- 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. MBN seizes cocaine, marijuana in Lamar County
On Monday, the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics (MBN) said the agency executed a search warrant at a residence in Hattiesburg in Lamar County.
MBN Agents arrested 43-year-old Rodney Jermaine Cooper for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, aggravated trafficking of cocaine while in possession of firearm, and trafficking marijuana while in possession of firearm.
During the execution of this search warrant, MBN agents seized approximately 686 grams of powder cocaine, 9,890 grams of marijuana, two firearms, $9,740 in U.S. currency, and a 2016 Cadillac CT6 sedan. The weights and amounts of the controlled substances are approximate and will be sent to the Mississippi Crime Laboratory for analysis.
MBN was assisted in this investigation by the Lamar County Sheriff’s Office.
2. PSC issues final order in Atmos rate case
On Tuesday, the Mississippi Public Service Commission issued its final order in the rate case filed by Atmos Energy Corporation on June 2, 2025. The PSC said the order follows a formal hearing held from September 30 to October 2, 2025, and addresses numerous disputed issues raised during the proceeding.
After thorough review of the evidence presented by both Atmos Energy and the Public Utility Staff, the Commission said it found the majority of the Staff’s positions to be just and reasonable. These include the use of a historic test year, a proposed 50/50 capital structure with a 9.4% return on equity, and a cap on system integrity capital spending.
The PSC also found certain proposals by Atmos Energy to be reasonable, such as the company’s proposed incentive compensation programs.
The full order is available on the Commission’s docket.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Democrats have big night from New York to California
As The Hill reports, “Democrats pulled off a romp of their Republican opponents in winning all key races on Tuesday night in the first major election of President Trump‘s second term.”
“Democrats won up and down the ballot in Virginia, clinched a second gubernatorial race in New Jersey with a massive double-digit margin, saw their redistricting ballot measure sail to victory in California and ousted two Republicans in Georgia in statewide races,” The Hill reported. “Progressives also won a big victory with democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani easily clinching the New York City mayoral race, defeating Andrew Cuomo for a second time. The former New York governor ran as an independent after Mamdani defeated him in the Democratic primary earlier this year.”
The Hill continued, “Tuesday’s results are objectively a reason for hope for Democrats, though how much can be extrapolated for elections a year from now is debatable. The major elections only took place in a few places, and the turnout was much lower than it will be next year. Still, Democrats swept the board and largely outperformed polls, building back key parts of the coalition they had lost in 2024.”
2. SCOTUS to consider Trump’s use of emergency powers to impose tariffs
According to the New York Times, “The Supreme Court on Wednesday will consider the legality of President Trump’s use of emergency powers to impose tariffs on imports from nearly every U.S. trading partner, a high-stakes test of presidential power.”
“The outcome of the case, which could be decided within weeks or months, has immense economic and political implications for U.S. businesses, consumers and the president’s second-term agenda,” NYT reported. “At issue is Mr. Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 to unilaterally set tariffs on imports from more than 100 countries in an attempt to reduce the trade deficit and ignite more manufacturing in the United States.”
NYT went on to report, “Mr. Trump on Tuesday called the case ‘literally, LIFE OR DEATH for our Country,’ underscoring the degree to which he views it as critical to his trade and foreign policies. Without the emergency power, he said in a social media post, the country ‘is virtually defenseless against other Countries who have, for years, taken advantage of us.'”
Sports
1. JUCO football semifinals set for Saturday
Four Mississippi JUCOs play Saturday in the semifinal round of the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference.
- Northwest heads down to Copiah-Lincoln. Kickoff is at 2 p.m.
- MGCCC travels over to East Mississippi. Kickoff is at 3 p.m.
In the NJCAA rankings, Northwest is No. 4 followed by Co-Lin at No. 5, MGCCC at No. 7 and East MS at No. 9.
2. JSU’s Sallis named Aeneas Williams Award semifinalist
The Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame (OSHOF) released the fourth annual Aeneas Williams Award semifinalists on Tuesday morning with Jackson State’s Kam Sallis on the list.
In seven games this season, Sallis has 29 total tackles including 12 solo. He also has a pass breakup and an interception that came against Southern at the goal line.
Other semifinalists include Tomondrey Braxton (North Carolina Central), Aaron Harris (North Carolina A&T), Johnny Harris III (Bethune-Cookman), Markel Linzer (Grambling State), Jadarrius Perkins (Delaware State), Tyrell Raby (Grambling State), Jarod Washington (South Carolina State), Zuri Watson (Howard), Gabe White (Bethune-Cookman), and Edric Whitley (Texas Southern).
3. SEC Nation coming to MSU this Saturday
Mississippi State is welcoming the return of “SEC Nation Presented by Regions Bank” this Saturday for the matchup against the Georgia Bulldogs in Davis Wade Stadium.
Broadcasting live in The Junction from 9-11 a.m. on ESPN, the show precedes the 11 a.m. Bulldogs vs. Bulldogs contest.
Show analysts Laura Rutledge, Roman Harper, Jordan Rodgers, Tim Tebow and Paul Finebaum will take a look at football across the conference, and Finebaum will start the weekend off on Friday. “The Paul Finebaum Show” is live in The Junction from 2-6 p.m., and then the “Marty & McGee” show, featuring Marty Smith and Ryan McGee, continues coverage Saturday morning from 8-9 a.m.
MSU said fans and campus visitors are urged to be mindful of gameday policies as well as parking, road closures and traffic updates.
Markets & Business
1. Futures fall over valuation concerns around AI
CNBC reports that “S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures fell on Wednesday, as valuation concerns around the artificial intelligence trade persisted after chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices posted its latest quarterly results.”
“AMD fell 5% in premarket trading after it issued margin guidance that only met analyst expectations, leaving investors wanting more. The company did post third-quarter earnings and revenue that beat analyst expectations,” CNBC reported.
CNBC also noted, “Yet many investors remain optimistic that the long-term trend is still favorable for tech stocks, even if there is a near-term pullback, given the strength of spending in AI infrastructure.”
2. White House working on deal to lower costs of weight loss drugs
FoxBusiness reports that “Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, whose weight loss-related drugs have created a frenzy, are working with the Trump administration on a deal that would cut the cost of the lowest doses of their popular drugs to $149 for a month’s supply, sources familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.”
“As part of the deal, which could be announced as soon as Thursday, the drugs would be sold through TrumpRx, a forthcoming government-run initiative expected to launch next year that will connect consumers directly with drug manufacturers to purchase discounted prescription drugs without insurance,” FoxBusiness reported. “Under the deal, Medicare and Medicaid would also cover the drugs for weight loss, effectively boosting the number of patients who can access the drug, the sources told the Journal.”
FoxBusiness added, “Both companies have already launched their own direct-to-consumer platforms aimed at expanding patient access by limiting the barriers new patients face.”
Magnolia Tribune
