Jessica Mcbride

  There were nearly 565,000 illegal border crossers reported in Arizona in fiscal 2024, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data . Arizona’s 378 miles of shared border with Mexico is staffed by CBP and Border Patrol agents in the CBP sectors of Tucson and Yuma. Tucson Sector’s 262-mile shared border with Mexico extends from the Yuma County line to the Arizona-New Mexico state line. Yuma Sector’s nearly 182,000 square miles of primarily desert terrain extends from Imperial Sand Dunes in California to the Yuma-Pima County line. The Tucson Sector has historically been one of the busiest along the U.S.-Mexico border. In fiscal 2024, Border Patrol agents there reported 463,567 illegal border crossers, the most of any sector along the southwest border during the year, which runs from Oct. 1 through Sept. 30. The second greatest number was reported by San Diego Sector Border Patrol agents of nearly 325,000, The Center Square reported. Tucson Office of Field Operations ag...

  Nearly 50,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association will return to work after the port workers' union reached a tentative contract agreement with the United States Maritime Alliance. "The International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance, Ltd. have reached a tentative agreement on wages and have agreed to extend the Master Contract until January 15, 2025 to return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues," the two groups posted in a joint statement to Facebook. "Effective immediately, all current job actions will cease and all work covered by the Master Contract will resume." On picket lines since Tuesday, the strike against the East and Gulf Coast ports threatened to significantly disrupt supply chains, drive up consumer costs and lead to product shortages at grocery and other stores. Negotiations had been underway since June. The disagreement was between the International Lo...

Following nearly a year of investigations into political donation platform ActBlue, Republican Rep. Bryan Steil has introduced legislation he says will increase transparency and prevent illegal straw donations in online political donations. The Secure Handling of Internet Electronic Donations Act, or SHIELD Act , would prohibit political campaigns from accepting contributions from gift cards or other prepaid credit cards, and require them to obtain and verify the CVV of all online credit and debit donations. It would also require political campaigns to get the affirmative consent of donors before they make a recurring contribution. “American elections should always be free from foreign interference,” Steil said Monday. “The SHIELD Act will take a crucial next step in blocking foreign funding in our elections and certifying that every political contribution received is actually coming from the individual whose name is on the contribution. By passing the SHIELD Act, we will increa...

  Nearly 70% of Americans say that expanding educational choices for families will help improve education overall in the U.S., according to new polling. A vast majority of Americans across all demographics support more school choice options, the poll conducted by YouGov for the yes. every kid. foundation found. When asked, "If we make K-12 education more flexible for families, do you think this would improve or weaken our nation's overall education system?," 69% of respondents said it would either "stongly" improve (33%) or "somewhat" (36%) improve education. “Americans believe more education options will improve our nation’s education system,” Matt Frendewey, vice president of the yes. every kid. foundation , said in a statement released with the polling data. “A child’s access to a great education should not be determined by their family’s income or where they live. By expanding opportunities for families to customize the education to me...

Nearly 303,000 people illegally entered the U.S. through the southwest border in September, according to newly released U.S. Customs and Border Protection data and gotaway data first reported by The Center Square. Border Patrol and Office of Field Operations agents apprehended 269,735 people last month and Border Patrol agents reported at least 33,203 known gotaways, bringing the total to 302,938. Gotaways is the official CBP term used for foreign nationals who illegally enter the U.S. between ports of entry, intentionally evade capture and don’t return to Mexico or Canada. CBP doesn’t publicly report gotaway data. The Center Square obtains preliminary data from a U.S. Border Patrol agent who provides it on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. It only includes Border Patrol data not OFO data. The gotaway data is believed to be much higher than reported because it doesn’t include unknown and unrecorded gotaways. With the majority of agents no longer in the field, th...

"The poor test scores are even more striking when you look at the success of students in Wisconsin choice schools." - Will Flanders; The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty Nearly 60% of students in Wisconsin's Public Schools continue to be unable to read, write, or do math at grade level. The State's Department of Public Instruction released the latest standardized test scores Tuesday, and they show 39.2% of public school students are proficient or better in reading, while 41.1% are proficient or better in math. But those are the statewide averages. Individual schools saw differing results, and the numbers show low-income students did worse across the board. DPI's numbers show 22.6% of low-income students are proficient in reading, and 23.1% are proficient in math. The numbers also show 42.2% of low-income students are rated minimal in reading, while 45.9% of low-income students are rated as minimal in math. Wisconsin’s worst-in-the-nation raci...

“Certainly, we all want to keep gasoline prices low, but the threat of the crisis – the climate crisis – certainly can’t wait any longer” -White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki Gas prices nationwide have skyrocketed as the Biden administration considers new energy regulations, raising questions about the energy markets and the federal government’s role in protecting consumer costs. In Manhattan, gas prices have hit nearly $5 per gallon, while more than 40 states are experiencing gas prices over $3 per gallon. GasBuddy reports the national average for gasoline is at $3.25 per gallon, well above the prices from the same time last year. “Now in a single day, American drivers are paying over $400 million more for gas than they were last year,” the company said. Prices have risen nearly eight cents in the last month alone. Industry insiders have laid the blame for rising energy costs at the feet of President Joe Biden, citing increased regulations. The Biden administration has ...