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Former governor files libel suit against media outlet | Mississippi

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www.thecentersquare.com – By Steve Wilson | The Center Square – 2023-07-27 08:12:00

(The Center Square) — Former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant filed a libel lawsuit this week against the nonprofit owner of Mississippi Today and CEO Mary Margaret White.

The lawsuit filed in Madison County Circuit Court on Wednesday alleges that Mississippi Today’s reporters and White “have defamed him as part of a malicious and concerted effort to damage his reputation and business interests with a steady stream of lies, baseless speculation, and irresponsible innuendo” by saying he was the central figure in a scandal involving misappropriation of $77 million in welfare funds intended for the poor.

In a statement, his legal team from McCraney Montagnet Quin & Noble said “Governor Bryant believes he has been libeled by Mississippi Today. He is confident in the suit he has brought and, through his attorneys, will convince 12 residents of Madison County of just that.”

The two-term former Republican governor is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, plus legal fees. 

White apologized for her publication accusing Bryant of a crime in a note posted on May 17. Bryant’s attorneys said that it fell short of a retraction.

“White did not recant or disavow her slanderous claim that Mississippi Today broke the story of Bryant embezzling $77 million of welfare funds,” the lawsuit reads. “On the contrary, White’s non-apology-apology reinforced her claim and implied that criminal prosecutors refuse to prosecute Bryant for embezzlement.”

The U.S. Department of Justice has indicted Ted DiBiase Jr., former Mississippi Department of Human Services executive director John Davis, Christi Webb, Nancy New, and others. The DOJ says they fraudulently directed $77 million in funds from the Emergency Food Assistance Program and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program for their own purposes. Included were a new volleyball facility at the University of Southern Mississippi, trips to rehab in Malibu, California, and personal cars and trucks.

Mississippi Today was founded in 2016, and bills itself as “a statehouse watchdog,” and “the only fully staffed, member-supported, digital-first, nonprofit, nonpartisan newsroom serving Mississippi and meeting the information needs of communities across the state.”

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Denver ICE arrests man previously deported 16 times | Colorado

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www.thecentersquare.com – Elyse Apel – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-31 12:48:00

(The Center Square) – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of Denver announced on Sunday that it arrested Ignacio Cruz-Mendoza, a citizen of Mexico who has been removed from the United States, or voluntarily returned to Mexico, 16 times since 2002.

Most recently, Cruz-Mendoza was sentenced for “reckless driving resulting in death” after killing one man and injuring others in a Colorado car accident in June 2024.

Sentenced to just one year in jail in August 2024, Cruz-Mendoza was already being released from Jefferson County’s Detention Center, according to Denver 7. ICE agents made the arrest upon Cruz-Mendoza’s release from jail.

This was just one of a series of arrests of criminal illegal immigrants that ICE Denver reported it made last week.

  • March 25: Arrested Rafael Cabrera-Barron, who has already been removed from the United States twice. Cabrera-Barron has convictions for sex assault on a child and currently has pending charges for burglary, trespass, child abuse and possession of controlled substance.
  • March 25: Arrested Juan Nava-Dominguez. Nava-Dominguez has previous convictions for possession of fentanyl and served 8 years in prison.
  • March 26: Arrested Victor Alonso-Martinez. Alonso-Martinez has convictions for illegal re-entry and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
  • March 27: Arrested Gabriel Vergara-Cabanas. Vergara-Cabanas has a criminal history that includes charges for kidnapping, menacing, assault, harassment and sexual-related offenses.
  • March 28: Removed a “Salvadoran criminal alien” wanted for the crimes of aggravated homicide, displacement of individuals, unlawful groupings and aggravated robbery in El Salvador.

This comes as Denver politicians and Colorado Democrats have been outspoken in their disagreement with President Donald Trump’s deportations efforts, as previously reported by The Center Square.

In early March, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston testified before the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform regarding his city’s sanctuary city immigration policies.

During testimony, Johnston “defended Denver’s values.”

“As we all heard, he referred to Denver not as a ‘sanctuary’ but as a ‘welcoming’ city, which has opened the floodgates for violent gangs like Tren de Aragua to take over our communities,” Colorado’s Republican members in the U.S. House said a joint statement in response to Johnston’s testimony. “The people of Colorado deserve better… It is time that Colorado Democrats come to the table and repeal sanctuary policies and protect Coloradans.”

Elyse Apel is a reporter for The Center Square covering Colorado and Michigan. A graduate of Hillsdale College, Elyse’s writing has been published in a wide variety of national publications from the Washington Examiner to The American Spectator and The Daily Wire.

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Everyday Economics: Stock market down, stagflation concerns, fragile incomes | National

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www.thecentersquare.com – Orphe Divounguy – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-31 06:29:00

(The Center Square) – This week’s economic calendar is packed with key reports and influential Fed speeches, set to provide crucial clues amid escalating uncertainty. Recent inflation data have fanned stagflation fears – with core PCE inflation nudging up to 0.4% month-over-month (from 0.3% in January) and the year-over-year rate climbing from 2.7% to 2.8% – raising concerns that rising price pressures might persist even as nominal income growth continues to moderate. Falling inflation-adjusted incomes could hurt the consumer.

Consumer Spending and Income Growth in Question

A $15 billion decline in spending on food services, travel and hotels reveals that households are making tough trade-offs. With the personal savings rate climbing to 4.6% (up from 4.3% in January and 3.3% in December), it’s clear that consumers are building precautionary buffers amid uncertainty.

Manufacturing & Services: The ISM Outlook

The ISM Manufacturing and ISM Services indices will be in focus this week. These surveys, which provide hints about the health of the manufacturing and services sectors through questions on production, new orders, employment, supplier deliveries and inventories, include a Prices Index that has been on the rise. With input costs increasing, rising prices in manufacturing could signal broader inflationary pressures. Furthermore, April 2 – now being touted by the new administration as “liberation day” – is expected to result in higher market volatility.

Employment Report: The Ultimate Wild Card

Perhaps nothing will shake financial markets more than the upcoming BLS employment report. Uncertainty over the current policy climate means businesses will likely continue to hold back on hiring new workers – hiring rates are already at their lowest levels since 2014. Although layoffs have remained somewhat in check, federal government job cuts could begin to show up in upcoming jobs data. Along with falling consumer and business confidence, the report is expected to show a downtick in both employment and wage growth for March.

Looking Ahead

Since the last week of February, the Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite have declined by 4.9%, 7%, and 10.8%, respectively. For every dollar of lost market value, consumer spending typically drops by 2 to 5 cents, and with the stock market correction already underway in March, early data suggest that the economy is stalling. Yet, in the midst of these challenges, a slowdown in the growth rate of the labor force means wages are still rising faster than prices. Without further shocks and a larger slowdown in labor demand, the U.S. economy might be able to stave off a recession.

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Helene: Proposal brings back help accessing federal money | North Carolina

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www.thecentersquare.com – Alan Wooten – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-30 08:01:00

(The Center Square) – Small businesses’ access to federal aid in rebuilding from Hurricane Helene is supported through a North Carolina congressman’s proposal in the House of Representatives.



U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C.




Helene Small Business Recovery Act, authored by Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., drew the immediate support when filed last week of Democratic Rep. Don Davis and Republican Reps. Virginia Foxx and David Rouzer, all of North Carolina. The 5th Congressional District of Foxx and 11th of Edwards were significantly hit by the storm six months earlier, and the 7th Congressional District of Rouzer and the 1st of Davis are in the southeastern and eastern regions, respectively, of the state and the most often hit places by hurricanes.

The Helene Small Business Recovery Act clarifies that SBA loans and federal grants, like those that will be offered through the CDBG-DR program, are not duplicative,” Edwards said in a release. “Without this clarification, businesses that took an SBA loan to keep themselves afloat would be prohibited from accessing federal grant money when it becomes available.

“Loans and grants are inherently different, and this bill will allow small business owners access to both federal resources so that western North Carolina, and every small business that makes our mountains such a great place to live, has the resources needed to recover.”

CDBG-DR is the acronym for Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery; SBA is an acronym for Small Business Administration.

The Stafford Act doesn’t allow federal agencies to duplicate benefits, and a loan is considered duplicative of a grant. SBA loans must be repaid; CDBG-DR grants are one-time payments to victims that do not have to be repaid.

A sunset passed in 2021 on the Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018 that, temporarily, said a loan is not part of a grant, Edwards’ release said.

The American Relief Act aiding in Helene recovery awarded $1.65 billion in disaster block grants to western North Carolina.

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