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GOP senators urge Trump administration to reverse $6 billion education funding freeze

July 17, 2025 by WDNY Radio

GOP senators urge Trump administration to reverse billion education funding freeze

GOP senators urge Trump administration to reverse $6 billion education funding freeze — Alex Wong/Getty Images

(WASHINGTON) — A total of 10 Republican senators are urging the Trump administration to reverse its decision to withhold more than $6 billion in federal funds for education programs already appropriated by Congress.

“The decision to withhold this funding is contrary to President Trump’s goal of returning K-12 education to the states,” the GOP senators wrote in a letter to Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought obtained by ABC News.

“This funding goes directly to states and local school districts, where local leaders decide how this funding is spent, because as we know, local communities know how to best serve students and families,” the letter stated.

Federal aid for schools is typically allocated each year on July 1, but aid was paused on June 30 in an ongoing review of education funding, according to an Education Department memo sent to Congress obtained by ABC News.

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W. Va., led the group of senators signing onto the letter — a rare rebuke by Republicans of the president’s education policies.

Capito, who chairs the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS), is a staunch supporter of Education Secretary Linda McMahon and her mission to overhaul the Education Department.

The letter encourages Vought to release the funding to states, noting it was already approved by Congress in a short-term spending bill this past spring.

The funding that has been paused includes grants for after-school care, student support, English language and adult education, among other programs.

The senators’ letter comes just days after about two dozen state attorneys general and Democratic governors sued the Trump administration over the funding review that’s left many education leaders scrambling as the school year approaches.

“We want to see students in our states and across the country thrive, whether they are adult learners, students who speak English as a second language, or students who need after-school care so that their parents can work. We believe you share the same goal,” the senators’ letter stated.

In Alabama, where Trump won overwhelmingly in 2024, Superintendent of Education Eric Mackey told ABC News that he’s frustrated the administration decided to halt congressionally appropriated funding in the middle of the summer.

“We’re talking about transparency and consistency and making good on a promise,” Mackey told ABC News. “We’re talking about programs that Congress has already authorized and just three weeks before school starts, you just find that the check is not coming.”

The Education Department referred questions about the funding pause to OMB, which told ABC News many of the programs “grossly misused” government funds to promote a “radical leftwing agenda.”

The Impoundment Control Act — a law that states Congress must consider and review executive branch withholdings of budget authorities – requires OMB to specify the duration of proposed partial-year deferrals.

In a statement to ABC News, an OMB spokesman said no decisions have yet been made.

“We share your concern about taxpayer money going to fund radical left-wing programs,” the senators wrote in the letter. “However, we do not believe that is happening with these funds.”

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court’s decision on Monday to lift an injunction blocking the administration’s efforts to gut the Education Department allowed the administration to take a step toward fulfilling Trump‘s goal of dismantling the agency completely.

Such a move would require congressional approval.

South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds, one of the senators who signed the letter, introduced legislation, called “Returning Education to Our States,” that would block grant funds to states and redistribute statutory functions of the department to other agencies.

The proposed legislation hasn’t been taken up in the Senate this year and would likely fail without 60 Senate ‘yes’ votes.

The other Republican senators who signed the letter were: Susan Collins, of Maine; John Boozman, of Arkansas; Katie Britt, of Alabama; Deb Fischer, of Nebraska; John Hoeven, of North Dakota; Jim Justice, of West Virginia; Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky; and Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska.

Plane crash kills 1 and injures 2 in remote area of Olympic National Park

July 17, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(QUINAULT, WA) — At least one person is dead and two others have been injured in a small plane crash in a remote area of Olympic National Park in Washington, authorities said.

The incident occurred on Tuesday evening at approximately 6:50 p.m. when park rangers were notified of a crash in the Quinault area of Olympic National Park on a steep slope north of the Irely Lake Trailhead, according to a statement from the National Park Service.

“Rangers immediately coordinated a response with Naval Air Station Whidbey Island Search and Rescue,” officials said. “The three occupants of the plane — a Murphy SR3500 Moose — were transported to a Level 1 Trauma Center.”

Authorities said that two occupants were being treated for their injuries and that one person died due to the crash.

Officials have not yet publicly identified the people involved in the incident and have given no details about what might have caused it in the first place.

The cause of the accident is unknown and is currently under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Pro-Russia cybercrime network targeted by European law enforcement

July 17, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(LONDON) — Law enforcement officials in Europe said they had coordinated the dismantling of an international pro-Russian cybercrime network, arresting two members, issuing warrants for others in Russia and disrupting the group’s main infrastructure.

The network, known as NoName057(16), was alleged to have targeted Ukraine and countries that supported Kyiv in its fight against the Russian invasion, Europol said in a statement Wednesday. The group was alleged to have recruited volunteers via “pro-Russian channels, forums, and even niche chat groups on social media and messaging apps.”

“Individuals acting for NoName057(16) are mainly Russian-speaking sympathisers who use automated tools to carry out distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks,” Europol said in a statement.

Two people were arrested, one in France and one in Spain, officials said of the 3-day operation. Seven other arrest warrants were issued, including six by Germany for alleged hackers living in Russia, Europol said.

“The group, which professed support for the Russian Federation since the start of the war of aggression against Ukraine, executed multiple DDoS attacks during high-level political events in Europe,” the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation, or Eurojust, said in a statement posted to social media.

The FBI in the United States was among the law enforcement agencies who took action against the group, Europol said. Europol and Eurojust, the European Union’s top law-enforcement agencies, coordinated the operation, which they called “Eastwood.” They were joined by authorities from Czechia, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands.

The hacking group was estimated to have mobilized some 4,000 users to support their operations, Eurojust said. Europol and other law enforcement agencies sent some 1,000 alleged supporters messages notifying them of “their legal liability,” Europol said.

Investigators said they disrupted more than 100 servers used by the group, along with a “major part” of the group’s main infrastructure. Law enforcement officers searched two dozen houses throughout Europe and questioned people in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and Spain, according to Europol.

The pro-Russian group was accused of a series of hacks, including attacking banks and government offices in Sweden, along with perpetrating waves of cyber attacks in Germany and elsewhere. The attacks in Germany targeted some 230 organizations and businesses, including “arms factories, power suppliers and government organizations,” according to Eurojust.

“In Switzerland, multiple attacks were also carried out in June 2023, during a Ukrainian video-message addressed to the Joint Parliament, and in June 2024, during the Peace Summit for Ukraine at Bürgenstock,” Europol said.

The group was most recently alleged in June to have attacked the NATO summit in the Netherlands.

Dozens feared dead after fire rips through shopping mall in Iraq

July 17, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(LONDON) — A fire overnight at a shopping mall in Iraq has killed dozens of people in the city of Kut, authorities said.

Early reports say that as many as 60 people have been killed with dozens more reported missing in the eastern Iraqi city.

The cause of the fire is not immediately known.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Trump told GOP lawmakers he would ‘likely’ fire Fed chair Powell ‘soon,’ sources and officials say

July 16, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — President Trump asked a group of Republican lawmakers how they felt about him firing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and told them he would “likely” fire Powell “soon,” according to two White House officials and sources familiar with the Tuesday evening meeting.

The Republican lawmakers expressed their approval of Trump’s intention to fire him, according to the White House officials and sources on Wednesday.

According to one lawmaker in the room, President Trump made it clear he wanted Powell gone and signaled he could move in that direction, but the president was also responding to the reception from other Republicans who were on board with the idea.

Trump mentioned this meeting in the Oval Office on Wednesday, saying he discussed the “concept of firing him.”

“I said, what do you think? Almost every one of them said I should, but I’m more conservative than they are,” Trump told reporters.

This development follows Trump’s ongoing pressure campaign to get Powell to lower interest rates. Powell has said the Fed would have cut rates by now if it weren’t for inflation concerns as the result of President Trump’s tariff policy.

While a decision on Powell could come at any time or not come at all, sources caution that a decision is not final until President Trump makes an announcement publicly.

Trump on Wednesday dismissed reports that he drafted a letter to fire Powell.

“Are you completely ruling out the idea of firing Jerome Powell?” a reporter asked Trump in the Oval Office.

“I don’t rule out anything, but I think it’s highly unlikely unless he has to leave for fraud,” Trump said.

Trump allies and top White House officials have been raising questions about the $2.5 billion dollar renovation of two historic Fed buildings on the National Mall, with some suggesting it could be weaponized against Powell to remove him from his role.

“We’re very concerned. He’s doing a little renovation for 2.5 billion of the Fed building — building a — a renovation, and they have a close to $900 million cost overrun. And it’s a shame, but the biggest cost overrun is the cost overrun for interest rates,” Trump said.

ABC News White House Correspondent Karen Travers asked Trump if he’s calling for an investigation into Powell.

Powell has requested a review of the Federal Reserve’s renovation project by the agency’s inspector general.

While many legal scholars argue that Trump does not have the authority to fire Powell, the Director of the National Economic Council Kevin Hassett told Jon Karl on “This Week” on Sunday that he believes Trump can fire Powell if “there’s cause.”

On Capitol Hill, Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, took to the Senate floor Wednesday afternoon to issue a stark warning against removing Powell.

“The consequence of firing a Fed chair just because political people don’t agree with that economic decision will be to undermine the credibility of the United States government going forward,” Tillis said. “And I would argue, if it happens, you’re going to see a pretty immediate response. We’ve got to avoid that.”

ABC News’ Allison Pecorin contributed to this report.

DHS Secretary Noem says airline carry-on liquids limit could be changed soon

July 16, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — One week after announcing an end to the requirement that passengers remove their shoes when undergoing airport security screening, the Department of Homeland Security could also alter another post-9/11 mainstay of air travel – the amount of liquid ounces that people can take with them onboard commercial planes.

“The liquids I’m questioning, so that may be the next big announcement is what size your liquids need to be,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said at an event in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. “We’re looking at our scanners, what we have put in place in TSA, multi-layered screening process that allows us to change some of how we do security and screening so it still is safe.”

Noem didn’t indicate when the updated policy announcement might be made.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in 2006 implemented a policy limiting liquids, gels and aerosols in passenger carry-on luggage to 3.4-ounce containers or smaller, to lessen the chances of liquid explosives being brought onboard commercial aircraft.

Noem announced on July 8 that DHS was ending the nearly 20-year requirement that passengers remove their shoes for inspection before boarding commercial aircraft. The policy was implemented in 2006 after the so-called “shoe bomber,” Richard Reid, unsuccessfully attempted to detonate plastic explosives concealed in his shoes onboard a flight from Paris, France to Miami, Fla. On Dec. 22, 2001.

Noem said during last week’s announcement that DHS was able to terminate the shoe removal policy due to the “layered security” by the TSA now place. These layers include additional officers at security checkpoints, new scanners and technology and the recently enforced REAL ID requirement, Noem said.

Secretary Noem was also asked about the current threat environment in the United States.

“We have the threat from terrorists that are in our country today that we need to remove,” she said. “We also have the crimes that are happening on our streets by those individuals that are murderers and rapists that affect families immediately.”

Noem said the U.S. critical infrastructure is also vulnerable to attack and pointed to various cyber incidents that have occurred in the past year.

Father drowns after saving 5 people from rip current in South Carolina

July 16, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(PAWLEYS ISLAND, S.C.) — A Georgia father drowned after saving five people from a rip current at a beach in South Carolina, according to the Pawleys Island Police Department.

At approximately 4:45 p.m. on Sunday, police received a call for “multiple swimmers in distress” in Pawleys Island, South Carolina, and once on the scene, they discovered one person was missing and a “search was initiated.”

Then at approximately 6:15 p.m., the body of the missing person was found and identified as 38-year-old Chase Childers, officials said.

Officials later found out that Childers — a former professional baseball player for the Baltimore Orioles’ minor league team and police officer — and one other individual entered the water to help a family of five, with Childers getting “caught in the rip current.”

“He died trying to save others,” police said.

Childers’ family said in a statement that they are “devastated by the tragic loss of our beloved Chase Childers” and that the news feels “surreal, incredibly hard to grasp and profoundly unfair.”

His family described his death as a “heroic act,” where he paid the “highest sacrifice with his life in front of his three children and wife.”

“Word are hard to find at the moment,” the family said in a statement shared on social media.

Childers leaves behind three children and his wife, the family said. He would have turned 39 next month, his brother-in-law confirmed to ABC News.

Another hole has formed at Yellowstone National Park, geologists say

July 16, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WYOMING) — More geological changes are occurring at Yellowstone National Park, as another hole forms in one of the park’s basins.

The hole is a blue water spring, discovered by geologists in April as they conducted routine maintenance of temperature logging stations at Norris Geyser Basin, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The pool, located in the Porcelain Basin sub-basin west of a patch of vegetation known as “Tree Island,” was not there during their last visit to the area in the fall, according to the USGS.

The water is light blue in color and is about 1 foot deep below the rim. It’s geological features indicate it formed as a result of a hydrothermal explosion — an event caused by pressure changes that result from the transition of liquid water to steam, according to the USGS.

The pool measures about 13 feet in diameter and is surrounded by numerous small rocks about 1 foot across. The rocks are covered by light gray, sandy mud.

It is “not surprising” that a hydrothermal explosion occurred at the site, as it has happened several times in recent decades, according to the USGS. The North Geyser Basin is the “most dynamic” area in Yellowstone, the agency said.

High-resolution satellite imagery indicates that the hole was not present on Dec. 19, but images taken on Jan. 6 show a depression that had formed in the area. By Feb. 13, the pool had been filled with water, the satellite images show.

More will hydrothermal explosions will likely be recorded, as a monitoring station installed in 2023 can detect geophysical data indicating an explosion.

In April 2024, a “small” explosion at the Porcelain Terrace left a crater measuring several feet across in diameter, according to the USGS.

A hole that formed in Yellowstone’s Biscuit Basin, near Old Faithful, in July 2024 was also attributed to a hydrothermal explosion, according to the National Park Service.

While that hole likely formed in a single major explosive event, the newest thermal feature appears to have formed by multiple small events that initially threw rocks but later threw silica mud a short distance, creating a small pit that became filled with silica-rich water.

Geologists estimate that the feature probably started to develop on Dec. 25, with further activity occurring through late January and early February, according to the USGS.

Beneath Yellowstone National Park lies a complex and extensive volcanic system. The park is thoroughly monitored by the USGS and the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory.

NYPD run like the mob, ex-commissioner says in bombshell lawsuit

July 16, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — The nation’s largest police force is “criminal at its core,” according to a new federal lawsuit by former interim New York City Police Commissioner Thomas Donlon.

Donlon said the NYPD “functions as a racketeering enterprise,” at the direction of Mayor Eric Adams.

In addition to Adams, the lawsuit named Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Kaz Daughtry, Chief of Department John Chell and former Deputy Commissioner Tarik Sheppard among others.

“Senior leadership had abandoned lawful governance and engaged in outright malfeasance by using the NYPD to consolidate political power, obstruct justice, and punish dissent,” the lawsuit said. “The Defendants engaged in a coordinated pattern of racketeering activity that was deliberate, sustained, and directed from the highest levels of the NYPD and City Hall.”

The accusations in Donlon’s lawsuit are “absurd,” Adams’ press secretary, Kayla Mamelak Altus, said in a statement in response to the lawsuit.

“These are baseless accusations from a disgruntled former employee who — when given the opportunity to lead the greatest police department in the world — proved himself to be ineffective. This suit is nothing more than an attempt to seek compensation at the taxpayer’s expense after Mr. Donlon was rightfully removed from the role of interim police commissioner,” Altus said.

“The NYPD is led by the best, brightest, and most honorable professionals in the nation — and their results speak for themselves: crime continues to fall across the city, with shootings at the lowest level in recorded history. We will respond in court, where we are confident these absurd claims will be disproven,” she added.

Adams appointed Donlon interim commissioner in 2024 after Edward Caban resigned the post following an FBI search of his home. Caban has not been charged with any wrongdoing and said at the time he was resigning because the raids “created a distraction.”

In the complaint, Donlon said he was commissioner “in name only” and true authority remained with an inner circle of Adams’ loyalists.

“The Defendants undermined Donlon’s authority by blocking his merit-based promotions and instead elevating unvetted individuals of their choosing. The Defendants then fraudulently used Donlon’s official Police Commissioner stamp — without his consent — to legitimize and carry out their corrupt scheme,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit also accused several of the defendants of carrying out “a calculated and deeply personal act of vengeance” by orchestrating the false arrest of Donlon’s wife and leaking it to the press. Donlon’s wife was arrested for expired car insurance last December, sources told the New York Post.

“This was not a mistake. It was a deliberate abuse of power designed to punish and intimidate Donlon for exposing their misconduct,” the lawsuit said. “This coordinated humiliation was a direct warning: the NYPD Defendants would stop at nothing to silence and personally destroy Donlon, even if it meant violating the constitutional rights of his spouse.”

Donlon is looking for compensatory, emotional and punitive damages as well as injunctive relief, with “the full extent of damages incurred by Donlon are to be determined at trial.”

Adams is currently running for a second term as mayor, but chose not to run in the Democratic primary and will run for reelection as an independent instead.

After earlier defiance, House GOP aligns with Trump to move forward with crypto bills

July 16, 2025 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — House Republicans on Wednesday followed directions from President Donald Trump to move forward with a package of legislation that includes three cryptocurrency measures — a day after hard-liners defied the president and tanked it.

The House passed the procedural motion after the hard-liners failed to advance it on Tuesday. Still there was some drama as several Republicans voted against it before changing their votes.

On Tuesday, Trump said he made a deal with the Republicans who voted against the crypto bills — CLARITY, GENIUS and Anti CBDC Surveillance Act.

Trump — who has said crypto is a top priority for his administration — said in a social media post on Tuesday that he met in the Oval Office with 11 of the 12 GOP members needed to pass the package and that they “all agreed to vote tomorrow morning in favor of the Rule.” Trump did not provide specifics about the deal.

That conservatives who voted against the rule on Tuesday wanted the crypto bills combined into one big package, rather than take separate standalone votes on each measure.

Johnson on Tuesday thanked Trump for helping lock down the necessary votes to advance the crypto legislation.

“I’m thankful for President Trump getting involved tonight to ensure that we can pass the GENIUS Act tomorrow and agreeing again to help us advance additional crypto legislation in the coming days,” Johnson said, referencing the name of one of the bills.

Earlier Tuesday, a dozen House Republicans bucked Trump and Johnson to prevent the legislation from advancing on the floor — joining the entire Democratic caucus — and, at least temporarily, freezing activity in the House. The final tally was 196-223.

Johnson had said earlier that while he anticipated that there may be enough opposition to defeat the effort, he felt that it was “important” to try to advance the bills. Republicans have a narrow majority in the House — with 220 Republicans compared to 212 Democrats.

“This is the legislative process. We have some members who really, really want to emphasize the House’s product,” Johnson said. “They want to, want to push that and merge them together. We’re trying to work with the White House and with our Senate partners on this. I think everybody is insistent that we’re going to do all three, but some of these guys insist that it needs to be all in one package.”

Trump touted the legislation on Tuesday, urging Republicans to advance the bills.

“The GENIUS Act is going to put our Great Nation lightyears ahead of China, Europe, and all others, who are trying endlessly to catch up, but they just can’t do it,” Trump posted on Truth Social Tuesday. “Digital Assets are the FUTURE, and we are leading by a lot! Get the first Vote done this afternoon (ALL REPUBLICANS SHOULD VOTE YES!).”

The vote came during what the White House is calling “Crypto Week” and marks a rare instance when House Republicans have defied Trump’s direction.

Trump, who launched his own crypto meme coin earlier this year, recently said he is a “fan of crypto” and called it a “very powerful industry” that the U.S. has “dominated.”

“I’m president. And what I did do there is build an industry that’s very important,” Trump said last month. “If we didn’t have it, China would.”

Once a crypto skeptic, Trump and his family have fully immersed themselves in the cryptocurrency marketplace, developing not only the $TRUMP meme coin, but also a bitcoin mining firm, a stablecoin firm and a crypto reserve.

ABC News’ Sarah Beth Hensley contributed to this report.

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