Deadly Storm Wreaks Havoc Over Southern US
A deadly spring storm wreaked havoc over the southern United States, carrying destructive tornadoes and intense flooding, killing at least eight people.Starting late April 2, tornadoes and drenching storms tore through the south, continuing into April 3 when it stalled over the Mississippi and Ohio valleys, leading to repeated storms that drenched the area before moving into the north, leaving 33 million people under flood watches across 11 states, with some areas expecting up to 15 inches of rain.
Mobile homes were reportedly flipped upside down, and a radar in Blytheville, Arkansas, showed debris being hurled 25,000 feet into the air.
Power outages were experienced across 10 states, reaching Michigan in the northern part of the country.
DOGE Lay-Offs Reach 216,000 in March
Federal government lay-offs reached 216,670 in March as part of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cuts, accounting for 75 percent of all lay-offs that month.The total job cuts for March at 275,240 marked a 60 percent increase from the previous month, and the third highest since recording began in 1989.
On April 1, an extra 10,000 staff members were let go by the National Institutes of Health, now run by Robert F. Kennedy, as part of the second phase of the organisation’s restructuring and centralisation. The first phase was the announcement.
Included in these lay-offs was the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s entire Freedom of Information Act office, responsible for information requests and transparency on behalf of the agency.
Criminal Case Against NY Mayor Permanently Dismissed
The criminal case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams was permanently dismissed on April 2, weeks after the charges were dropped by the Trump administration.Adams had pleaded not guilty to charges of bribery and accepting illegal campaign contributions from Turkish diplomats.
The charges were conditionally dropped in February at the instruction of the U.S. government as they were interfering with his duties as mayor in supporting the federal government in addressing the city’s illegal immigration problem.
At the time, the ruling was on the condition that they could be brought back again at any time.
New Jersey Senator Gives Record 25-Hour Speech
A New Jersey senator broke an unusual record this week for the longest speech on the Senate floor in the chamber’s history.Sen. Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, spent 25 hours and five minutes from March 31 to April 1 non-stop, without any food, water, or toilet break, in protest of President Donald Trump’s policies on shrinking the federal government.
The previous record was taken by Sen. Strom Thurmond, a Democrat from South Carolina, in 1957, who protested continuously for 24 hours and 18 minutes against civil rights legislation.
