Midwest
GOP crime policies to restore safety to Black communities failed by Dems: Georgia AG
CHICAGO – Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr has a simple solution for blue cities fed up with violence and thieves: enforce the law, lock up criminals and keep American citizens and their businesses safe from crime.
“Elections have consequences,” he told Fox News Digital as he ripped Vice President Harris as the “patron saint of leftist prosecutors” while slamming progressive crime policies that have failed the communities they purport to benefit.
“She was for defund the police, sanctuary cities, cashless bail,” he said.
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Republicans are ramping up their election messaging on crime and law enforcement support. (Getty Images)
Harris, a former California attorney general who touts her past as a prosecutor on the campaign trail, has also publicly supported bail funds that help get criminal defendants out of jail when they are held on bail. Her office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“All the DAs that we’ve seen around the country, from Los Angeles to San Francisco, where she was a DA, to St. Louis and even in our state in Athens and even in Atlanta, Georgia … she is the model for what they really aspired to,” Carr told Fox News Digital. “And that is the new criminal justice reform, which is don’t enforce the law.”
He added the past few years of such policies have amounted to “a roadmap for higher crime.”
In Athens, a college town known for the University of Georgia and its football team, leftist policies caused a nightmare earlier this year when a violent illegal immigrant was accused of abducting and murdering nursing student Laken Riley as she jogged in a park on campus. Incensed residents blasted local officials for espousing “sanctuary” policies during a news briefing after her death.
Democrat presidential nominee Vice President Harris is shown with President Biden at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Aug. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
LAKEN RILEY CASE: HECKLERS SHOUT DOWN ATHENS MAYOR AS HE DENIES SANCTUARY CITY, ANNOUNCES PUBLIC SAFETY FUNDS
“Look at the communities that are most often impacted by this violent crime,” he told Fox News Digital. “It’s the communities that Democrats and leftists purport to want to protect, but instead it’s actually conservatives and Republicans that are doing the things to keep people safe. I think that’s critically important.“
Chicago, host city of the 2024 Democratic National Convention, has a population one-third the size of New York City yet outpaces it in homicides, police statistics show.
“You can either go down one path where you ignore the law, you avoid the law, crime goes up, or you can enforce the laws,” he said. “And you’re seeing exactly what’s happening.”
Pro-Hamas demonstrators clash with police in front of the Israeli Consulate in Chicago on Aug. 20, 2024. The protests coincided with the Democratic National Convention in the Windy City. (Fox News Digital)
It’s a move that police organizations have been seeking for years: undo the bail reforms that let repeat offenders out on the streets almost immediately so they can re-offend. That lack of consequences, combined with leftist prosecutors’ reluctance to charge suspects to the fullest extent of the law, has battered police morale around the country, leading cities to struggle with hiring and retention.
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Former Chicago Police Chief Gene Roy told Fox News Digital this week that the city police roster has thousands of vacancies.
Democrat elites have been criticized as entirely removed from the reality of Chicago crime as they hold the convention just blocks from where a 7-year-old boy, Jai’Mani Rivera, was gunned down earlier this year. The suspect could have been behind bars but was freed on home supervision, which he allegedly ignored.
Even understaffed, Chicago police deftly handled anti-Israel protests outside the country’s Chicago consulate on Tuesday night, gently corralling rowdy protesters until, after warning them to disperse, they made about 70 arrests when protesters refused to go home.
DEMONSTRATORS SHOUT ‘F— YOU’ AT CHICAGO POLICE, MORE THAN 70 ARRESTED ON 2ND NIGHT OF DNC
Carr said Chicago has historically been one of the country’s great cities. But in recent years, as “an incubator of these leftist policies,” it’s been plagued by gun violence, robberies, carjackings and population loss.
Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr is speaking out against progressive prosecutors who he says are hurting the very communities that they claim to champion. (Megan Varner/Getty Images/File)
“I think it’s absolutely ironic that the Democrats have gone to Chicago, which now continues to elect folks that just don’t believe in the rule of law, don’t believe in enforcing the law – but then also some of the security measures that they’ve taken to put walls around the convention center,” he said. “When the border is not secure, and they fought any conversation about walls or more safety in our southern border.”
Carr is also a proponent of the Protecting Americans Action Fund, which was set up to counter the financial support that left-wing donors like billionaire George Soros have given to progressive prosecutor campaigns around the country, resulting in DA offices run by Los Angeles’ George Gascon, Manhattan’s Alvin Bragg and Chicago’s Kim Foxx.
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South Dakota
Governor activates South Dakota Drought Task Force
Gov. Larry Rhoden is activating the state Drought Task Force to monitor drought conditions across South Dakota.
This task force coordinates the exchange of drought-related information among government agencies, according to the state Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The collaboration aims to improve the state’s response to agriculture, fire management and water supply issues.
“My administration is committed to protecting our farmers, ranchers, and communities across the state. While recent rainfall has provided some relief, drought is still impacting parts of South Dakota,” said Rhoden. “The Drought Task Force will help us closely monitor conditions and respond quickly if needed.”
This comes as the latest drought monitor shows extremely dry conditions across southern South Dakota, while central parts of the state are experiencing abnormally dry conditions.
The task force’s first meeting is Thursday.
State agencies represented on the task force include the governor’s office, Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Department of Public Safety, Department of Game, Fish and Parks, South Dakota National Guard, Department of Social Services, Department of Tourism, and the Department of Tribal Relations. Additional partners include USDA’s Farm Service Agency and Natural Resource Conservation Service, South Dakota State University Extension and School of Mines climatologists, the National Weather Service and South Dakota Rural Water.
Because of the dry conditions, officials are urging the public to use caution with open burns and other activities that could start fires.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin air show, road race voted among best in country
EAA AirVenture 2025 opens with aircraft of every description
EAA AirVenture 2025
USA TODAY readers voted two Wisconsin events among the nation’s best for thrills and excitement – and one got a No. 1 spot.
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh was voted the Best Air Show, ranking first on a list of 10 air shows across the country.
Oshkosh annually becomes a landing pad for around 10,000 aircraft of all shapes and sizes, in what’s considered the world’s biggest fly-in convention. In 2025, EAA had record-breaking attendance, with around 704,000 visitors. This year, the air show will be held July 20-26.
Also highlighted on the most recent USA TODAY 10BEST Readers’ Choice Awards, released Wednesday, May 6, was the Sports Car Club of America National Championship Runoffs in Elkhart Lake, which ranked sixth in the Best Motorsports Race category.
The SCCA National Championship Runoffs are an annual competition between top amateur road racers, frequently held at Road America.
The event was held annually at Road America from 2009 to 2013, then returned in 2020 and again for the 2024-2026 competitions. It also rotates to other sites across the United States. In 2027 and 2028, it will be held at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
The SCCA National Championship Runoffs will take place Sept. 28-Oct. 4.
The Best Air Show and Best Motorsports Race lists were among 10 lists in the overarching category “Thrills ‘n’ Wheels & Fishing.” Other lists include Best Boat Show, Best Car Show, Best Fishing Charter and Best Rodeo. The full list of winners can be found online at 10best.usatoday.com/awards.
To determine its lists, USA TODAY 10Best invites a panel of industry experts each week to nominate their favorite points of interest, in categories like food, drink, travel and lifestyle. Editors then vet the nominations and set aside a list of nominees to ask the public to vote on for a period of four weeks.
Contact Kelli Arseneau at (920) 213-3721 or karseneau@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @ArseneauKelli.
Detroit, MI
Detroit People Mover resumes service after nearly 2 months of repairs
The Detroit People Mover is back up and running after being closed for the past two months for repairs following storm damage.
According to the Detroit Transportation Corporation, the People Mover reopened to the public at 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday.
High winds on March 13 forced the People Mover to undergo a series of repairs, including undercarriage sheet metal removal, track cable communications and switch mechanisms.
Over the last 16 days, People Mover cars have been out for tests ahead of the reopening.
“Rider safety is always at the heart of what we do, and it is our responsibility as a public transit provider,” DTE CEO Melia Howard said in a statement. “The time was a necessary requirement to restore key, operational components and is an investment in the continued reliability of the system. We take pride in the role that the People Mover plays for residents, workers and visitors, and we look forward to being the go-to public transportation for both daily rides and special events which bring everyone together.”
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