Author: Reporter

Shots fired: Milwaukee leaders react to Trump’s brush with gun violence at pre-RNC MAGA rally

Convicted felon and ex-President Donald Trump was the target of an apparent assassination attempt on July 13 at a Pennsylvania rally, days before he was to seize the Republican nomination for a third time in Milwaukee. Gunfire triggered panic in the crowd. A bloodied Trump, who said he was shot in the ear, was surrounded by Secret Service and hurried to his SUV. Trump’s campaign said the presumptive GOP nominee was doing “fine” after the shooting, which he said pierced the upper part of his right ear. “I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a...

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Justice for D’Vontaye: Family vows to push for charges after Black man killed outside Milwaukee hotel

With chants of “Justice for D’Vontaye,” family and friends gathered on July 11 for the funeral of a Black man who died after being pinned to the ground by security guards outside a Milwaukee hotel. And while remembering D’Vontaye Mitchell as a son, husband, and brother, they vowed to push for charges against those responsible for his death. “We’re going to fight. We’re not going to give up,” his mother, Brenda Giles, said at Milwaukee’s Holy Redeemer Institutional Church of God in Christ. Mitchell was held down on his stomach June 30 outside the hotel. Police have said he...

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EPA warns utilities to take immediate steps to protect against growing cyberattacks on water systems

Cyberattacks against water utilities across the country are becoming more frequent and more severe, the Environmental Protection Agency warned in May as it issued an enforcement alert urging water systems to take immediate actions to protect the nation’s drinking water. About 70% of utilities inspected by federal officials over the last year violated standards meant to prevent cyberthreats, the agency said. Officials urged even small water systems to improve protections against cyberattacks, noting that recent assaults from adversarial nation states like Russia and Iran have impacted water systems of all sizes. Some water systems are falling short in basic...

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Bacteria season: Why swimming in lakes and rivers can trigger a range of health conditions

With summer underway, many people flocking to their favorite swimming holes may also want to read up on bacteria warnings. Over the busy Memorial Day weekend and shortly afterward, at least 20 people, most of them children, reported E. coli infections after they swam in Lake Anna, a popular recreational destination in central Virginia. Nine of those people were hospitalized. An additional 10 cases are under investigation. In Massachusetts, 22 beaches were closed across the state in June. “Bacteria exceedance” accounted for more than half of the shutdowns. On the West Coast, high bacteria levels shut down three beaches...

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Voters of Harmony: How a Wisconsin township balances politics while picking presidential winners

It is hard living in harmony during these politically divisive times. But residents of a tiny Wisconsin town say they have the simple answer … actually live in Harmony. Residents of Harmony Township, spread out on rich farmland and residential subdivisions on the outskirts of Janesville, tend to live up to the name of the 24-square-mile town near the Illinois state line. They also offer a reliable barometer of the political leanings of the swing state of Wisconsin. Since 2000, Harmony voters have sided with the winner in all 13 presidential and gubernatorial races. “I do believe that the...

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Union soldiers posthumously awarded Medal of Honor for train raid in Confederate territory

President Joe Biden on July 3 awarded the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry to two Union soldiers who stole a locomotive deep in Confederate territory during the Civil War and drove it north for 87 miles as they destroyed railroad tracks and telegraph lines. United States Army Privates Philip G. Shadrach and George D. Wilson were captured by Confederates and executed by hanging. Biden recognized their courage 162 years later with the country’s highest military decoration, calling the operation they joined “one of the most dangerous missions of the entire Civil War.” “Every soldier who joined that mission...

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