National News Update, March 27, 2019
Don Early and Aaron Martinez for Basin Life Magazine
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 2019
Powerball Climbs to $750 million for Wednesday Drawing
Feeling lucky? Tonight may be your night. Wednesday’s Powerball drawing is now up to a $750 million jackpot.
The winning numbers are drawn at 8:59 p.m. PT. Powerball® tickets are $2 and available at most convenience stores and grocery stores in our state. Lottery officials say you may pay an extra $1 to purchase the multiplier option, PowerPlay®, which will multiply non-jackpot prizes, excluding the Match 5 prize, by the multiplier drawn.
Looking for the odds? Lottery officials say to win tonight’s jackpot, a ticket will have to match all six numbers drawn to overcome odds of 1 in 293 million. The odds of matching the five white ball numbers are 1 in 12 million.
AOC Angry Over Green New Deal Vote.
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., was forced to defend her Green New Deal from accusations of elitism after a Republican colleague in the House trashed the measure as welcomed only by rich liberals in New York and California.
Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis., mocked Ocasio-Cortez’s plan to combat climate change during a Financial Services Committee hearing on Monday, introducing an amendment to a homelessness bill that would create “green” standards — and demonstrate what he viewed as the impracticability of the Democrat’s plan.
“The Green New Deal is one that if you are a rich liberal from maybe New York or California it sounds great because you can afford to retrofit your home or build a new home that has zero emissions, that is energy efficient, affordable and safe,” Duffy said.
But Ocasio-Cortez didn’t go without a fight at the hearing, slamming the congressman earlier for introducing the amendment “five minutes before a hearing” while people are “dying.”
AOC then defended against the accusations that her measure to combat climate change is an “elitist issue” that can be afforded only by the richest people in the country.
“You want to tell people that their concern and their desire for clean air and clean water is elitist, tell that to the kids in the South Bronx which is suffering from the highest rates of childhood asthma in the country,” she said.
“Tell that to the families in Flint, whose kids have their blood ascending in lead levels,” she added. “Their brains are damaged for the rest of their lives. Call them elitist.”
Jussie Smollet Charges Dropped; Chicago Police are in an Uproar
Yesterday, in another liberal move, prosecutors in Chicago dropped all charges against “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett on Tuesday, a month after he was hit with felony counts stemming from what police said was a staged street attack on himself in an attempt to get a pay raise.
The unanticipated development shocked Chicago, and prompted angry reactions from Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson, who each reiterated their belief that the incident was a hoax — with Emanuel wondering aloud, “Is there no decency in this man?”
The duo went on to accuse to ‘Empire’ actor of receiving preferential treatment by the Illinois State Attorney’s Office.
Smollett appeared at an emergency court hearing in Chicago Tuesday, where prosecutors told a judge they were dismissing the 16 charges of disorderly conduct and filing a false police report against the 36-year-old actor.
Following the court hearing, Smollett publicly spoke, thanking his attorneys, friends, the citizens of Chicago and “the state of Illinois for attempting to do what is right.” Stay tuned says the Chicago Police. A federal investigation may begin.
Migrant Numbers Expected To Increase at Border
U.S. border authorities are predicting the number of undocumented migrants stopped at the southern border could reach as high as 1 million by the end of the year, potentially doubling last year’s level, federal officials announced Tuesday.
The estimate, which includes illegal crossings and people arriving at ports of entry, comes as administration officials say they have limited options when it comes to deterring families traveling with children. The influx has gotten so bad at places like El Paso, Texas, that the central processing center there was 395 percent over capacity last weekend, forcing officials to process people beneath a street overpass.
“The numbers are trending from bad to worse, which is why we need Congress to act to fix outdated laws to address migrant flows,” Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen tweeted Tuesday.
Nielsen met with government officials from Mexico Tuesday and was planning a trip to Honduras to meet with foreign leaders there this week.
Federal officials told reporters today they predict there will be some 95,000 attempted crossings in March and possibly 100,000 in April.
That would put attempted crossings at more than half a million — about the same number as in the entire 2018 budget year — with several months to go.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the numbers have not been publicly released.
The 1 million estimate reflects a complex humanitarian crisis at the border and political headache for President Trump, who staked his candidacy on curbing migration to the U.S. But it wouldn’t be a record high.