New Buffalo Sabres defenseman Olen Zellweger spoke with the media after being acquired by the Buffalo Sabres. He talked about joining the D-corps with Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson, and Owen Power, how he knew Owen Power already, what he brings to the Sabres, and more.
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States are being pressured into rewriting their election rules to receive terrorism grants, according to a New York Times report.
The Trump administration is demanding that states overhaul how they run elections, a few months before the midterms, or forfeit tens of millions in federal counterterrorism funding, The Times reported.
The changes include transitioning to hand-marked paper ballots, verifying the citizenship of voters, and conducting manual audits of 5 percent of ballots, which is "likely to cause significant delays in counting, cost millions of dollars and, in some cases, fall far short of what would be considered an adequate audit for races with narrow margins," The Times noted.
The measures demanded by the Trump administration "will actually harm election security," David Becker, who directs the Center for Election Innovation and Research, told The Times.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which is part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), wants states to provide "proof of compliance" to receive counterterrorism funding, The Times reported. FEMA is threatening to withhold 20 percent of certain terrorism-preparedness grants, totaling roughly $1 billion a year. Those grants pay for security barriers, cybersecurity protections, planning, and drills, The Times reported.
According to the Times, the grants largely flow to populous states, and New York is slated to receive about $204 million through those grants in fiscal year 2026. Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) accused the Trump administration of putting residents at risk to advance a political agenda, The Times reported.
Courts have repeatedly blocked similar attempts, ruling that the Constitution gives the executive branch no authority over elections, which states run and Congress oversees. The Times noted, pointing out that two Trump executive orders seeking sweeping election changes have largely been struck down.
Becker told The Times that he expects the election rules the Trump administration is pushing to collapse in court. DHS said in an unsigned statement that election security was a top priority, according to The Times.
A sluggish elevator forced Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) into an awkward confrontation with a local TV reporter seeking answers about her gubernatorial campaign.
The MAGA senator is the frontrunner in the Republican primary for Tennessee governor, but she's refusing to debate her GOP rivals and has refused to give interviews with reporters, so the delayed elevator at an event in Nashville forced her into a tight spot with WTVF-TV's Ben Hall.
"Senator, can we ask you about your run for governor?" Hall said.
An aide told the reporter Blackburn didn't have time for questions, but Hall said reporters were told she would speak with the media.
"Well, we were told you were going to answer some questions," Hall said. "Why don't you have time to talk? Should you talk to voters about what you plan to do as governor?"
Blackburn glared at the reporter as she waited for the elevator, and Hall asked why she would not debate her GOP opponents.
"We're talking to Tennesseans every single day, every single day," Blackburn replied.
Hall asked whether voters had a right to hear about her plans if elected governor, and she retreated to her talking point.
"We are talking to individuals every single day," she repeated.
Hall continued pressing the senator for answers about taxpayer subsidies to lure the Starbucks headquarters to Tennessee and other campaign issues, and Blackburn continued repeating her talking point as she continued to wait for the elevator to arrive.
"Are you uncomfortable talking about issues surrounding the campaign?" Hall asked, and Blackburn insisted she wasn't. "Then why won't you sit down and do interviews? We've asked you for interviews multiple times."
Blackburn turned to her talking point once again before the elevator finally ended her stalemate.
"She's running out the clock, and it may be a political strategy," said longtime conservative commentator Steve Gill, publisher of the TriStar Daily. "I'm not sure it's a policy strategy, and she may pay a price for it down the road because voters won't know what she really stands for."
Early voting starts in three weeks, and the winner of the GOP primary will be a heavy favorite to win the November election.
"That is not the look that you want from someone who's asking to be the chief executive officer of the state of Tennessee, who ought to be able to fully discuss issues," Gill said.
