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In Mississippi
1. Mississippi delegation celebrates signing of Vicksburg National Military Park Boundary Modification Act
The full Mississippi federal delegation welcomed the signing of the Vicksburg National Military Park Boundary Modification Act into law this week.
The legislation permits the State of Mississippi to build a new informational visitor center and make necessary structural improvements around the park.
Congressman Bennie Thompson (D) introduced the legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives, which was approved on March 16. Last month, U.S. Senators Roger Wicker (R) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) led the effort to push the bill through the Senate, where it received unanimous support.
Following the bill signing, the Mississippi delegation released the following statement:
“Vicksburg National Military Park tells a core part of Mississippi’s story, and it is a key source of economic activity in the South Delta. We came together in a bipartisan manner to move this legislation through Congress and support our state’s efforts to preserve this chapter of our history.
“We are grateful to President Trump for signing this bill into law and to all of our partners in Congress and Mississippi who made this moment possible. As we celebrate this occasion, we are excited for the countless students, families, and visitors who will experience this part of our history when visiting Vicksburg.”
A groundbreaking ceremony for the new visitor center is being held Wednesday.
2. $5.9 million awarded to Mississippi to assist with storm recovery
The Federal Highway Administration has approved two grants totaling $5.9 million to help Mississippi continue recovery work associated with Tropical Storm Arthur and Winter Storm Fern.
The grants, which derive from the agency’s Emergency Relief for Federal-aid Highways and Emergency Relief for Federally Owned Roads programs, will help the state and U.S. Forest Service defray the cost of repairs to federal-aid eligible roads, bridges, and other infrastructure.
The Mississippi Department of Transportation is being awarded more than $3.0 million in ERFA funding for costs associated with damage caused by Tropical Storm Arthur, which caused severe storms, tornadoes, and flash flooding on June 18-19. The U.S. Forest Service will receive more than $2.8 million in ERFO funding to address Winter Storm Fern damage to roads and trails in the state’s national forests during the Jan. 23-27 disaster that blanketed 38 counties in ice.
“Winter Storm Fern in January, followed by the drenching Tropical Storm Arthur early this summer, damaged transportation infrastructure throughout Mississippi. These two FHWA grants will augment the significant resources already spent by federal, state, and local entities to overcome these two natural disasters,” said U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Retired American teacher released by Russia
FoxNews reports that “President Donald Trump secured the release from Russia of a retired U.S. teacher who was locked up on charges of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine.”
“Stephen Hubbard, taken four years ago by Russia during the Biden Administration, was just released from prison, at the request of President Donald J. Trump, made directly to President Vladimir Putin in a telephone conversation last week,” according to a Wednesday morning Truth Social post issued by Trump.
“Hubbard, a Michigan man, was sentenced in 2024 to almost seven years imprisonment. Prosecutors said he had signed a contract with the Ukrainian military after Russia sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022, and that he fought alongside them until being captured two months later,” FoxNews reported. “U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff told Russian President Vladimir Putin of Hubbard during a Wednesday meeting that ‘because of you, he’s going home to his family.'”
2. Trump Super PAC spends $277 million to help GOP candidates
According to the New York Times, “President Trump’s political operation dedicated about $277 million from September through mid-October to help Republican midterm candidates, a staggering sum that has given the party an upper hand financially as it clings to full control of Congress.”
“That spending, unheard-of for a term-limited president, is an unbridled expression of Mr. Trump’s power. Immediately upon being elected for the second time, his aides began soliciting checks at dinners where companies and donors angling for influence could buy face time with the leader of the free world, sometimes for a million dollars a head. His main super PAC, MAGA Inc., has raised about $473 million since his election — and now Mr. Trump is putting that money to work,” NYT reported. “The money has financed an explosion of Republican spending that Democrats have had no answer for, even as they aim to take advantage of an otherwise favorable political environment.”
NYT continued, “Around Labor Day, Mr. Trump’s three outside groups started running advertisements in 24 states that included some of the most competitive Senate and House races. Plenty of the seats, notably, were in red areas and have become competitive for Democrats because of Mr. Trump’s unpopularity. In recent days, the Trump-tied super PACs have drastically increased their spending on ads through Meta and Google.”
Sports
1. Penultimate week of regular season JUCO football set for Thursday, Saturday
There are two weeks left in the Mississippi community college regular season. Here are the Week 9 games on tap for Thursday and Saturday:
Thursday
- MS Delta at Holmes
- No. 8 East MS at No. 11 Itawamba
- No. 9 Hinds at No. 5 MGCCC
- Pearl River at No. 14 Co-Lin
- East Central at Jones
- Southwest at No. 7 Northwest
Saturday
- Northeast at Coahoma
2. Ole Miss women’s basketball ranked No. 19, No. 23 in preseason polls
Ole Miss women’s basketball continues to gain national recognition, as the Rebels were ranked in both preseason polls released on Tuesday. The AP had Ole Miss at No. 19, while USA TODAY/WBCA put the Rebels at No. 23.
This marks the third consecutive year that the Rebels have received preseason honors by both outlets. Additionally, it’s the fifth time in five seasons that Ole Miss has been ranked sometime during the season by either the AP or in the Coaches poll.
The SEC recently recognized Ole Miss in its preseason media poll, projecting the Rebels to finish seventh in the conference, while Talaysia Cooper was selected to the All-SEC second team.
Markets & Business
1. Mortgage rates drop for first time in 2 months
CNBC reports that “mortgage demand took another leg lower, despite a brief respite from rising interest rates.”
“Total mortgage application volume fell 5.3% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index,” CNBC reported. “The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances, $832,750 or less, decreased last week to 7.41% from 7.50%, with points decreasing to 0.75 from 0.83 (including the origination fee, for loans with a 20% down payment.”
“Mortgage rates decreased for the first time in over two months,” said Joel Kan, an MBA economist in a release. “However, lower rates were not enough to boost application activity, as both purchase and refinance applications continued to decline.”
2. SpaceX, Tesla discussing potential merger
The Wall Street Journal reports that SpaceX and Tesla have formed special committees to discuss a potential merger, Elon Musk said Tuesday.
“The special committees have not reached an agreement of the terms of any transaction and there is no guarantee that they will but I do think there is a lot of merit in combining the companies,” Musk said Tuesday on SpaceX’s quarterly earnings conference call, per WSJ.
“Musk, who serves as chief executive of both companies, said he wasn’t on either board committee evaluating a combination and that shareholders would vote on the matter,” WSJ reported. “Analysts have been speculating about the prospects of a merger between the companies as a result of their significant business ties. A deal would put the world’s biggest commercial rocket launchers and satellite-internet operators, and second-largest electric-car manufacturer under one corporate umbrella at a time when Musk is reorganizing both around artificial intelligence.”
