National news, policy effects on the ground, and the stories shaping American life.
U.S.
Old Faithful has active bridge work until mid-August. Two visitors have been injured by bison this season. And the caldera everyone worries about is sitting at background levels, with the largest June earthquake at magnitude 2.4.
July 25, 2026, 1:40 PM ETGraphic: DWC News
DevelopingU.S.
As of the National Hurricane Center's 7 p.m. CDT advisory Thursday, July 23, Bertha had weakened to a tropical depression over Houston — 35 mph winds, expected to dissipate — and all coastal watches and warnings were dropped. Here's what it means, plus an evergreen Gulf Coast storm-prep checklist.
July 23, 2026, 10:01 PM ET
DevelopingU.S.
Lorenzo Thompson, a Jamaican citizen and Southwest flight attendant, was detained by ICE at work in Nashville on July 14 and remains in custody. ICE says he overstayed a 2021 visa; supporters say he has a pending asylum case. What's confirmed, what's contested, and how a case works.
July 23, 2026, 8:21 PM ET
DevelopingU.S.
Howard emailed 502 first-time-in-college students on July 22 that they had been dropped from Fall 2026 classes over unpaid balances — about 13 days before move-in. Howard says it warned families since March; students say aid should have covered them and the guidance conflicted.
July 23, 2026, 8:13 PM ET
BreakingU.S.
A preliminary magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck the Texas Panhandle near Miami — that is Miami, TEXAS, in Roberts County, not Miami, Oklahoma — at 5:21 a.m. Thursday. The shallow quake was felt across the Panhandle and into Oklahoma and Kansas. No damage or injuries were reported.
July 23, 2026, 5:13 PM ET
DevelopingU.S.
A federal judge sentenced Vance Boelter to two consecutive life terms plus 40 years, with no parole, for the June 2025 attacks that killed former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark. A separate state case, where he has pleaded not guilty, remains pending.
July 23, 2026, 4:10 PM ET
DevelopingU.S.
The reported contents of a first ransom note in the disappearance of Savannah Guthrie’s 84-year-old mother surfaced this week through a podcast, driving a search spike. Here is what the FBI and courts have confirmed, what is only reported, and what has been debunked as a hoax.
July 23, 2026, 4:04 PM ET
DevelopingU.S.
A Madison police officer shot and killed a man during a July 22 struggle in which the man cut an officer with a knife, the department says. The man, in his 30s, has not been publicly identified; the Wisconsin Department of Justice is investigating, and the officers wore no body cameras.
July 22, 2026, 9:30 PM ET
DevelopingU.S.
The amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli and about 2,200 Marines of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit returned to Okinawa on July 22, closing a six-month deployment — four months of it in Operation Epic Fury, the U.S. war against Iran. What they did, and why the war isn't over.
July 22, 2026, 10:00 AM ET
DevelopingU.S.
The 18-year-old vanished on a July 4 boat trip to Mississippi's Horn Island and was found dead two days later. A family-commissioned autopsy now calls the cause 'undetermined,' the FBI is assisting, and a grand jury looms. Here's what the official record establishes — and what remains unknown.
July 22, 2026, 10:00 AM ET
DevelopingU.S.
In Trump's $10 billion defamation case over the BBC's edit of his Jan. 6 speech, a Florida judge ruled he must hand over financial records from his family trust — because he put his own brand's value at issue. What's established, what each side argues, and what's still unknown.
July 22, 2026, 10:00 AM ET
DevelopingU.S.
Grant Simmons was seven months old when he died in March at an unlicensed East Canton home day care. On July 21, its operator, Melanie DiMarzio, was arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter. What's confirmed, what isn't, and how Ohio parents can check a provider.
July 21, 2026, 9:30 PM ET
U.S.
Carl Isom-McDaniel, 65, says the landing — not the launch — broke his femur in four places. The park won't punish the bull, because it was doing exactly what a 2,000-pound wild animal does in July. Here's the full story, what bison really are, and how to never be next.
July 21, 2026, 8:30 PM ET
