The Court ruled that compliance with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act does not provide a compelling interest to justify race-based districting, narrowing the VRA’s application and updating the Gingles framework. Thomas concurred; Kagan dissented.

Read the decision here: 24-109 Louisiana v. Callais (04/29/2026)

“The SPLC is manufacturing racism to justify its existence,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “Using donor money to allegedly profit off Klansmen cannot go unchecked. This Department of Justice will hold the SPLC and every other fraudulent organization operating with the same deceptive playbook accountable. No entity is above the law.”

“The SPLC allegedly engaged in a massive fraud operation to deceive their donors, enrich themselves, and hide their deceptive operations from the public,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “They lied to their donors, vowing to dismantle violent extremist groups, and actually turned around and paid the leaders of these very extremist groups – even utilizing the funds to have these groups facilitate the commission of state and federal crimes. That is illegal – and this is an ongoing investigation against all individuals involved.”

The SPLC is a non-profit organization headquartered in Montgomery, Alabama, whose mission, according to its website during the relevant time period, was to be a “catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond, working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements, and advance the human rights of all people.”

According to the indictment starting in the 1980s, the SPLC began operating a covert network of individuals who were either associated with violent and extremist groups, such as the Ku Klux Klan, or who had infiltrated violent extremist groups at the SPLC’s direction.  Unbeknownst to donors, some of their donated money was being used to fund the leaders and organizers of racist groups at the same time that the SPLC was denouncing the same groups on its website.

The SPLC says the program, which reportedly began in the 1980s, was necessary to monitor threats of violence and kept relatively secret to protect informants. It has previously shared gathered intelligence with local and federal law enforcement. The FBI, however, severed decades-long ties with the center in October, with Director Kash Patel calling it partisan and criticizing the center’s map of anti-government and extremist groups (explore here).

For Republicans, incumbent John Cornyn is seeking his fifth term in the seat and has been locked in a combative three-way race with Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt (TX-38). Paxton, who survived a 2023 impeachment on bribery and corruption charges, enters the day with a four-point lead over Cornyn (40% to 36%). On the Democratic side, Rep. Jasmine Crockett (TX-30) faces state Rep. James Talarico, with each trying to build a multiracial coalition in a state where Democrats haven’t defended a statewide office since 1994. See polling for each race here.

The update came after investigative YouTuber Nick Shirley last week released a 42-minute documentary visiting the addresses of day care centers, adult home care companies, and other businesses. Many appeared to be inactive despite claiming millions of dollars in state-distributed taxpayer funds, including from the Education Department and Medicaid. In yesterday’s announcement, Patel noted the FBI’s work dismantling a $250M scheme to siphon pandemic-era food assistance via the Feeding Our Future network (see explainer). The amount of stolen taxpayer money—from the food aid scheme and others—reportedly exceeds $1B. 

More than 90 people have been indicted and more than 50 convicted to date, many of them of Somali descent. Gov. Tim Walz (D) has criticized President Donald Trump’s language toward Somali Americans in Minnesota and has sought to defend his administration, which oversaw the distribution of the funds.

The address also followed his announcement that the US military will impose a total blockade on sanctioned oil tankers near Venezuela. The US has 11 warships operating in the Caribbean Sea—its highest naval buildup there since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. The Trump administration says it is targeting drug-trafficking boats. Trump has also threatened Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and reportedly gave him an ultimatum to step down or face further US military intervention.

Separately, the Senate voted yesterday to pass a $901B defense bill that compels Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to share unedited videos of the recent boat strikes.

In New York City, democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani (50.4%) defeated former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (41.6%)—a centrist Democrat who ran as an independent—and Republican Curtis Sliwa (7.1%). The 34-year-old Mamdani becomes the first Muslim mayor and Asian American mayor of the nation’s largest city. More than 2 million people voted in the election, surpassing total votes cast in any previous NYC mayoral race since 1969.

In Virginia’s gubernatorial race, Democrat and former US Rep. Abigail Spanberger beat Republican Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, becoming the first woman elected to the role. Spanberger held a 57.5%-42.3% lead with 97% of votes in as of this writing. Democrats also won the lieutenant governor’s seat and the state’s attorney general race. 

Meanwhile, in New Jersey, Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) beat Republican Jack Ciattarelli in a closely watched race that tightened in the final weeks in the polls but ended as a double-digit victory. The tally early this morning stood at 56.2%-43.2%. 

In California, voters approved an amendment (64%-36%) establishing a temporary new congressional map that could shift as many as five seats to Democrats in the US House in next year’s midterms. 

See results from around the country here. 

The service was organized by Turning Point USA, the youth organization Kirk cofounded, which is now led by his widow, Erika Kirk. The event included speeches by Christian leaders, conservative activists, and public officials, including Secs. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Marco Rubio, and Pete Hegseth. Vice President JD Vance credited Kirk with helping to elect the Trump administration. President Donald Trump headlined the event, praising Kirk’s impact and legacy. Erika Kirk—in her first major speech as Turning Point USA’s CEO—publicly forgave Kirk’s shooter, citing her Christian faith.

The service was designated as a Special Event Assessment Rating Level 1 event, the highest designation used for events like the Super Bowl and major marathons. The determination is made by the Department of Homeland Security, allowing extensive federal interagency support.

Federal data found crime in the district is at a 30-year low. However, recent crime stats show that Washington D.C. has one of the highest murder rates per 100,000 residents. The chart below, based on 2024 data, shows that DC ranks 8th among major cities with 27.5 murders per 100,000 residents. The U.S. average in 2024 was approximately 5.5 murders per 100,000 residents.

Trump has cast doubt on the declining crime rates, pointing to a police commander who was recently suspended for allegedly falsifying crime data. He also highlighted recent violent incidents in DC, including a former DOGE employee who was attacked in a carjacking and an intern for Rep. Ron Estes (R, KS-4) killed last month. 

Attorney General Pam Bondi will oversee federal control of DC’s police, with DEA Administrator Terry Cole serving as interim federal commissioner. Trump hopes the federal takeover will model crime reduction tactics for other cities. See the US’ deadliest cities in 2023 here.

The nation’s murder rate for 2024 was down 26 percent from 2020’s figure and roughly even — slightly lower, actually — relative to where it stood pre-pandemic. The nation’s reported violent and property crime rates stood at the lowest levels since the 1960’s in 2024.

Crime fell in 2024 across every category and population group. Crime was down in all seven categories of crime across all 10 population groups that the FBI measures.

There are a few standard data caveats to consider. Not every crime is reported to law enforcement and not every agency reports crime to the FBI every year. This point is driven home by the FBI chang­ing the official name of this report from Crime in the Nation to Reported Crime in the Nation. Also, these are estimates that will be revised next year which is a totally normal part of the process.

Violent Crime

Overall violent crime (mur­der, rape, robbery, and aggra­vated assault) fell 4.4 percent in 2024 with the nation’s violent crime rate reaching 359.1 per 100,000. That’s the lowest national violent crime rate recorded since 1969.

Of note, while murder, rape, and robbery have declined well below pre- COVID levels, aggravated assault — which accounts for over 70 percent of UCR Part I violent crimes — fell only 3 percent in 2024 and remains stubbornly higher than it was pre-COVID. On the plus side, the Real-Time Crime Index shows a substantial drop in aggravated assault is in progress in 2025.

Murder

The nation’s murder rate in 2024 of 5 per 100,000 is the lowest recorded since 2015. Murder declined across every population group as reported by the FBI with a 19 percent drop in cities of 1 million or more and a 19 percent drop in cities under 10,000.

The 2024 data add con­fidence that 2025 will fea­ture the lowest murder rate ever recorded. A decline of around 10 percent in 2025 would place this year even with 2014 as the lowest mur­der rate ever recorded. Any larger decline in 2025 would give this year the “record”.

Property Crime

Overall property crime (burglary, theft, and motor vehicle theft) fell 8.1 percent in 2024 with the nation’s property crime rate reach­ing 1,760 per 100,000. That’s the lowest property crime rate recorded in the US since 1961. The 8.1 percent drop is the largest one-year decline ever recorded eclipsing the 7.4 percent decline recorded in 2020 (though the differ­ence is minimal considering how these numbers can get revised).

A 19 percent drop in mo­tor vehicle theft powered a fair amount of the decline in property crimes though these crimes remain more plentiful than they were in 2019. Still, the drop in motor vehicle thefts was the largest one-year decline ever recorded, beating a 16.9 percent drop in 2009. Auto theft has been plunging since peaking at the end of 2023 with an even larger drop apparently in store for 2025, so 2024’s re­cord may be short-lived.

Tallahassee Comparison

Comparing 2024 incident reports, as tracked by Talla­hassee Reports, to the nation­al crime trends, reveals that Tallahassee’s 15-20% drop in violent crime incidents was far greater than the 4.4% drop reported nationally. This downward trend contin­ues in Tallahassee in 2025.

As to property crime, the 8.8% drop reported nation­ally is greater than the 3,5% drop reported in Tallahas­see in 2024. However, seven months into 2025, property crime incidents are down 38% in Tallahassee.

Comparing shooting fa­talities with national murder trends reveals that Talla­hassee numbers are above national numbers. The FBI reported a 15% drop in mur­ders in 2024 with 5 murders per 100,000 people. Look­ing at the Tallahassee/Leon County shooting fatalities shows an increase from 23 fa­talities in 2023 to 26 in 2024. This translates to approxi­mately 8.6 shooting fatalities per 100,000 Leon County resi­dents, well above the national murder rate.

The test has its roots in the 1950s, when the so-called “father of sports medicine,” Dr. Hans Kraus, coauthored a study finding American kids were 49.2% weaker than European counterparts on a series of physical fitness tests. For decades, public school students were regularly tested on drills like a timed mile run, pushups, pullups, and situps. Top scorers received the Presidential Physical Fitness Award. 

Then-President Barack Obama phased out the system in the 2012-13 academic year, replacing it with a less competitive, opt-in system testing a student’s fitness over time. Trump says he will reinstate the standardized approach following a May report highlighting concerns about children’s physical inactivity. See a history of the Presidential Fitness Test here.

In the accident in question, a Tesla Model S struck and killed 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon and injured her boyfriend after running through a stop sign in Key Largo, Florida, at night. The driver said he had Tesla’s Autopilot—a slimmed-down version of its full self-driving software, typically used on highways—engaged when he dropped his cellphone. The plaintiffs argued Tesla’s claims about the feature’s capabilities encouraged inattentive driving and that the company allows it to be used in areas the system is not designed for, such as rural roads. 

See a video breakdown with dashcam footage of recent issues with Autopilot (via 1440 Topics). 

Three Republicans joined the upper chamber’s 47 Democrats to reject the package: Sens. Rand Paul (KY), Thom Tillis (NC), and Susan Collins (ME)—Paul over the added debt ($3.3T by 2035), and Tillis and Collins over Medicaid cuts (over $1T by 2035). Out of a record-breaking 45 amendments considered over 27 hours, senators passed a catch-all amendment boosting rural hospitals’ funding and phasing out federal subsidies for wind and solar energy. See what’s in the bill—and how much it would cost or save—here.

The bill’s passage reignited tensions between Trump and former ally Elon Musk. Musk suggested he will fund primary challengers to the bill’s supporters and launch a third party. Trump suggested he would cut subsidies to Tesla and signaled interest in deporting him (Musk was born in South Africa but is a naturalized US citizen).