January and February combined, exports grew 21.8% compared with the same period a year earlier to $657 billion, backed by strong rises in semiconductors, autos, ships and other advanced industrial products favored by Xi Jinping’s government. Beijing released data for the two months together owing to the Lunar New Year holiday in February.”
Magnolia Tribune
