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Minneapolis 'beyond policing' efforts are stuck while accusations of wrongdoing fly

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MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis’ plans to foster public safety “beyond policing” are a mess.

Just a few years ago, the effort to create a new model to deter violence seemed to unite elected officials, neighborhoods and civil rights activists. Today, the vision is mired in political finger-pointing and accusations of failed oversight of ...Read more

Canada's 'pause' of remote border crossing permits puts some Minnesotans' lives, and livelihoods, in limbo

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Darin Fagerman, a former Minnesota state trooper and retired conservation officer, built a solar-powered cabin eight-tenths of a mile into Canada on Saganaga Lake. Far from any roads, it is a remote wilderness paradise.

Fagerman can reach his cabin in less than two hours from his home outside of Grand Marais, Minn., by crossing the ...Read more

Luiz C. Ribeiro/New York Daily News/TNS

Several of NYC Mayor Eric Adams' deputy looking to resign amid Trump DOJ indictment dismissal fallout, sources say

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NEW YORK — Several of Mayor Eric Adams’ top deputies told him over the weekend they’re either considering or planning to resign over concerns about how his ability to govern could be impacted by the terms President Donald Trump’s Justice Department is placing on the dismissal of his corruption indictment, according to sources familiar ...Read more

John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune/TNS

President Donald Trump's moves to end foreign aid agency hit close to home in Illinois

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CHICAGO -- Presidential adviser Elon Musk conceded during an Oval Office news conference last week that an unsubstantiated claim made to justify the Trump administration’s freeze on federal foreign aid might not have been true.

Amplified by Musk and President Donald Trump, the story of the U.S. government planning to send $50 million worth ...Read more

Tamir Kalifa/Getty Images North America/TNS

Here's how state lawmakers are taking aim at transgender adults' health care

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While much state policy and attention have focused on restricting gender-affirming care for minors, more states now are seeking to limit such care for adults.

Lawmakers in several states have introduced bills that would prohibit Medicaid coverage of gender-transition services, prevent state or county health professionals from providing it, or ...Read more

Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/TNS

Top California Democrats clash over how to rein in drug industry middlemen

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators in Sacramento seem to agree: Prescription drug prices are too high. But lawmakers and the second-term governor are at odds over what to do about it, and a recent proposal could trigger one of the biggest health care battles in Sacramento this year.

A California bill awaiting its first hearing ...Read more

As states mull Medicaid work requirements, two with experience scale back

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President Donald Trump’s return to the White House sent a clear signal about Medicaid to Republicans across the country: Requiring enrollees to prove they are working, volunteering, or going to school is back on the table.

The day after Trump’s inauguration, South Carolina GOP Gov. Henry McMaster asked federal officials to approve a work ...Read more

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images North America/TNS

Trump's Department of Education gives schools 2 weeks to ditch DEI…or else

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Public schools and universities in Massachusetts and across the U.S. have less than two weeks to scrub their curriculums and outside contracts of any diversity, equity and inclusion policies or risk losing access to federal funds.

According to a “Dear Colleagues” letter sent by the Department of Education’s Acting Assistant Secretary for ...Read more

Marcus D. Smith/The Sacramento Bee/TNS

Sacramento school board seeks feedback on new equity policies based on lawsuit settlement

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento City Unified School District will host families of Black/African students and students with disabilities in a community forum to give feedback on district policies and recommend improvements that reflect their needs.

The event is a part of the district and the Black Parallel School Board’s action plan to ...Read more

Nancy Lane/Boston Herald/TNS

Trump's immigration policies prompt 'real fear' in Massachusetts as restaurants consider closures

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BOSTON — In the sanctuary city of Somerville, officials and business owners say recent federal immigration policy changes have led to a “real fear” throughout the community as some restaurateurs consider closing due to the “absence of people.”

“People are afraid to be outside on the streets,” City Councilor Matthew McLaughlin told...Read more

Jim Watson/Getty Images North America/TNS

How Maryland voters feel after a month of Trump's second term

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BALTIMORE — President Donald Trump’s first four weeks in office have elicited both scorn and praise from around the country and in Maryland as the administration moves at lightning speed to enact policy changes on immigration, tariffs, spending and many other issues.

Nationwide polls show mixed reviews of Trump’s job performance so far, ...Read more

Alfredo Lopez/Dreamstime/TNS

Georgia Republicans advance bills encouraging vaccines

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ATLANTA — Two Georgia Republicans have filed legislation promoting education and availability of vaccines — with caution.

Five years after the coronavirus pandemic began and the criticism about scientifically sound vaccines that followed, some conservative lawmakers are inching back toward publicly supporting measures addressing community ...Read more

California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation/Getty Images North America/TNS

Judge denies Georgia prisoner's bid for death by firing squad

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ATLANTA — A Georgia death row inmate who fatally shot a man while fleeing from a bank robbery in Gwinnett County cannot be executed by firing squad instead of lethal injection, a federal judge in Atlanta has ruled.

Michael Nance has been in a legal battle since 2020 with the leaders of Georgia’s corrections department and the state prison ...Read more

Why is water different colors in different places?

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Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

Why is water different colors in different places? – Gina T., age 12, Portland, Maine

What do you picture when you think of water? An icy, refreshing drink? A crystal-blue ...Read more

Why do skiers sunburn so easily on the slopes? A snow scientist explains

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It’s extremely easy to get sunburned while you’re skiing and snowboarding in the mountains, but have you ever wondered why?

While it’s true that you’re slightly closer to the Sun when you’re high in the mountains, that isn’t the reason.

If you go up 1 mile (1.6 km), about the elevation from Denver to the peaks of ...Read more

Who are Ismaili Muslims and how do their beliefs relate to the Aga Khan’s work?

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Prince Karim Aga Khan, who died on Feb. 4, 2025, served as the religious leader of Ismaili Muslims around the world since being appointed as the 49th hereditary imam in 1957. He came to be known around the world for his enormous work on global development issues and other philanthropic work.

The Ismaili community considers the imam a ...Read more

Hamas ready to cede power in Gaza in step to extend ceasefire

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Hamas indicated a willingness to stop governing Gaza after the war with Israel, an overture timed for U.S.-led efforts to extend the initial ceasefire and agree terms for a permanent end to hostilities.

“It is not necessary for Hamas to be part of the political and administrative arrangements in the next phase for Gaza, especially if it ...Read more

US asks Europe what Kyiv peacekeepers should do if attacked

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The U.S. has asked European nations to spell out what security guarantees they’re willing to provide Ukraine to ensure a lasting peace settlement and how allies should react if any troops they deploy were attacked by Russia.

The Trump administration is seeking details on how European allies could contribute to guarantees for Kyiv and deter ...Read more

Colleges, K-12 schools ordered by Trump administration to abolish DEI or face funding cuts

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LOS ANGELES — The U.S. Department of Education has given colleges and schools with race-specific programs — including financial aid and racially themed dormitory floors and graduation ceremonies — until the end of the month to abolish them or risk losing federal funding as educators scrambled over the holiday weekend to interpret the ...Read more

Mixed verdict in ex-Illinois Speaker Madigan case reflects a new, harder reality for federal prosecutors

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CHICAGO — Shortly after former House Speaker Michael Madigan’s conviction on federal corruption charges, the leaders of Chicago’s top federal investigative agencies appeared in the lobby of the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse to do their usual spike of the football.

“This was a historic conviction, one that ranks high in the annals of criminal ...Read more