Midwest
RNC Chair Michael Whatley says 'politics is secondary' after Trump assassination attempt
Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley said Sunday that “politics is secondary” after the assassination attempt on former President Trump.
Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” Whatley said he still expects Trump to attend the upcoming nominating convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that begins on Monday.
Host Shannon Bream asked Whatley about the Sunday editorial in the Wall Street Journal that the assassination attempt at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania presents an opportunity for Trump and his party to call for political unity at the Republican National Convention. The Journal editors argued that Trump “will make a mistake if he blames Democrats for the assassination attempt” on Saturday, and “if the Trump campaign is smart, and thinking about the country as well as the election, it will make the theme of Milwaukee a call to political unity and the better angels of American nature.”
The board added that “the country wants civil disagreement and discourse, not civil war.”
“Look, I think unity is obviously very important. I think strength is obviously very important. But right now, this morning, I think politics is secondary,” Whatley said in response.
RNC’S SECRET SERVICE CLASH THRUST BACK INTO SPOTLIGHT AFTER DEADLY TRUMP RALLY SHOOTING
RNC co-chair Michael Whatley leaves Fiserv Forum, which will host the Republican National Convention, shortly after former President Trump was shot in Pennsylvania on July 13, 2024, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
“I think right now we need to be praying for these families that have been affected,” he added. “I think we need to be grateful that President Trump is alive and is actually going to be here, and certainly, we look forward to him being here in Milwaukee, and I think it’s going to be tremendously important for him to be here, and to deliver that message to America.”
Bream also asked the chairman whether he feels that the shooting “is a bit of a wake-up call that rhetoric has gotten so heated,” given Democrats have claimed Trump’s re-election would end democracy as we know it. Trump’s former attorney general, Bill Barr, told Fox News on Saturday night that Democrats must stop their “grossly irresponsible talk” about Trump being “an existential threat to democracy.”
Former President Trump pumps his fist as he is rushed offstage during a rally on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
“Where do we go in our political conversation? I mean, this country is built on being able to disagree and do it in a very heated way, but what about this?” Bream posed to Whatley.
WOULD-BE TRUMP ASSASSIN HAD EXPLOSIVES IN CAR PARKED NEAR RALLY, BOMB MAKING MATERIALS AT HOME: SOURCES
“Well, it is, but there is no place in politics in any way, shape or form for this kind of violence, for these types of action,” Whatley said. “It’s a horrific act, and we certainly don’t know all of the details and we’re going to have time for investigations on it. But right now, I think everybody in America needs to stop. They need to pause. They need to reflect on what is actually important for us in this political process going forward.”
“And, you know, fortunately, we are here in Milwaukee and the show is going to take place,” he added. “I think it’s tremendously important for us as a country that the Republican Party is going to move forward. We are going to be strong. We are going to be resilient and certainly, President Trump is going to be strong and resilient.”
The Fiserv Forum ahead of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Thursday, July 11, 2024. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
On security at the convention, which had taken more than 18 months to plan, Whatley said the “arena’s set, the security is here, and we feel very comfortable that we’re working with the Secret Service.”
He said the RNC is working with 40 different law enforcement agencies on security for the convention.
“This is going to be a facility where we’re going to be able to have 50,000 delegates and alternates and guests and members of the media who are going to be here and who are going to be safe. That’s very critical for us,” he said. “Look, our business is critically important for the process, right? We’re going to be nominating President Trump for the president, and we’re going to be nominating a vice president. They’re going to give their speeches to accept those nominations, and then we’re going to move back into the field. We’re going to roll up our sleeves, and we’re going to go to work.”
Read the full article from Here
Iowa
Minnesota Wild Recalls Tyler Pitlick From Iowa | Minnesota Wild
SAINT PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota Wild President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Bill Guerin today announced the National Hockey League (NHL) club has recalled forward Tyler Pitlick from the Iowa Wild of the American Hockey League (AHL).
Pitlick, 34 (11/1/91), has tallied two goals, 24 penalty minutes (PIM) and 26 shots in 31 games with Minnesota this season and ranks fourth on the team with 76 hits. He has also collected 11 points (8-3=11) and 31 shots in 12 games with Iowa. The 6-foot-2, 201-pound native of Minneapolis, Minn., owns 111 points (58-53=111) and 565 shots on goal in 451 career NHL games over 11 seasons with the Edmonton Oilers (2013-17), Dallas Stars (2017-19), Philadelphia Flyers (2019-20), Arizona Coyotes (2020-21), Calgary Flames (2021-22), Montreal Canadiens (2021-22), St. Louis Blues (2022-23), New York Rangers (2023-24) and Minnesota (2025-26). He has tallied three points (2-1=3) in 22 career Stanley Cup Playoff games. Pitlick has also recorded 140 points (60-89=149) in 289 career AHL games in parts of eight seasons with the Oklahoma City Barons (2011-15), Bakersfield Condors (2015-16), Hartford Wolf Pack (2023-24), Providence Bruins (2024-25) and Iowa (2025). He was originally selected by the Edmonton Oilers in the second round (31st overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft. Pitlick was signed by Minnesota as a free agent on July 2, 2025, and wears sweater No. 19 with the Wild.
Minnesota hosts the St. Louis Blues tomorrow at 4 p.m. CT on FanDuel Sports Network and KFAN FM 100.3.
Kansas
Kansas Highway Patrol reports five-vehicle crash in Johnson Co. Friday
JOHNSON COUNTY, Kan. (WIBW) – Multiple people were involved in a five-vehicle crash Friday in Johnson County.
According to the Kansas Highway Patrol Crash Log, the crash occurred around 4:55 p.m. on Interstate 35.
Five vehicles: a 2021 Toyota Tacoma, a 2010 Toyota Sienna, a 2014 Honda Pilot, a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu, and a 2018 Ford Mustang, were all traveling northbound on the I-35 long ramp to 75th Street.
The 2021 Toyota Tacoma exited the roadway to the right and struck the rear of the 2010 Toyota Sienna.
The 2021 Toyota Tacoma then continued northbound and struck the 2024 Honda Pilot.
The Honda Pilot was pushed and struck the rear of the 2017 Chevrolet Malibu, which then lost control and struck the 2018 Ford Mustang. The Chevrolet Malibu then struck the barrier wall.
There were no serious injuries reported in the incident.
The driver of the Toyota Tacoma, a 28-year-old male of Kansas City, Kan., was taken to a hospital with a possible injury. He was wearing a safety restraint.
The Toyota Sienna driver, a 23-year-old female, of Merriam, Kan., had no apparent injuries and was wearing a safety restraint.
The Honda Pilot driver, a 75-year-old male of Lenexa, Kan., had no apparent injuries and was wearing a safety restraint.
The driver of the Chevrolet Malibu, a 31-year-old female of Kansas City, Kan., had no apparent injuries and was wearing a safety restraint.
The 2018 Ford Mustang held two occupants. The driver, a 19-year-old male of Garden Plain, Kan., had no apparent injuries and was wearing a safety restraint.
The other occupant in the vehicle was an 18-year-old female of Goddard, Kan. She did not have any apparent injuries and was wearing a safety restraint.
View the full Kansas Highway Patrol Crash log on this incident here.
Copyright 2026 WIBW. All rights reserved.
Michigan
First Film to Depict a Robot Discovered in Michigan
A long-lost silent film that’s believed to be the first depiction of a robot in motion pictures was rediscovered in Michigan. And it’s a great reminder for film history fans that you shouldn’t give up hope just because a film has been deemed lost.
The film, titled “Gugusse and the Automaton,” is just 45 seconds long and was created in 1897 by French film pioneer Georges Méliès. It shows a magician named Gugusse turning a large crank to control Pierrot Automate, a child-sized robot. The robot grows bigger and bigger until it’s an adult.
Once full size, the robot does a little dance before hitting Gugusse over the head with a stick. Gugusse brings the robot down from his pedestal and then shows him what’s what.
Gugusse hits the robot over the head with a gigantic mallet, each swing making the mechanical man a little smaller until he’s back to his child-like size. Another swing makes the robot a small doll and then it’s just one more mallet slap before the robot disappears completely.
With that, the film is over.
It’s a short film with a goofy, slapstick premise. But it’s also an artifact that can be interpreted similarly to so much robot-focused media that would come later in the 20th century. The robot harms a human, the human needs to destroy the robot.
We see anti-robot stories pop up especially during difficult economic times, like the 1930s and 1970s, something I’ve written about before at length. And if you’re wondering whether there were hard economic times in France during the 1890s, there certainly were—in the form of a double dip recession, no less.
But putting aside the potential message of the film (and the risk of taking it too seriously as a sign of broader social frustrations), the story of how this film was rediscovered is fascinating.
Bill McFarland of Grand Rapids, Michigan, drove a box of films that belonged to his great-grandfather to the Library of Congress’s National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in Culpeper, Virginia so that experts could take a look at what he had.
McFarland’s great-grandfather was a man named William Delisle Frisbee who had worked jobs as a school teacher and a potato farmer in Pennsylvania, according to a blog post from the Library of Congress. But he also worked nights as a “traveling showman,” according to the Library.
“He drove his horse and buggy from town to town to dazzle the locals with a projector and some of the world’s first moving pictures,” the Library explains. “He set up shop in a local schoolroom, church, lodge or civic auditorium and showed magic lantern slides and short films with music from a newfangled phonograph. It was shocking.”
Frisbee died in 1937 and two trunks of his possessions were passed on through generations until they made their way to McFarland, who was unable to screen the movies from himself because of their condition.
The Library posted a video to Instagram talking about their acquisition of the film and how remarkable it is that such an old film was found. It’s estimated that as much as 90% of films made before 1930 are lost to history.
Other films in the trunks included another Méliès film from 1900 titled “The Fat and Lean Wrestling Match,” fragments of a Thomas Edison movie called “The Burning Stable.” Library technicians scanned the films in 4K to preserve them for future generations.
The word “robot” wasn’t coined until 1920 for the Czech play R.U.R. by Karel Capek. But visions of artificial men date back centuries. And it’s incredible to see a robot from the 1890s depicted on film for the first time. Even if it’s just 45 seconds long.
Don’t give up hope if you’re longing to watch some movie that’s believed to be completely lost. You never know what someone may have in a dusty old trunk in Michigan.
-
World3 days agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts3 days agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Montana1 week ago2026 MHSA Montana Wrestling State Championship Brackets And Results – FloWrestling
-
Louisiana6 days agoWildfire near Gum Swamp Road in Livingston Parish now under control; more than 200 acres burned
-
Denver, CO3 days ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Technology1 week agoYouTube TV billing scam emails are hitting inboxes
-
Technology1 week agoStellantis is in a crisis of its own making
-
Politics1 week agoOpenAI didn’t contact police despite employees flagging mass shooter’s concerning chatbot interactions: REPORT