Salem News Channel

This is Unconstitutional 

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The National Transportation Safety Board says a firefighter whose truck collided with an Air Canada jet last month on a runway at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, killing both pilots, heard an air traffic controller warn “stop, stop, stop” but didn’t know who it was for. That's according to an investigative report released on Thursday. The NTSB said in a preliminary report on the March 22 crash that a crash prevention system for air traffic controllers didn’t generate an audio or visual alert. The report said the truck started to move while warning lights that act as a stop sign for crossing traffic were still lit.

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President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he would not use a nuclear weapon in the war against Iran. "Why would I use a nuclear weapon? We've totally, in a very conventional way, decimated them without it," Trump told reporters at the White House when asked whether he would use such a weapon. "No, I wouldn't use it. A nuclear weapon should never be allowed to be used by anybody," he added. Asked how long he was willing to wait for a long-term peace deal with Iran, Trump said, "Don't rush me." He said Iran might have loaded up their weaponry "a little bit" during the two-week ceasefire, but added that the U.S. military could knock that out in about one day. "Their navy is gone. Their air force is gone, their anti-aircraft is gone ...maybe they loaded up a little bit during the two-week hiatus, but we'll knock that out about one day, if they did," Trump added. "I want to make the best deal. I could make a deal right now ... but I don't want to do that. I want to have it everlasting," Trump said.

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President Donald Trump has announced a deal with Regeneron to lower the cost of its pharmaceutical products. The agreement, announced Thursday, includes lowering the prices of current and future drugs on Medicaid and selling a cholesterol drug for $225 on the White House’s discounted drug website, TrumpRx. The deal first reported by NOTUS is part of the Trump administration's efforts to provide economic relief to Americans ahead of the midterm elections. It's one of many deals the White House has struck that aim to align U.S. pharmaceutical prices with other developed nations. Details of these agreements remain undisclosed, but Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says nonproprietary information will be shared with Congress.

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Democrats Are Suppose to Dislike Redistricting?

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Police say one person died and five more were wounded after a shooting inside the food court at the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge. Police have described it as a confrontation between two groups. Authorities had initially said as many as 10 people were injured, but the number was changed a few hours after the shooting. Five people have been arrested. Police Chief TJ Morse told reporters that some innocent people might have been shot. The chief has appealed to witnesses to provide any video of the shooting.

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Trump says Israel and Lebanon agree to extend ceasefire by 3 weeks after he meets with countries' envoys at White House. Posting on Truth Social, he writes: "The President of the United States, DONALD J. TRUMP, Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, and Ambassador to Lebanon, Michel Issa, met today with High Ranking Representatives of Israel and Lebanon in the Oval Office. The Meeting went very well! The United States is going to work with Lebanon in order to help it protect itself from Hezbollah. The Ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by THREE WEEKS. I look forward in the near future to hosting the Prime Minister of Israel, Bibi Netanyahu, and the President of Lebanon, Joseph Aoun. It was a Great Honor to be a participant at this very Historic Meeting! President DONALD J. TRUMP"

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Do Americans Think We’re Losing the War?

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OMB Director Russ Vought on the FY 2027 Budget, Defense, and Shipbuilding

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Police say at least 10 people were injured Thursday as two groups of people opened fire at each other inside the food court at the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge. Authorities say at least some of those responsible fled the scene as a huge police response arrived. Baton Rouge Police Chief TJ Morse told reporters that some innocent people might have been shot, and that at least two victims are going through surgery at a trauma center. The chief appealed to witnesses to provide any video of the shooting.

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With Tyler O'Neil, Senior Editor at The Daily Signal.

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The governor of Louisiana says there’s an “active shooter scene” Thursday at the Mall of Louisiana in Baton Rouge. Gov. Jeff Landry says he and his wife are grateful for a quick response by police. Attorney General Liz Murrill says the shooting occurred in the mall’s food court. No other details were disclosed. Landry is telling the public to avoid the area. Stay with SNC for details on this developing story.

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What Will the Virginia Supreme Court Say?

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Authorities are seeking a 17-year-old on charges of attempted murder after a weekend shooting near the University of Iowa campus. Five people were treated for gunshot wounds, including three students. One woman remains in critical condition with a head injury. Police say the suspect allegedly fired six times into a crowded area after a fight early Sunday that may have involved up to 40 people. Authorities say the minor is to be charged as an adult under Iowa law on charges including five counts of attempted murder. Officials say the victims were not targets of the shooting. The investigation is ongoing, and more charges are expected.

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Authorities say a former North Carolina law enforcement officer planned to kill Black people in a mass shooting at a major New Orleans festival but was arrested at a Florida hotel with a handgun and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. Authorities in several states did not name the event, but the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, commonly known as Jazz Fest, runs from Thursday through May 3. The gathering attracted about 460,000 people last year, organizers said. Christopher Gillum of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, was wanted for “terroristic threats,” the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office in Florida posted online Thursday. Federal authorities told the sheriffs office that Gillum was in the Florida Panhandle “heading to do a mass shooting at a large festival in Louisiana.” The sheriffs office did not name the federal agency, and the FBI office in New Orleans did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Okaloosa sheriff’s office said Gillum was arrested without incident Wednesday night at a hotel in Destin, and posted a photo of him being led away in handcuffs. Deputies recovered a handgun and about 200 rounds of ammunition from the hotel room, the statement said. Gillum was arrested as a fugitive from justice and will be extradited to Louisiana to face charges there, the sheriff’s office said. It was not immediately known if he had a lawyer. The Associated Press left a message at phone numbers listed for him. Gillum’s family reported him missing on Tuesday and he had a history of self-harm, according to Lt. Clint Lyons of the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office in North Carolina. Gillum’s family told law enforcement he had a gun and “expressed recent threats to harm ‘Black people,’” according to a bulletin from police in Burlington, North Carolina. Lyons said Gillum crossed state lines before his agency could prepare the paperwork to involuntarily commit him to psychiatric treatment. Lyons said that there were no criminal grounds to detain Gillum despite his comments about Black people “because there was no victim.” “But we felt that there was definitely something there that needed to be shared, so that’s what we did,” Lyons said. Gillum was located and stopped by law enforcement in Oklaloosa County on Wednesday, according to Lyons and the Burlington police bulletin. However, Gillum “did not present any grounds for involuntary commitment or criminal charges” and was allowed to continue on his way, the bulletin stated. Gillum told officers that he was “enroute to New Orleans,” the report added. Okaloosa deputies were initially asked to make a “welfare check” on Gillum Wednesday morning and were “not aware” of any threats he had made, sheriff spokesperson Michele Nicholson said. Later that day, after the sheriff's office learned Gillum was being investigated, deputies surveilled him until a signed warrant arrived from Louisiana, she added. Gillum had been hired as a detention officer by the sheriff’s office in Orange County, North Carolina, in October 2023 but he left in July 2024, department spokesperson Alicia L. Stemper said. “We hired him again as a deputy on Jan. 13, 2025,” she said in an email. “He resigned his position on Sept. 21, 2025, and we terminated him accordingly.” Gillum also served as a sworn police officer for Chapel Hill from 2004 until his resignation in 2019, town communications manager Alex Carrasquillo said. “He returned as a non-sworn employee in 2024 before leaving for another job by the end of that year,” Carrasquillo said in an email. Louisiana State Police spokesperson Trooper Danny Berrincha said the agency is still investigating the episode with the FBI. “At this time, there are no known direct threats to any festivals in Louisiana,” he added. In a statement, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival said it works closely with law enforcement and applauded their efforts, saying ”we look forward to another safe and joyful Jazz Fest.”

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Wildfires tearing through the South this week have forced hundreds of residents in Georgia to flee in minutes. Many have no idea what happened to the homes and animals they left behind. The fires that sparked up during an extreme drought in Georgia and Florida have blanketed cities hundreds of miles away. Air quality warnings remain in effect Thursday across the Southeast. The two biggest fires in southern Georgia have spread rapidly over the past two days and destroyed more than 50 homes in rural areas. It’s not known yet how the wildfires started, but the bottom half of Georgia and northern Florida are both extremely dry.

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More than two dozen members and associates of the Mexican Mafia were arrested Thursday during an early morning crackdown across Southern California, federal authorities said. The FBI and other federal and local agencies executed search and arrest warrants at about 30 locations mostly in Orange County, south of Los Angeles, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. A total of 43 people, including those already in custody, have been indicted on charges that include murder, kidnapping, extortion, running an illegal gambling operation and drug trafficking, prosecutors said. Officers seized 120 pounds (54 kilos) of methamphetamine, more than eight pounds (four kilos) of fentanyl, along with 25 firearms and more than $30,000 in cash, officials said. “The stuff that we’re taking off the streets is very, very dangerous. These guys have no regard for human life. They’re about making money,” First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli said during a news conference. The Mexican Mafia was started in the 1950s at a juvenile jail and grew to an international criminal organization that controls smuggling, drug sales and extortion from inside California’s penal system. The indictment alleges one leader who was incarcerated used contraband cellphones to oversee the Mexican Mafia's criminal activities from his state prison cell from June 2024 to April 2026. He directed street gang members to kidnap and assault people, according to court documents. The gang also allegedly sold drugs including fentanyl, meth, heroin and cocaine. “It ran illegal gambling businesses within commercial strip malls and private residences,” the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a statement. “The gang collected extortionate taxes and provided security, including the use of violence, to protect the illegal gambling businesses.” The gang is also suspected of a murder at a “gang-controlled” motel in Anaheim, according to the indictment. The defendants will begin making their initial appearances Thursday afternoon in federal court in Los Angeles and Orange counties.

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Iran Doesn't Even Know Who Is In Charge of Their Regime

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U.S. Senate Republicans voted on Thursday to advance a $70 billion plan to fund the Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol agencies for the next three years, ignoring demands from Democrats for guardrails on immigration enforcement agents and their operations. Lawmakers voted 50-48 in the predawn hours to adopt the non-binding budget resolution and send it to the U.S. House of Representatives, taking a crucial step forward in their effort to end a partial shutdown that has gripped the Department of Homeland Security since mid-February. Two Republicans - Senators Rand Paul and Lisa Murkowski - opposed the measure. If adopted by the House, the resolution will allow congressional committees to begin filling in the details on how the $70 billion would be spent in separate legislation that President Donald Trump would have to sign into law. The new funding would be expected to run through Trump's presidency, which ends in January 2029. With Democrats adamantly opposed to the funding initiative, Republicans plan to employ a rarely used procedure known as budget reconciliation in the separate legislation, which allows some budget-related bills to bypass Democratic opposition in the Senate. Such measures require only a simple majority for passage in the 100-member chamber, instead of the usual supermajority of 60 votes or more. Republicans hold a 53-47 seat majority. Funding for most of DHS ran out more than nine weeks ago, as Democrats pressed Republicans and the White House to accept new constraints on ICE and Border Patrol, which operate under the direction of DHS. After two U.S. citizens were fatally shot by immigration enforcement agents in Minneapolis, Democrats insisted that ICE and Border Patrol be subject to the same operational rules as police forces across the United States, including a requirement that judicial warrants be obtained before agents can enter private homes. But weeks of negotiations ended in a stalemate. The Senate has since passed legislation to fund DHS operations other than ICE and Border Patrol. But the measure has stalled in the House, where hardline Republicans have demanded funding for those two entities as well. Last year, Republicans passed legislation providing around $130 billion in funding for these two agencies, separate from their annual appropriations and the $70 billion now being advanced in Congress. The Senate action followed a nearly six-hour "vote-a-rama" session that began late on Wednesday, with votes on a series of proposed amendments. Eight months before the November midterm elections, which will determine which party controls Congress in the final years of Donald Trump's presidency, Democrats sought to use the session to portray Republicans as out of step with American families and the challenges they face from soaring gasoline prices and healthcare costs. Republicans accused Democrats of wanting to "defund" crucial immigration and border security operations. Democrats offered a dozen amendments intended to lower out-of-pocket healthcare costs, restore food assistance for lower-income Americans, prevent the cancellation of health insurance coverage, increase funding for school meals and childcare, protect consumers from rising prices driven by tariffs and the war in Iran, and lower electricity costs for working people. All failed but drew support from some Republicans, including Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Dan Sullivan of Alaska, who face challenging re-election bids in November. A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll shows that more than half of Americans are less likely to support candidates who back Trump's approach to deporting immigrants, while a similar majority say their household finances have taken a hit from soaring gasoline prices. Healthcare tops the list of household costs that voters think Congress should focus on most, polling data shows. The Senate voted 98-0 to adopt a Republican amendment from Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham that would establish a deficit-neutral fund supporting ICE operations to apprehend, detain and expedite the deportation of adults convicted of rape, murder or sexual abuse of a minor after entering the United States illegally. Lawmakers rejected other Republican amendments calling for legislation to require proof of citizenship in voting and other election restrictions, a ban on Medicaid funding for transgender surgery on minors, and cuts in foreign aid, science and education programs to pay for the ICE and Border Patrol funding.

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The U.S. Department of Justice said on Thursday it would immediately loosen restrictions on some marijuana products and move quickly to reclassify the drug as less dangerous, in one of the biggest changes to U.S. drug policy in decades. The move does not legalize marijuana across the United States, but it is likely to reshape the $47 billion industry, which has faced continued barriers at the federal level, even as all but two U.S. states have legalized it in some form for medical use and nearly half have legalized it for recreational use as well. State-regulated medical marijuana products now would be moved from a group of drugs classified as highly addictive, such as heroin, to a less restrictive category for products that have a low to moderate potential for abuse, including common painkillers, ketamine and testosterone. Marijuana products approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration also would be moved to that category. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the U.S. government would also fast-track a broader effort that would reclassify all uses of the psychoactive plant as less dangerous. The measures are likely to lower barriers for research, ease tax burdens and make it easier for firms to ?secure funding. “This rescheduling action allows for research on the safety and efficacy of this substance, ultimately providing patients with better care and doctors with more reliable information," Blanche said in a statement. The move follows a December executive order from President Donald Trump directing the Justice Department to loosen marijuana restrictions. The measure is expected to boost the growing cannabis industry in the United States, benefiting companies like Canopy Growth, Tilray Brands, Trulieve Cannabis. U.S.-listed shares of cannabis companies jumped between 6% and 13% following the decision. “Today marks a pivotal moment for the United States. With President Trump’s action to reschedule cannabis, federal policy is finally aligning with science, medicine, and most importantly, patient needs," Irwin Simon, the chairman and CEO of Tilray, said in a statement. Marijuana's status as a Schedule I drug, meaning it has a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use, has been widely criticized as anachronistic, particularly as it makes inroads at the state level. Some 24 states and the District of Columbia have legalized it for recreational purposes, while 40 have fully legalized it for medical purposes and another eight allow some medical uses, according to the Congressional Research Service. Only two states - Idaho and Kansas - do not allow any legal use. Legal sales are expected to top $47 billion in 2026, according to market researcher BDSA. Marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in the United States and the world. Nearly one in five U.S. residents use it in a year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Millions of Americans have been arrested for possession of the drug, even while growing businesses listed on stock exchanges sell cannabis-related products. The Biden administration embarked on a similar move in 2024 but it was not finalized when Trump returned to office and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration scrapped the effort. The Justice Department said it will begin proceedings on June 29 to gather evidence and expert opinion on reclassifying the drug.

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