Midwest

Missourians head to Washington to call for a House vote on the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act

Published

2 years ago

May 20, 2024

Missourians head to Washington to call for a House vote on the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act

The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act expires this summer. The initial bill passed the Senate earlier this year but has yet to be considered in the House. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., has been pushing to expand and extend the initiative and has tried to add it as an amendment to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) bill.

“If we’re not going to get amendment votes, I’m not going to help them speed this along,” Hawley told reporters about the FAA legislation.

The bill is just one effort that residents in Missouri say, would help those sickened from toxic sites in the region.

“There’s no windfall for anybody,” Former Missouri Resident Kim Visintine said. “This is not, ‘we’re just giving money to these citizens, and they’re going to have all this random money to spend.’ A lot of these medical bills… it’s a drop in the bucket.”

AMERICANS EXPOSED TO NUCLEAR RADIATION BY GOVERNMENT WOULD BE COMPENSATED UNDER APPROVED SENATE BILL

Visintine grew up near Coldwater Creek in North County St. Louis. The area is part of a superfund site where toxic waste has been found, years after the city’s nuclear program ended. Visintine says she frequently visited the creek as a child and now believes the toxins are to blame for illnesses in the region. Those sickened include someone very close to her.

“We were told that he was one in one million. That children just don’t get this cancer,” Visintine said.

Her son, Zach, had his first neurosurgery within a week. He started chemo soon after. Visintine and her husband consulted specialists in an effort to cure the rare cancer.

“Even with me having full coverage of insurance and my husband having full coverage, our out-of-pocket costs for out of network and specialists after a year of treatment was $100,000,” Visintine said.

Zach lost his battle with cancer in 2006. As his parents began to process the loss, they also began to ask why this may have happened.

LAWMAKERS PUSH TO RENEW, EXPAND RADIATION EXPOSURE COMPENSATION ACT

“It wasn’t until years later, with social media, that I reconnected with a lot of grade school friends and friends that I grew up with in the neighborhood,” Visintine said.

She started the group Coldwater Creek Just the Facts Please and began mapping reports of illnesses in the region.

“All these illnesses are around the creek. And this is our common denominator, common link,” Visintine said.

Visintine and others she met through social media, have fought for government or legal compensation over the years. But efforts for government or legal compensation have faced hurdles and limitations.

“Even if we get all this compensation, we will never qualify. Because I was exposed, hence his disease. By the time he was born, I was living out of the zip code that’s affected,” Visintine said.

Representative Cori Bush, D-Mo., said people from all over the country could be impacted.

MORE PEOPLE EXPOSED TO MANHATTAN PROJECT CHEMICALS DESERVE COMPENSATION, ADVOCATES SAY

“There are RECA claimants in all 50 states,” Bush said. “We are talking about legislation that impacts every single member of congress’ constituents.”

The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act lists zip codes where payments would be allotted for those suffering from illnesses. However, Visintine and other advocates say, the impact of the bill would extend further than just individual assistance.

“If it gives somebody a chance to just breathe and pay their bills, great. I think that’s wonderful. But beyond the restitution, if we are part of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, that opens us up to community grants and funding for the whole area,” Visintine explained. “The grants and funding will allow for screening clinics, medical screening clinics. And it will allow community organizations to apply for federal grants for education.”

Members of Congress from impacted communities say the legislation has bipartisan support.

“When you have Cori Bush and Josh Hawley on the same side, fighting for the same thing for our Missourians, you need to listen,” Bush said.

Hawley said President Joe Biden plans to sign the bill if it reaches his desk.

OFFICIALS KNEW MANHATTAN PROJECT CHEMICALS DISPOSED IMPROPERLY AT MISSOURI SITES, DOCUMENTS REVEAL

“All eyes are on the House now. The ball is in their court. I have spoken to Speaker Johnson about this. I’ve talked to anybody and everybody who will listen and some who won’t listen, and told him that the time is of the essence,” Hawley said.

Dawn Chapman, who lives near a toxic landfill in St. Louis, was Hawley’s guest for this year’s State of the Union address. She has called for compensation over the years through her group, Just Moms STL.

“We’re pushing with everything we have. Because the truth is, it’s too late for us. It’s too late for me. It’s too late for my kids,” Chapman said.

During her time in Washington, she met with other lawmakers in an effort to gain support for the legislation.

“We’ve been able to see what’s happened in other communities, so we know what we can ask for,” Chapman said.

Members from communities linked to radiation exposure were in Washington Thursday, to call on House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to hold a vote on the legislation.

Johnson’s office tells Fox News, the legislation would cost approximately $60 billion and expands on a program that should be winding down.

“The Speaker understands and appreciates Senator Hawley’s position and is working closely with interested members and stakeholders to chart a path forward for the House,” A Johnson spokesperson said.

Chapman and Just Moms STL Co-founder Karen Nickel met with members of Speaker Johnson’s staff on Thursday. Nickel said after an hour and a half meeting, staffers were unaware of the scope of communities impacted by radiation linked to nuclear waste.

“While we feel like we’ve educated so many people, there are still so many people that just don’t understand,” Nickel said.

Hawley said the money should not be an issue.

“This is an instance where the government is the one who has caused this harm,” Hawley said. “Right now, I’ll tell you who is paying for this. The American people are paying for it. The people of my state are paying for it, in some cases literally with their lives.”

Bret Baier currently serves as FOX News Channel’s (FNC) anchor and executive editor of Special Report with Bret Baier (weeknights at 6-7PM/ET) as well as chief political anchor of the network. Baier is also host of FOX News Audio’s “The Bret Baier Podcast” which includes Common Ground, The Campaign, The Candidates and The All-Star Panel. He joined FNC in 1998 as the first reporter in the Atlanta bureau and is now based in Washington, D.C.

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Midwest

Ilhan Omar doesn’t have any regrets for her ‘unavoidable’ outburst at State of the Union

Published

4 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Ilhan Omar doesn’t have any regrets for her ‘unavoidable’ outburst at State of the Union

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Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., spoke candidly on Wednesday, defending her outbursts during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address.

Omar, along with colleague Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., who was seated next to her, appeared on video repeatedly interrupting and gesturing toward Trump several times throughout his speech.

Omar appeared to shout “You are a murderer” and “You’re a liar.”

Rep. Ilhan Omar, right, with Rep. Rashida Tlaib at her side, spoke at a news conference at the State Capitol. (Renee Jones Schneider/Star Tribune via Getty Images)

When appearing on CNN, Omar was pressed by host Wolf Blitzer, who noted that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., asked members of his caucus to either sit in silence or to not attend at all.

“Should you have just boycotted the address? And do you think you violated the guidelines set out by your own leader?” he asked.

“No, I think it was really unavoidable. The president talked about protecting Americans, and I just had to remind him that his administration was responsible for killing two of my constituents,” Omar responded.

“Do you have any regrets at all about the interaction we played between you and President Trump just last night?” Blitzer asked.

“I do not, and I think many people look at that moment when the president says, ‘It is our responsibility to protect Americans,’ and he does not acknowledge the fact that two Americans, two of my constituents, two of our neighbors, were killed,” she said. “And it was important for me to just remind the American people that the president and his administration was responsible for killing two American citizens.”

Blitzer proceeded to ask, with hindsight in mind, whether she still thinks she made the right choice by showing up.

‘SQUAD’ MEMBER WEARS ‘F— ICE’ PIN ON HOUSE FLOOR DURING TRUMP ADDRESS

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., left, and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., shout at President Donald Trump as he delivers his State of the Union address during a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol Feb. 24, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

“I brought four Minnesotans up as guests for the Minnesota delegation. It was important for us to be there, to bear witness, to hold space for our constituents that have lived through an occupation from federal law enforcement, that have been terrorized, that have seen our neighbors been killed and traumatized in so many ways and, so, no. I think it was really important for my constituents to see me there,” she said.

“It was really important to my constituents to hear that. I was reminding the president that Renee Good and Alex Pretti were killed under this administration.”

CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE

Democrats have rallied around the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good as a means to criticize ICE and immigration enforcement efforts. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.

It responded with a Truth Social post from Trump in which he called for critics like Omar and Tlaib to be put on a boat and “send them back from where they came.”

Fox News’ Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.

Alexander Hall is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to Alexander.hall@fox.com.

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Detroit, MI

Rex Satterfield’s 1956 Bel Air takes 2026 Ridler Award in Detroit

Published

5 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Rex Satterfield’s 1956 Bel Air takes 2026 Ridler Award in Detroit

Rex Satterfield hoped to see his 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible snag one of the BASF Great 8 finalist spots at this year’s Detroit Autorama. But winning the Ridler Award — one of the highest honors in the custom car business — was something he didn’t foresee.

“It’s just overwhelming right now,” said the man from Russellville, Tennessee, as he left a ballroom at downtown’s Huntington Place and made his way back to the show floor on Sunday, March 1. “We weren’t expecting this.”

Getting a car recognized as one of the BASF Great 8 vehicles is a win in and of itself as they are considered the “absolute pinnacle of custom automotive craftsmanship worldwide,” according to the show. The cars undergo an intensive judging process.

And this effort had an unexpected and emotional complication with the passing in December 2024 of the original builder, Jeff Wolfenbarger, who was battling cancer even as he continued working on the car named “Elegant Lady.”

Kevin Riffey of Kevin Riffey’s Hot Rods and Restorations in Knoxville stepped in to finish the work Wolfenbarger started. He’d had two other cars in the past make the Great 8. He said the goal with this vehicle was straightforward, calling it a “purpose-built show car.”

From its prominent spot at the front of the show floor, “Elegant Lady” sported a creamy exterior, dubbed Light Coffee. The car carries a 1,000 horsepower Don Hardy race engine. The gauges, wheels and gas tank are custom, and the dash is from a 1956 Pontiac.

Satterfield plans to show the car around some and enjoy the moment with it. He said he’s been a car guy since he was a little kid.

The Ridler Award, named in honor of Detroit Autorama’s first publicist, Don Ridler, comes with a $10,000 prize. It was awarded on the final day of this year’s Detroit Autorama, which ran Friday, Feb. 27-Sunday, March 1. This was the event’s 73rd year.

Eric D. Lawrence is the senior car culture reporter at the Detroit Free Press. Send your tips and suggestions about cool automotive stuff to elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.

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Milwaukee, WI

Milwaukee Weather – Frosty and cold morning, sunny day ahead

Published

6 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

MILWAUKEE – Forecast from FOX6 Meteorologist Lisa Michaels

Frosty Monday morning with temps in the teens inland to low 20s near the lake.
Mostly sunny to sunny skies on Monday. Highs in the mid-40s inland, upper 30s near the lake.
A total lunar eclipse will happen Tuesday morning, total eclipse from 5-6am. It may be tough to see due to increasing clouds.
Increasing clouds on Tuesday with highs in the low 40s. Chance of rain and storms possible Wednesday through Friday with warming temperatures.

Today: 39 Lake. Mostly sunny.
High: 44°
Wind: SE 5-10

Tonight: Partly cloudy this evening, mostly clear overnight.
Low: 27°
Wind: SE 5

Tuesday: 39 Lake. Mostly cloudy.
High: 43°
Wind: E 5-10

Wednesday:41 Lake. Chance for scattered showers and t-storms.
AM Low: 32° High: 45°
Wind: E 5-10

Thursday: 39 Lake. Mostly cloudy. Chance storms.
AM Low: 37° High: 42°
Wind: NE 5-10

Friday: Chance for showers and t-storms Warmer. Warming at night.
AM Low: 37° High: 57°
Wind: SE 5-15

Saturday: Mostly cloudy with AM rain showers. Blustery with falling afternoon temperatures.
AM Low: 47° High: 53°
Wind: NE 5-10

6-day planner

FOX6 Weather Extras

Local perspective:

Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:

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Maps and radar

We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.

School and business closings

When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.