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Stocks attempt third day of gains, Trump eyes softer tariff tone
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Approved, Fox Business, National

Stocks attempt third day of gains, Trump eyes softer tariff tone

By FOX Business Team , Christina Shaw, Bradford Betz and Stephen Sorace | Fox Business Stocks are higher on Thursday, extending gains from the prior two sessions. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up more than 300 points, or 0.8%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.5% and 2%, respectively. The major indexes opened mixed on Thursday after China said there are no ongoing talks with the U.S. on tariffs. Ministry of Commerce spokesman He Yadong said on Thursday that "Any claims about the progress of China-U.S. trade negotiations are groundless as trying to catch the wind and have no factual basis," according to The Associated Press. READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX BUSINESS
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DOT Sec. Duffy warns blue states: comply with Trump orders or lose transportation funding
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Approved, Breitbart, National

DOT Sec. Duffy warns blue states: comply with Trump orders or lose transportation funding

By Olivia Rondeau | Breitbart Department of Transportation (DOT) Sec. Sean Duffy has threatened to withhold funding from states that refuse to comply with President Donald Trump’s executive orders, warning them that utilizing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices and resisting compliance with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) could result in “enforcement actions being taken by DOT.” Duffy, a former Wisconsin congressman who was selected by Trump in November to run the department, addressed a letter to all DOT grant recipients on Wednesday to remind them that they must comply with federal law to receive taxpayer dollars for transportation projects, Breitbart News learned. The secretary’s office told Breitbart News that failure to fall in line with the ...
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Colorado law limits what voters can verify—and critics say that needs to change
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Approved, Local, National, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Colorado law limits what voters can verify—and critics say that needs to change

By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Mesa County’s Ballot Verifier tool has been praised for giving residents unprecedented access to redacted ballot images and cast vote records. But for some longtime election integrity advocates, it’s only part of the solution. “This is a great step forward,” said Ed Arnos, a Mesa County resident and former lottery systems designer. “But it doesn’t verify the most important part—how the ballots were actually read.” This article is Part 3 of a three-part series on the Ballot Verifier: Mesa’s launch, Ada County’s pilot and the debate over election transparency laws. A philosophical divide Mesa County residents Tom Keenan and Ed Arnos have supported election transparency efforts for years. But both say the current syste...
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From critics to champions: How a ballot transparency tool won over Idaho voters—and inspired Mesa County
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Approved, Local, National, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

From critics to champions: How a ballot transparency tool won over Idaho voters—and inspired Mesa County

By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice When Ada County launched a ballot audit tool built by a small independent company, no one knew what to expect. But what followed surprised even the clerk who helped shape it.  Election skeptics became supporters, recount demands dropped and voters started tracking their own ballots—sometimes using nothing more than a $2 bill. What began as a simple idea sketched on napkins between an Idaho election official and a civic-minded data entrepreneur would grow into a public-facing ballot verification platform now used by counties in multiple states, including Mesa County, Colorado. This article is Part 2 of a three-part series on the Ballot Verifier: Mesa’s launch, Ada County’s pilot and the debate over election transpa...
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Mesa County launches Ballot Verifier, giving voters unprecedented access to ballots
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Approved, Local, Rocky Mountain Voice, Top Stories

Mesa County launches Ballot Verifier, giving voters unprecedented access to ballots

By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Mesa County launched a first-of-its-kind ballot transparency tool last month, allowing residents to view redacted ballot images and corresponding cast vote records online—without filing a CORA request. Supporters say it could reshape public trust in elections. Others say it doesn’t go far enough. But one thing is certain: Mesa County is at the heart of a national battle over election integrity, and the Ballot Verifier came to fruition out of demand — and the innovation of an election stats company that wanted to answer to it. Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Bobbie Gross said the tool was made possible by an initial $30,000 investment to develop the system and redaction process. “I believe $20,000 every year to keep it goin...
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Uber warns it may leave Colorado if new rideshare bill becomes law
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Approved, denvergazette.com, State

Uber warns it may leave Colorado if new rideshare bill becomes law

By Marissa Ventrelli | Denver Gazette The largest rideshare company in the US says it will be forced to stop operations in Colorado if a bill that places certain regulations on transportation network companies becomes law.  House Bill 1291, sponsored by Reps. Jenny Willford, D-Northglenn, and Meg Froelich, D-Englewood, and Sens. Faith Winter, D-Westminster, and Jessie Danielson, D-Wheat Ridge, would require rideshare companies to conduct background checks on drivers every six months and prohibit them from hiring applicants who have been convicted of crimes including domestic violence, stalking, and harassment. The bill also requires companies to investigate complaints about drivers within 72 hours. If the allegations are found to likely be true, they must deactivate the ...
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Polis faces pressure as veto showdown looms on sweeping social media bill
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Approved, KUNC, State

Polis faces pressure as veto showdown looms on sweeping social media bill

By Bente Birkeland | CPR News On November 8, 2020, Chelsea Congdon’s life changed forever.  She and her husband had invited friends over for a backyard party at their home in Old Snowmass. They were building a bonfire when a car from the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Department pulled up.  “The policeman came and found us there and let us know that our son Miles had died in Boulder and his body had been discovered that morning,” she recently recalled to CPR News. “It felt very unreal. And it feels as if your entire life just shatters on the floor and for some reason, you’re still standing. I mean, it doesn’t make any sense. It’s impossible to put together losing a kid.” Her son, Miles Brundige, was a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Colorado. He’d grown up big ...
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Rubio overhauling ‘bloated’ State Department in sweeping reform
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Approved, Fox News, National

Rubio overhauling ‘bloated’ State Department in sweeping reform

By Michael Dorgan  | Fox News The Trump administration has announced it is overhauling the State Department and shuttering more than 130 offices around the world in order to streamline operations and align the department more closely with the administration's foreign policy objectives. The move was announced on Tuesday by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said region-specific functions will be consolidated to increase functionality and redundant offices will be shut down. Programs that are misaligned with America’s core national interests will be shuttered too, he said. Rubio said the State Department had become bloated, bureaucratic and unable to perform its essential diplomatic mission in a new era of great power competition.  READ THE FULL STORY AT FOX ...
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DOJ files first-ever RICO charges against 27 Tren de Aragua gang members
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Approved, Breitbart, National

DOJ files first-ever RICO charges against 27 Tren de Aragua gang members

By Bob Price | Breitbart The Department of Justice filed multiple federal charges against 27 members of the hyperviolent Tren de Aragua Venezuelan gang on Monday. The charges include Racketeering, Narcotics and Sex Trafficking, Robbery, and Firearms offenses. DOJ officials say this marks the first time RICO charges have been filed against Tren de Aragua gang members. On Monday, DOJ officials unsealed indictments against 27 current or former members of the Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang. Officials report that 21 of the 27 indicted gang members are currently in federal custody. “As alleged, Tren de Aragua is not just a street gang – it is a highly structured terrorist organization that has destroyed American families with brutal violence, engaged in human trafficking, and spread deadly d...
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Denver council weighs $70M pitch for soccer stadium expected to bring $2.2B
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Approved, denvergazette.com, Local

Denver council weighs $70M pitch for soccer stadium expected to bring $2.2B

By Deborah Grigsby | Denver Gazette As Denver's elected officials weigh a push for $70 million in spending along Interstate 25 and Broadway Avenue, economists and business leaders hope the buzz around the city’s new National Women’s Soccer League team rubs off on councilmembers who have pushed back on the project’s price tag. Supporters argued that the proposed stadium would serve as a major economic "jolt" to South Broadway, while councilmembers are worried about shrinking revenues and redirecting interest money originally slated for a slew of projects funded by a bond voters approved a few years ago.    City economists published a 19-page economic impact study last week, projecting that a 14,500-seat stadium and entertainment district could generate $2.2 billion in eco...
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