Important Takeaways:
- A deadly barrage of severe weather, tornadoes and torrential rain has come to an end, but the danger is far from over in communities across the Midwest and South as angry rivers continue to rise, forcing families from their homes.
- At least 25 people in seven states have been killed due to the severe weather, including deaths from tornadoes and extreme weather in Tennessee, Missouri, Indiana, Arkansas and Mississippi, and fatalities from flooding in Kentucky.
- One of those monster tornadoes was captured live on FOX Weather on Wednesday, April 2, by FOX Weather Exclusive Storm Tracker Brandon Copic.
- That tornado that touched down in northwestern Arkansas prompted forecasters to issue a rare Tornado Emergency as the supercell thunderstorm passed through communities such as Lake City and Blytheville.
- Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said at a news conference on Monday. “Remember, this event is not over until the waters have receded. Until the areas that are flooded are fully dry. Until we don’t have saturated ground that could create mudslides over roads and bridges.”
- Beshear said on Monday that more than 500 roads across the state were closed due to historic flooding, mudslides and landslides.
- Tennessee flooding leads to mandatory evacuations
- The order also had a dire warning – those who don’t comply with the evacuation order may not be able to receive help from first responders. In addition, residents may be held personally liable for any damage or injuries sustained.
- Meteorologist-in-Charge at the National Weather Service office in Memphis, Tennessee, Darone Jones, joined FOX Weather on Tuesday morning and said there’s still a lot of recovery ahead for waterlogged communities.
- “It’s very hard to contextualize this,” Jones continued. “You know, you mentioned the 223 warnings. Just in comparison to last year, 2024, we issued 262 warnings for the entire year. So, we did all of that in like a four-day span.”
- Jones went on to say that the event is still unfolding.
- “The worst is yet to come for a lot of areas,” he said. So, you know, it’s not over. So, it’s hard to talk about the uniqueness from a historical perspective at this time.”
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Important Takeaways:
- Missouri’s Attorney General has issued a cease-and-desist order against Planned Parenthood facilities in the state to keep them from offering chemical abortions in the state.
- “This order is a necessary enforcement mechanism to prevent Planned Parenthood from continuing to disregard Missouri law and to protect the health and safety of Missouri women,” Attorney General Andrew Bailey said in a recent press release.
- “Planned Parenthood has a documented history of subverting state law, including failure to file complication reports,” he continued. “This cease-and-desist letter ensures that basic health and safety standards are met. Given Planned Parenthood’s history, I will continue to ensure their compliance with state law.”
- As CBN News reported, just days after the Supreme Court overturned Roe. v Wade, the Biden administration unveiled an “action plan” to increase access to “the abortion pill” in states where abortion is outlawed.
- But the dangerous side effects of chemically induced abortions are rarely reported, and the risks are very real.
- Tessa Longbons, a senior research associate with the Charlotte Lozier Institute, told CBN News many pro-life advocates refer to the abortion pill, RU-486, as chemical abortions rather than “medication abortions,” and says her organization has discovered the practice is even more dangerous than surgical abortions, despite the FDA’s pronouncement that it’s safe. She says the FDA’s claim is largely based on incomplete reporting data.
- “As many as 95% of all abortion pill complications are not reflected in FDA’s data and they don’t even collect most data anymore. They only require reporting on deaths,” she said.
- The procedure includes taking a pill called mifepristone, which blocks a hormone needed for pregnancy to continue, followed one or two days later by misoprostol. That’s a drug that causes cramping that pushes the body of the deceased child from the womb. The combination is approved for use within the first 10 weeks of pregnancy, although some healthcare providers offer it in the second trimester, a practice called off-label use.
- “Planned Parenthood has demonstrated a disturbing pattern of performing abortions without the necessary complication plans, failing to report complications, and willfully violating state law,” said Bailey. “It is my duty to enforce the law and protect the lives and safety of Missourians. Missouri will not tolerate Planned Parenthood’s blatant disregard of the law and the safety of women.”
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Important Takeaways:
- Fifty years of anti-abortion laws in Missouri have been struck down as unconstitutional over the last two months, culminating Friday with a Jackson County judge blocking clinic licensing requirements.
- Three days later, Republican lawmakers and anti-abortion activists gathered outside Planned Parenthood locations across the state to say they have no intention of retreating.
- “I’m here to tell you the Missouri supermajority of Republicans will not stand for this,” said state Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, an Arnold Republican and one of the architects of the legislation that made Missouri the first state to outlaw abortion in June 2022 after Roe v. Wade was overturned.
- “There will be another option to vote,” she predicted Monday, “so that people understand this is not going to continue in the state of Missouri.”
- A Planned Parenthood clinic in Kansas City on Saturday performed the first elective abortion since voters overturned Missouri’s abortion ban by passing Amendment 3 in November.
- Missouri Republicans have filed three dozen bills seeking to either repeal or rein in Amendment 3. So far, the House has prioritized a proposed constitutional amendment that would reinstate an abortion ban but create exceptions for survivors of rape and incest, as long as they report the crime to police.
- Senate Democrats have threatened to filibuster any effort to overturn the voter-approved amendment legalizing abortion.
- “This is the real agenda of Planned Parenthood, to put the destruction of human life over the safety and well-being of women,” Brian Westbrook, executive director of Coalition Life, told reporters as about half a dozen anti-abortion protesters stood behind him. “They are not fighting for women. They are fighting to remove every possible check on their harmful, deadly business.”
- Westbrook said Monday kicked off a 6-day “intense prayer and fasting vigil” outside the St. Louis clinic. Coalition Life also restarted its sidewalk counseling efforts, partnering with Women’s Care Connect, a pregnancy resource center in Maryland Heights that he said also provides “abortion pill reversal.”
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Important Takeaways:
- A historic plunge in temperatures has gripped the central and eastern U.S., bringing dangerous wind chills and record-breaking cold to many areas. From extreme subzero conditions in the Midwest to snowstorms along the Gulf Coast, the Arctic air has shattered records and created hazardous conditions across the region.
- What to know:
- Extreme cold warnings and advisories stretch from the Midwest to the South and East, with wind chills reaching as low as minus 50 degrees in places like Duluth, Minnesota.
- Tuesday morning saw Kansas City, Missouri, and Pueblo, Colorado, set record lows at minus 8 and minus 19 degrees, respectively.
- Gulf Coast states witnessed unprecedented snowfall, with New Orleans recording 10 inches of snow, and parts of Florida seeing totals of nearly 9 inches—a likely state record.
- The rare storm was fueled by a mix of unusually cold Arctic air and Gulf of Mexico warmth, resulting in record snowfalls and dangerous conditions.
- Temperatures are expected to remain frigid through the weekend, with a gradual warm-up forecast next week.
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Important Takeaways:
- On Tuesday, voters in Missouri narrowly passed an amendment writing abortion into the Missouri Constitution. On Wednesday, Planned Parenthood filed a sweeping lawsuit challenging virtually all of Missouri’s good, pro-life laws.
- Planned Parenthood is the nation’s largest abortion provider, and the organization consistently opposes policies that protect women and unborn children from abortion.
- Wednesday’s lawsuit challenges Missouri’s many pro-life measures, including the state’s good laws that:
- Prohibit abortion except to save the life of the mother
- Require abortionists to give women information about abortion’s risks, consequences, and alternatives
- Require abortionists to give women 72 hours to consider all options before an abortion
- Protect unborn children from being aborted due to their race or sex or due to being at risk for Down Syndrome
- Require abortion facilities to be licensed and inspected by the state
- Require abortionists to have hospital admitting privileges in case the woman experiences complications from abortion
- Outline how abortion data is recorded and reported to the state for statistical purposes
- Prohibit telemed abortions in Missouri
- Prevent healthcare professionals other than doctors from performing abortions
- Require abortionists to maintain various plans and agreements for handling abortion complications
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Important Takeaways:
- At least five people were killed after torrential rainfall led to flash flooding in central and eastern Missouri, impacting transportation and making it challenging for some voters to reach their polling place on Tuesday.
- The relentless rain, which shattered November rainfall records, turned streets into rivers, inundated homes and forced widespread closures.
- According to the St. Louis County Police Department, preliminary investigations revealed that one of the victims, identified as an adult female, drove her car into floodwaters in the area of Interstate 55 and Bayless Avenue in St. Louis Tuesday morning as the worst of the flash flooding was ongoing.
- The unprecedented rainfall event has also set a new record for the highest 24-hour rainfall total for the month of November. With over 6.4 inches of rain falling since Monday, the airport has shattered the previous record of 3.56 inches set on Nov. 18, 1921.
- The nearly 7 inches of rainfall in a 24-hour period caused Deer Creek to overflow its banks, submerging major streets in Maplewood, Brentwood and Webster Groves, FOX 2 in St. Louis reported.
- Drone footage captured the force of the flash floods, showing rapid water surges surrounding homes and businesses in Park Hills.
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Important Takeaways:
- U.S. District Judge Matthew Schelp snatched the win from the Biden administration in response to a request from six Republican state attorneys general who have challenged the White House’s effort.
- The Republican-led states assert the Department of Education has overstepped its authority by proposing a regulation to cancel student loan debt without an act of Congress.
- The White House counters that the president has used his authority under existing law to ensure borrowers who meet certain qualifications can experience relief from debt accrued in pursuit of higher education.
- Two previous efforts by Biden to fulfill a campaign promise to assist student loan borrowers were defeated in court. His third proposal would hand out $73 billion in student loan debt held by an estimated 27.6 million borrowers.
- In addition to Georgia and Missouri, Republican attorneys general in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, North Dakota and Ohio are party to the lawsuit challenging the policy.
- Missouri state Attorney General Andrew Bailey celebrated Schelp’s decision on X, calling it a “huge win for transparency, the rule of law, and for every American who won’t have to foot the bill for someone else’s Ivy League debt.”
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Important Takeaways:
- More health-care workers in contact with Missouri bird flu patient report respiratory symptoms
- One health-care worker who had symptoms had what investigators consider high-risk contact with the patient, meaning they provided care before the hospital advised taking precautions such as wearing a mask when tending to the patient.
- Three additional workers reportedly had low-risk contact with the patient after the hospital required precautions.
- None of these workers was tested at the time they experienced symptoms, the CDC reported Friday.
- It has been three weeks since the CDC and Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services announced that a person who had no contact with animals had tested positive for H5N1, the 14th human infection in the United States since April.
- None of the people in the US with a confirmed H5N1 infection is known to have infected other people. That would raise alarm because it would suggest that the virus was changing in ways that could allow it to more easily infect humans.
- The agency says the immediate risk to the public from H5N1 bird flu continues to be low.
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Important Takeaways:
- The state is not one of the 14 others that have reported outbreaks in dairy cattle
- Disease investigators have not been able to determine how a person in Missouri with no known exposures to animals or poultry became infected with an H5 bird flu virus, the principal deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday.
- But Nirav Shah said the ongoing investigation has turned up no evidence of onward spread of the virus, suggesting this case may turn out to be a one-off infection that defies explanation.
- “Here’s the bottom line: Our influenza surveillance system is designed to find needles in haystacks,” Shah said at a news briefing. “Here in this case, we found such a needle, but we don’t know how it got there. Our investigation continues, and we will keep everyone updated as we learn more.”
- It isn’t unheard of to have cases in which investigators fail to be able to trace a human infection with novel flu viruses back to a source of infection, Shah said, noting that of the more than 500 swine flu infections that have been detected in the U.S. since 2010, about 8% have been in people with no traceable contact with pigs or other infected people.
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Important Takeaways:
- Over 140,000 Farms Lost in 5 Years
- Between 2017 and 2022, the number of farms in the U.S. declined by 141,733 or 7%, according to USDA’s 2022 Census of Agriculture, released on Feb. 13. Acres operated by farm operations during the same timeframe declined by 20.1 million (2.2%), a loss equivalent to an area about the size of Maine. Only 1.88% of acres operated and 1% of farm operations were classified under a non-family corporate farm structure.
- While the number of farm operations and acres operated declined, the value of agricultural production increased, rising from $389 billion in 2017 to $533 billion in 2022 (40% nominally and 17% adjusted for inflation).
- Between 2017 and 2022 all states but five (Alaska, Iowa, Maryland, New Jersey and Rhode Island) lost farms. Texas had the largest numerical loss – nearly 18,000 farm operations – followed by Oklahoma (-8,153) and Missouri (-7,433).
- The challenges faced by farms of all sizes has raised calls for a robust and comprehensive farm bill that could provide support to the operations most at risk and to those providing the lion’s share of the American food supply, helping both to navigate economic uncertainties and regulatory complexities, to undertake innovative and sustainable practices, and to promote the long-term viability of a diverse agricultural landscape across the nation. The Census of Agriculture paints the picture of what we have lost, and of what more could be lost without firm support.
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