Author: Rana McCallister

The story follows the National Mall’s conversion into a temporary street racetrack and the conversations with the organizers, competitors, and officials who shaped that transformation. The National Mall is a place built for monuments and public gatherings, not for roaring engines, yet it was reshaped into a racetrack with careful planning and a lot of attention. Reporters Liam Griffin and Matt Delaney were on the ground as crews turned familiar lawns and walkways into barriers, stands, and pit areas. The project pulled together corporate teams, city agencies, and national preservation interests to make a high-profile motorsport event happen in the…

Ralph Norman has endorsed Darline Graham in the South Carolina Republican primary to fill the late Lindsey Graham’s U.S. Senate seat, a move that injects establishment weight into a contentious race shaped by family legacy, a presidential push, and questions about political experience. Ralph Norman’s backing of Darline Graham brings a sitting congressman’s clout to a primary already split across the state GOP. Norman represents South Carolina’s 5th District and has a reputation as a steady fiscal conservative in the House. His endorsement signals that some in the congressional delegation believe Darline can carry the party’s banner into the general…

The Trump administration released new rules to allow more accreditation options in higher education, a move tied to a view that accreditation is the “secret weapon” for controlling universities and a push to increase accountability and competition across colleges. The new regulations loosen the exclusive grip of a small group of accreditors and invite alternatives into the system that certifies colleges and universities. That shift is framed as a way to restore balance and give students and states more breathing room when choosing educational institutions. Supporters argue this will break monopolies that protect underperforming programs and ideological gatekeeping. Accreditation has…

Federal agents arrested Lawrence, Massachusetts Mayor Brian DePeña on wire fraud and money laundering charges after prosecutors say he converted pandemic relief loans into personal funds; the arrest, the courthouse exchange where an attorney told reporters “He doesn’t speak English. No comment.”, and a viral clip turned the case into a national controversy. Federal agents moved in on August 14 and took Lawrence Mayor Brian DePeña into custody on allegations tied to Economic Injury Disaster Loans issued during COVID-19. Authorities say the 61-year-old Democrat used his tire shop, Tenares Tire Services Inc., to obtain emergency SBA funds and diverted the…

A Minnesota refugee honoree now faces charges tied to a scheme that allegedly routed more than $1 million in bogus Medicaid claims, and the case sits inside a much larger state fraud probe that has shaken political leadership. A man once celebrated by the Minnesota Department of Human Services is now accused of eight criminal counts in what prosecutors call a scheme to bill Medicaid for over $1 million in fraudulent services. Salman Ahmed Elmi, honored with an Outstanding Refugee Award and an Entrepreneurship Award in 2021, is charged with aiding and abetting by swindle and by false representation. Two…

The Boeing F-47 program is moving quickly from design to production, with engineering and manufacturing development underway, funding ramping up, and a first flight targeted for 2028. The F-47 is a crewed, sixth-generation fighter built to anchor the Next Generation Air Dominance family and eventually replace the F-22 Raptor fleet. Its design emphasizes long-range reach, advanced stealth, and the ability to operate in highly contested airspaces against peer competitors. Development has been pushed hard to field capability much faster than prior fighter programs. Boeing won the engineering and development contract for the F-47 on March 21, 2025, and the first…

The district court concluded the prosecution of Kilmar Abrego Garcia in Tennessee was not vindictive, based on the evidence presented at trial. This piece walks through what that ruling means in plain terms, how courts evaluate claims of prosecutorial vindictiveness, and why the record the district court relied on matters for any future review. It looks at the legal standards that guide judges and the practical consequences for defendants and prosecutors. The aim is to explain the decision without technical clutter. Vindictive prosecution is a legal claim that a defendant faces charges or harsher treatment because they exercised a legal…

Kamala Harris faced a chilly reception in Alaska when her PAC-backed fundraising push for Mary Peltola drew a public rebuff, highlighting broader donor and voter hesitation about Harris’s viability and the limits of national endorsements in local contests. Big-name endorsements can move needle in politics, but they can also backfire when local campaigns resist outside influence. In Alaska’s nonpartisan primary on Aug. 18, a clear tension surfaced between national fundraising moves and a candidate’s claim to local authenticity. That clash left Kamala Harris looking like an outsider trying to steer a local fight from afar. Alaska’s primary is unusual: 16…

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tops 2028 Democratic betting markets, has not ruled out a presidential bid, and sparks a debate over electability, progressive momentum, and the party’s path forward. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez now leads Democratic presidential betting markets for 2028 and is openly noncommittal about running, a mix that energizes her base and alarms party operatives worried about past losses in the heartland. Her positioning highlights a split between speculative money and traditional polling, where many surveys place her behind more establishment figures. That gap is the central tension driving this conversation inside Democratic ranks. At 36, the New York congresswoman carries…

America First Policy Institute asked the Supreme Court to discipline three Hawaii Supreme Court justices after those justices accused the U.S. Supreme Court of “white sight,” a move that spotlights questions about judicial tone, impartiality, and accountability within our courts. The petition from the America First Policy Institute targets three justices on Hawaii’s highest court for language they used in a ruling, raising alarms among conservatives who view the phrase “white sight” as an unnecessary political jab. Republican-leaning observers see this as part of a larger pattern: state courts using charged rhetoric that damages public confidence in a neutral judiciary.…