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Trump pushes Texas Republicans to redraw congressional maps to help defend GOP's House majority

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Trump pushes Texas Republicans to redraw congressional maps to help defend GOP's House majority

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In the 2026 midterm elections battle for control of the House, when Republicans will be defending their razor-thin majority, it seems nothing’s out of bounds.

The GOP-controlled state legislature in Texas meets in special session next week, as top Republicans in the red state push to redraw the current congressional maps to reduce the number of districts controlled by already marginalized Democrats.

It’s part of a broader effort by the GOP across the country to keep control of the chamber, and cushion losses elsewhere in the country, as the party in power traditionally faces political headwinds and loses seats.

And President Donald Trump is aiming to prevent what happened during his first term, when Democrats stormed back to grab the House majority in the 2018 midterms.

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President Donald Trump, with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, speaks to the media as he leaves the White House, Tuesday, July 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

“Texas will be the biggest one,” the president told reporters earlier this week, as he predicted the number of GOP-friendly seats that could be added through redistricting in the Lone Star State. “Just a simple redrawing, we pick up five seats.”

Hours earlier, Trump held a call with Texas’ Republican congressional delegation and sources confirmed to Fox News that the president told the lawmakers that he was aiming to redraw the maps to create five new winnable seats.

‘BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’ IMMEDIATELY HITS CAMPAIGN TRAIL IN MIDTERMS BATTLE 

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Democrats control just 12 of the state’s 38 congressional districts, with a blue-leaning seat vacant after the death in March of Rep. Sylvester Turner.

The idea is to relocate Democratic voters from competitive seats into nearby GOP-leaning districts, and move Republican voters into neighboring districts the Democrats currently control.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas called for a special session of his state’s GOP-dominated legislature to draw new congressional maps. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, both conservative Republicans and Trump allies, said they needed to redistrict because of constitutional concerns raised by the Justice Department over a handful of minority-dominated districts. 

But the move is potentially risky.

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“There is some risk of making safe Republican seats more competitive, and I think that the incumbents are certainly worried about that,” veteran Texas-based Republican strategist Brendan Steinhauser told Fox News. “If you talk to Republican members of Congress, they’re going to be worried about their own seats. They don’t want to be in a seat that’s more competitive.”

Steinhauser noted “that’s the tradeoff for Republicans, if you want to grow the majority.”

But he added that “the people drawing the maps… they don’t want to make any seat too competitive because that will defeat the purpose.”

Redistricting typically takes place at the start of each decade, based on the latest U.S. Census data. Mid-decade redistricting is uncommon – but not without precedent.

Democrats are slamming Trump and Texas Republicans for what they describe as a power grab, and vowing to take legal action to prevent any shift in the current congressional maps.

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The Texas state Capitol in Austin, Texas. The GOP-controlled state legislature meets in special session next week, as top Republicans push to redraw the congressional maps. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

“Democrats are going to push back aggressively because it’s the right thing to do,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters this week.

Democrats in blue-dominated states are now considering similar tactics.

“Two can play this game,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on social media this week.

COURT SIDETRACKS REDISTRICTING FIGHT IN KEY BATTLEGROUND STATE

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The next day, after a meeting, Democrats in California’s congressional delegation said they were on board with an ambitious plan to try and gain at least five seats through redistricting. Democrats currently control 43 of the Golden State’s 52 congressional districts.

But it won’t be easy to enact the change, because in California, congressional maps are drawn by an independent commission that is not supposed to let partisanship influence their work.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California is floating a move to redraw the congressional maps in his blue state, to blunt a push by President Donald Trump and Texas Republicans to redistrict up to five House Democrats out of power in Texas. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

Newsom this week suggested that the state’s Democratic-controlled legislature move forward with a mid-decade redrawing of the maps, arguing that it might not be forbidden by the 17-year-old ballot initiative that created the independent commission.

The governor also proposed quickly holding a special election to repeal the commission ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

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Both plans are considered long shots, as they would face plenty of legislative, legal and financial hurdles.

Democrats are also hoping to alter congressional maps in battleground Wisconsin, but the new liberal majority on the state Supreme Court recently declined to hear the case. Democrats and their allies are now in the midst of a second legal push for redistricting in Wisconsin.

Democrats have also filed redistricting litigation in Utah and Florida, which are both red states.

Meanwhile, Ohio is required by law to redistrict this year, and a redrawing of the maps in the red-leaning state could provide the GOP with up to three more congressional seats.

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San Francisco, CA

Giants Head Home to San Francisco After Shutout Loss

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Giants Head Home to San Francisco After Shutout Loss


After Sunday’s 3-0 loss to the Washington Nationals, the San Francisco Giants headed back to the West Coast. They’re going back to the Bay Area, too.

The Giants have a date with the Los Angeles Dodgers for a three-game series at Oracle Park starting Tuesday night.

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So, San Francisco probably wanted to get out of Washington, D.C., with a win. That didn’t happen at Nationals Park on Sunday afternoon.

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Nationals reliever Andrew Alvarez, the third pitcher used by the team on Sunday, picked up the victory with 4 1/3 innings of work. Giants starter Robbie Ray absorbed the loss, falling to 2-3 this season.

Ray worked six innings, giving up seven hits, three runs (all earned), walking one, and striking out seven Nationals. If the Giants’ offense had found a way to tack on some runs, then Ray’s outing wouldn’t have looked so bad.

The Giants’ bats, though, had eight hits. The big number for Giants manager Tony Vitello to look at in the box score after this one was, well, pretty big. San Francisco left 10 runners on base on Sunday, going 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position. This indicates that San Francisco had plenty of opportunities to score some runs.

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They just didn’t get the job done.

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Let’s go to the bottom of the fifth with the Giants and Nationals in a scoreless tie. With nobody out, the Nationals’ Keibert Ruiz connected for his third double this season. Nasim Nuñez scored to put Washington up 1-0.

With one out, Curtis Mead sent a Ray pitch over the left-field wall, a two-run blast that gave the Nationals a 3-0 lead.

San Francisco had a scoring threat in the top of the eighth inning. With runners at first and second base and nobody out, Casey Schmitt grounded into a double play. Matt Chapman, who was on second base, went to third. But the Giants were unable to bring him home.

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Rafael Devers and Drew Gilbert went 2-for-4 at the plate for the Giants, producing half of the Giants’ hits.

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The Giants fall to 9-13 this season, sitting in fourth place in the National League West Division. The Nationals’ record goes to 10-12, good enough for third place in the National League East Division.

All eyes now turn toward Oracle on Tuesday night. It’ll be a chance for two longtime rivals to renew their rivalry.

Baseball fans know that the Giants-Dodgers matchups usually are must-see TV.

That’s probably going to be the case once again as Giants fans watch their team battle the Dodgers. Those lucky to have tickets to the three-game series at Oracle Park will show up in Giants colors, hoping to see Los Angeles head back to Southern California with either a series loss or a Giants’ sweep.

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Buckle up, Giants fans. It’s about to get rowdy at Oracle Park.

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Denver, CO

Denver beekeeper says swarm season came a month early this year thanks to warm weather

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Denver beekeeper says swarm season came a month early this year thanks to warm weather


DENVER (KDVR) — With the mild winter and warm start to spring, beekeepers are seeing swarms earlier in the year and expect the season to be longer than usual.

Gregg McMahan is a dispatcher for the Colorado Swarm Hotline. It’s usually his job to send a beekeeper to collect a swarm when someone calls, but on Sunday afternoon, he decided to handle one himself.

“Nice little swarm,” McMahan said. “It’s tricky, though, because it’s hanging on a fence.”

A warm winter and spring mean swarm season has begun four weeks early.

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“Never seen it like this ever,” McMahan said.

This call is to a house on Denver’s east side. When McMahan arrived, he saw a swarm had taken up residence on the fence.

“Absolutely typical, it is on the small side,” McMahan said.

He got to work, first luring them into a box when he spotted a good sign.

“See all these girls, they got their butts up, they’re fanning their wings. That’s telling us the queens in here,” McMahan said.

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With the queen in hand, the rest began to follow her into the box.

McMahan said two years ago, he had 400 calls like this. Last year, only 100, the Swarm Hotline was as unpredictable as the weather, which has caused bee activity earlier in the year than ever.

“It makes it hard on the bees, you know? Two days ago, I’m collecting swarms in the snow,” McMahan said.

Rescuing them is integral to Colorado’s ecosystem. McMahan hopes people give a beekeeper a call instead of spraying them or harming them in any other way.

“They do a phenomenal amount of pollination within this state. Not only our native flowers but all the other flowers that people bring in,” McMahan said.

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Slowly but surely, the swarm left the fence and moved into the box. McMahan loaded them into his truck to deliver them to their new home.

“Westminster to the Stanley Lake Wildlife Refuge, so these girls will have lakefront property tonight,” he said.

As he wrapped up, McMahan’s phone was buzzing more than the bees. Just another call to start a swarm season, he thinks, could be a long one.

“This year I’m already 20 swarms deep, so I’m expecting way more than 100 this year,” McMahan said.

To have a bee swarm removed for free from your property anywhere statewide, the Swarm Hotline number is 1-844-SPY-BEES.

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Seattle, WA

Here, Kitty, Kitty: Scenes from POP Cats Seattle 2026

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Here, Kitty, Kitty: Scenes from POP Cats Seattle 2026


A whimsical world of whiskers, creativity, and community took over Seattle Center this weekend as POP Cats 2026 returned for a celebration of all things feline. The immersive convention turned the Exhibition Hall into a vibrant ‘cat city,’ complete with colorful art installations, interactive exhibits and endless photo ops. From adoptable rescue cats and hands-on workshops to cosplay, shopping, and meetups with fellow cat lovers, the event blended fun with purpose. Attendees could even bring their own cats, making it one of the few conventions where pets are part of the experience. Felines and their human friends embraced a joyful, cat-filled escape and one meow-velous weekend in Seattle. (Image: Elizabeth Crook / Seattle Refined) April 18, 2026{ }



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