Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
US reports jobs added in January at 130,000
WASHINGTON — U.S. employers added a surprisingly strong 130,000 jobs last month, but government revisions cut 2024-25 U.S. payrolls by hundreds of thousands. The unemployment rate fell to 4.3%, the Labor Department said Wednesday. The report included...
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NLR authorizes selling $1.5M lot for $200,000
The North Little Rock City Council approved a resolution authorizing an agreement with a $200,000 purchase option for a property in Argenta that the city purchased less than three years ago for $1.5 million. The resolution leases the property at 200...
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Cuba: Fuel unavailable across island’s airports
HAVANA — Cuban aviation officials have warned airlines that there isn’t enough fuel for airplanes to refuel on the island, the latest step in its moves to ration energy as the Trump administration cuts the Caribbean nation off from its fuel...
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Federal official urges measles vaccinations
WASHINGTON — A leading U.S. health official on Sunday urged people to get inoculated against the measles at a time of outbreaks across several states and as the United States is at risk of losing its measles elimination status. “Take the vaccine,...
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Prosecutor, deputy used taxpayer funds for trips
Before admitting to an extramarital affair with his chief deputy, Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney Will Jones went on 11 overnight training trips with her at taxpayer expense. On a July 2024 junket, Jones sat beside Kelly Ward on flights to and...
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LR Central students march to the Capitol to protest ICE
The students streamed down the steps of Little Rock Central High School as the bell closed out third block. Ninth grader Joseph Green was one of them — and he carried an American flag over his shoulder. “We’re fighting for Americans,” Green said of...
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Trump’s drug portal launches
NEW YORK — The Trump administration Thursday launched TrumpRx, a website it says will help patients buy prescription drugs directly at a discounted rate at a time when health care and the cost of living are growing concerns for Americans. “You’re...
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Senate Democrats lay out demands for DHS funds
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats said Wednesday that they would put forth legislation by Thursday to codify their conditions for continuing to fund the Department of Homeland Security, moving quickly to lay out their demands for new restrictions on...
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Trump signs end to shutdown
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed a roughly $1.2 trillion government funding bill Tuesday that ends the partial federal shutdown that began over the weekend and sets the stage for an intense debate in Congress over Homeland Security...
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Lingering ice disrupts parking in LR, NLR
The good news in Little Rock and North Little Rock is that driving conditions since last week’s snow and ice storm have improved greatly. The bad news is that parking conditions are still a major challenge in some parts of the cities. In downtown...
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Palestinians in Gaza await reopening of Rafah crossing
CAIRO — Palestinians in Gaza watched with hope and impatience Sunday as workers laid the groundwork to reopen the territory’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt, its lifeline to the world. Israel says the crossing is scheduled to resume Monday as its...
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LR park project plans stagnate
When Little Rock officials decided to close War Memorial Golf Course in 2019, golfer Chris Jenkins and others assumed the city would repurpose the course. More than six years later, a series of improvements envisioned to provide new opportunities for...
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DOJ releases new batch of records on Epstein
NEW YORK — The Justice Department on Friday released many more records from its investigative files on Jeffrey Epstein, resuming disclosures under a law intended to reveal what the government knew about the millionaire financier’s sexual abuse of young...
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Roads improve as ice melts
Arkansas roads continued to improve on Wednesday as sunshine helped melt ice and snow from a winter storm that dumped a foot of snow on some parts of the state over the weekend. It’s got Ouachita County Judge Robbie McAdoo thinking ahead to the Camden...
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State roads still hazard despite melt
Ice and snow will melt during the day Wednesday, but it’s still dangerous on Arkansas roads, particularly at night after it refreezes. A Union Pacific train derailed Monday in Van Buren and an LSU team bus slid off an icy road in rural Polk...
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Winter storm tied to 2 ATV deaths in state
The winter storm that dumped a foot of snow on parts of Arkansas and encased much of the state in ice apparently contributed to two deaths. Both fatalities involved all-terrain vehicles, according to the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management. A...
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State remains blanketed in snow, ice
Snow and ice remain on the ground after a winter storm blew through Arkansas over the weekend, clogging roads and closing businesses and government offices. The storm also brought sub-freezing temperatures, with Little Rock, which had about 11 inches...
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Storm dumps snow, sleet, ice on state
As a winter storm came into Central Arkansas on Friday, 46-year-old Paulisha Thomason faced a choice: go to the North Little Rock Community Center or stay outside amid frigid temperatures and significant snowfall. So Thomason decided to go to the...
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State braces for winter storm
A severe winter storm began moving into Arkansas late Friday, bringing sleet, snow, freezing rain and brutally cold temperatures. Northwest Arkansas could see as much as 15 inches of snow, the National Weather Service said in its Friday afternoon...
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Icy conditions a worry for LR, NLR residents
With much of Little Rock being hilly and snow being relatively rare for the area, the city can be a tough place to drive in the kind of inclement weather forecast for this weekend. Little Rock and North Little Rock both have plans for the snow that...
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Trump outlines his plan for more homeownership
President Donald Trump’s plans for bringing homeownership within reach of more Americans involve pushing for lower interest rates on home loans and credit cards, and banning large institutional investors from buying single-family homes. In his address...
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UA law school students protest
FAYETTEVILLE — University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, law school students protested Tuesday what they contend is the university’s apparent capitulation to political pressure in rescinding an offer for Emily Suski to become dean of the law school. Suski...
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Paying a visit
As communities across the country on Monday hosted parades, panels and service projects for the 40th federal observation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the political climate for some is more fraught with tensions than festive with reflection on the...
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European nations condemn tariff threat over Greenland
BERLIN — The eight European countries targeted by U.S. President Donald Trump for a 10% tariff for opposing American control of Greenland blasted the move Sunday, warning that his threats “undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward...
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Panel OKs voucher funds addition
State lawmakers approved $32 million in additional funding for Arkansas’ Educational Freedom Account program Friday, bringing the total funding for the program to roughly $309.4 million. A divided Arkansas Legislative Council authorized the request by...
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LR data plant confirmed as Google facility
Google is the company developing a $1 billion, 300,000-square-foot data center at the Port of Little Rock, sources confirmed this week. Google has not formally announced its involvement in the project. The internet search giant, a subsidiary of...
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ICE protest continues
A federal agent deploys pepper spray at a protester Tuesday in Minneapolis.
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Federal agents in Minneapolis ram door of home, arrest man
MINNEAPOLIS — Federal agents carrying out immigration arrests in Minnesota’s Twin Cities region already shaken by the fatal shooting of a woman rammed the door of one home Sunday and pushed their way inside, part of what the Department of Homeland...
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Minnesota governor insists on state’s role in probe
MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota must play a role in investigating the fatal shooting of a Minneapolis woman by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer, Gov. Tim Walz insisted Thursday, pushing back against the Trump administration’s decision to keep the...
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24 Venezuelans said killed in US operation
CARACAS, Venezuela — At least 24 Venezuelan security officers were killed in the dead-of-night U.S. military operation to capture Nicolás Maduro and spirit him to the United States to face drug charges, officials said Tuesday. Also Tuesday, in a late...
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Maduro enters innocent plea
NEW YORK — A defiant Nicolás Maduro declared himself “the president of my country” as he protested his capture and pleaded innocent Monday to federal drug trafficking charges the Trump administration used to justify removing him from power in...
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Rubio restates Venezuela role
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested Sunday that the United States would not govern Venezuela day to day other than by enforcing an existing “oil quarantine” on the country, a turnaround after President Donald Trump announced a day...
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US troops capture Maduro Cotton, Crawford applaud ouster
WASHINGTON — The chairs of Congress’ intelligence committees voiced support for the United States’ military operation against Venezuela, saying the Trump administration made the correct decision to remove President Nicolás Maduro from power. The White...
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Swiss bar fire leaves 40 dead
CRANS-MONTANA, Switzerland — About 40 people were killed and another 115 injured, most of them serious- ly, after a fire ripped through a bar’s New Year celebration in a Swiss Alpine resort less than two hours after midnight Thursday, police...
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USDA details aid to farmers from package
The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Wednesday detailed how much aid per acre farmers can expect for each row crop from the $12 billion package that President Donald Trump announced in December. The details arrived after most farmers have already met...
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Water collection
A Palestinian youth collects water from a tank set up in Gaza City amid the rubble of buildings destroyed by Israeli air and ground operations on Tuesday.
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Arkansas Children’s given $50M donation
Arkansas Children’s Hospital has received a $50 million gift from philanthropist B. Thomas Golisano, the largest philanthropic donation in the hospital’s history. Along with the donation, the hospital’s Little Rock campus will be renamed the Arkansas...
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Trump hosts meeting with Ukrainian leader
PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump on Sunday insisted Ukraine and Russia are “closer than ever before” to a peace deal as he hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at his Florida resort, but he acknowledged the negotiations are complex...
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Russian bombardment puts wrench in US talks
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia attacked Ukraine’s capital with ballistic missiles and drones Saturday, killing at least one person and wounding 27, a day before talks between the leaders of Ukraine and the United States, authorities said. Explosions boomed...
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Zelenskyy, Trump set to hold talks in Florida
KYIV, Ukraine — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine said Friday that he would meet this weekend with President Donald Trump as Ukraine and the United States try to maintain momentum in U.S.-led efforts to end the war with Russia. There was no...
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Santa on parade
A man wearing a Santa Claus costume takes part in the 40th annual Christmas parade heading toward the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth, Israel, on Wednesday.
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Justices block use of Guard in Chicago
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to allow the Trump administration to deploy National Guard troops in the Chicago area to support its immigration crackdown. The justices declined the Republican administration’s emergency request to...
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Car bomb in Moscow kills Russian general
TBILISI, Georgia — A senior Russian general was killed Monday in Moscow after a bomb placed under his car exploded, the country’s investigative committee said in a statement, in what appeared to be the latest high-profile assassination of Ukraine’s...
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US pursues oil tanker fleeing Caribbean Sea
The U.S. Coast Guard tried Saturday to intercept an oil tanker linked to Venezuela that is now fleeing away from the Caribbean Sea, according to three U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive operation, days after...
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Plan to ban accounts’ use on sports opposed
More than 200 Arkansans have voiced opposition to a proposed ban on spending state Educational Freedom Account money on team sports. Public schools, homeschool parent Hannah Senn said, have “large arenas with state-of-the-art scoreboards and locker...
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Entergy details power plan
Entergy Arkansas plans to add about 2,600 megawatts of new, more fuel-efficient power generation and will repower about 1,600 megawatts of existing generation over the next five years, the utility said on Thursday. Details about the total cost of the...
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Police: Beallis said to admit killing woman
FORT SMITH — Years before deputies found Charity Beallis and her 6-year-old twin children dead in their Bonanza home, her father told police she admitted firing the shot that killed her husband’s previous wife. Shawna Beallis, 34, died in early 2012...
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Water utility denied land funds
A divided legislative panel on Tuesday balked at granting the state Department of Agriculture $7 million in spending authority to allow the department to distribute a federal grant to Central Arkansas Water for use in land acquisition in the Lake...
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US offers up safety pledges to sway Kyiv
BERLIN — The U.S. has agreed to provide unspecified security guarantees to Ukraine as part of a peace deal to end Russia’s nearly four-year war, and more talks are likely this weekend, U.S. officials said Monday following the latest discussions with...
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Worries remain for state farmer after plan debut
WASHINGTON — Charles Williams began 2025 knowing it would be a difficult year. Williams has been farming in Crittenden County for three decades. Between himself, his father and cousin, the Williams family maintains 18,000 acres of cotton, corn, rice,...
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Shooting in Providence
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A shooter dressed in black killed at least two people and wounded nine others at Brown University on Saturday during final exams on the Ivy League campus, authorities said, and police were searching for the suspect. Officers...
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Voter-backed amendments open for edits
The Arkansas Supreme Court ruled the Arkansas Legislature — with a twothirds vote — can amend or repeal voter-proposed constitutional amendments, overturning a 74-year precedent. The landmark decision means the state Legislature now has the authority...
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Fed cuts interest rate ¼ point for 3rd time
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve reduced its key interest rate by a quarter-point for the third time in a row with a 9-3 vote Wednesday but signaled that it may leave rates unchanged in the coming months. Chair Jerome Powell signaled at a news...
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NWA poultry industry faces lawsuit fallout
Northwest Arkansas poultry growers say Tyson Foods’ recent decision to not renew contracts for farms in the Illinois River watershed will ripple through the center of the state’s most productive region. Cody Hays, a grower in Gentry, said he has less...
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Cavern complex eyed as state park
Arkansas has formally started the process of making the Blanchard Springs Caverns Complex into the Natural State’s 53rd state park, state officials announced Monday. Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders at a news conference signed a memorandum of...
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Netanyahu claims 2nd phase expected shortly
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel and Hamas are “very shortly expected to move into the second phase of the ceasefire,” after Hamas returns the remains of the last hostage held in Gaza. Netanyahu...
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Flag waving
Supporters celebrate seven years of the Fourth Transformation movement, initiated by former Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, in Mexico City on Saturday.
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Vaccine panel ceases hepatitis shot counsel
NEW YORK — A federal vaccine advisory committee voted on Friday to end the longstanding recommendation that all U.S. babies get the hepatitis B vaccine on the day they’re born. A loud chorus of medical and public health leaders decried the actions of...
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FBI arrests suspect in ’21 D.C. pipe bomb attempts
WASHINGTON — The FBI on Thursday arrested a man accused of placing two pipe bombs outside the headquarters of the Republican and Democratic national parties in Washington on the eve of the U.S. Capitol riot, an abrupt breakthrough in an investigation...
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Searching for the dead
JERUSALEM — Israel said it launched an airstrike on a Hamas militant in southern Gaza late Wednesday in retaliation for an attack earlier in the day that wounded five Israeli soldiers. The strike was the latest test for a fragile ceasefire that has...
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US-Russia talks on Ukraine called constructive
Talks between Russia and the U.S. on ending the nearly four-year war in Ukraine were constructive, but much work remains, Yuri Ushakov, a senior adviser to President Vladimir Putin, told reporters on Wednesday. Putin met U.S. President Donald Trump’s...
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Obama confides hope for US’ youth in talk
BENTONVILLE — Youth is the hope for an eroding political system, former President Barack Obama said Monday. About 700 people gathered at the Heartland Whole Health Institute on Monday to hear a conversation between the 44th U.S. president and Olivia...
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UA names Silverfield head coach
FAYETTEVILLE — The University of Arkansas an- nounced early Sunday afternoon the hiring of Memphis Coach Ryan Silverfield to fill the Razorbacks’ head football coaching vacancy. Silverfield, a 45-year-old native of Jacksonville, Fla., is set to be...
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Planned Gaza force yet to see troops, resources
The proposed deployment of an international force in Gaza, seen as a crucial feature of President Donald Trump’s plan to bring peace to the enclave, is struggling to get off the ground as countries considered likely to contribute soldiers have grown...
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Guard member dies day after D.C. attack
WEST PALM BEACH, Florida — President Donald Trump said that one of the two West Virginia National Guard members shot by an Afghan national near the White House had died, calling the shooter who had worked with the CIA in his native country a “savage...
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Two Guard members shot near White House
WASHINGTON — Two West Virginia National Guard members who deployed to the nation’s capital were shot Wednesday just blocks from the White House. FBI Director Kash Patel and Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said the Guard members were hospitalized and in...
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State officers given abilities of ICE agents
Selected Arkansas corrections officers will be permitted to question immigrant detainees, carry out warrants and issue immigrant detainers under an agreement with federal authorities to collaborate on immigration enforcement. The added authority is...
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Heading to the gate
The turbulence caused by the longest U.S. government shutdown may still be fresh on the minds of travelers this Thanksgiving, but experts say preparing for the usual holiday crush of winter weather, heavy traffic and crowded airports can help ease the...
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Ukraine, US said to see talks on peace plan make progress
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian and U.S. officials said they had made good progress Sunday in talks about a contentious U.S. plan to end the war with Russia, even as President Donald Trump lashed out at Ukraine, accusing its leaders of ingratitude. Trump...
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Court extends order blocking SNAP funds
The Supreme Court on Tuesday extended an order blocking full SNAP payments amid signals that the government shutdown is nearer to an end and food aid payments are more likely to resume. The order keeps in place at least for a few more days a chaotic...
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Cotton, Boozman back plan to end shutdown
WASHINGTON — Nearly six weeks after the federal government shutdown began, Arkansas’ U.S. senators joined fellow Republicans and a group of Senate Democrats to pass legislation to end the funding lapse. Sens. John Boozman, of Rogers, and Tom Cotton,...
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Hostage laid to rest
Ruby and Hagit Chen salute over the grave of their son, slain hostage Staff Sgt. Itay Chen, an Israeli-American, during his funeral at Kiryat Shaul Cemetery in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Sunday after his body was returned from Gaza.
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UAMS expert offers tips on meals for SNAP limits
Across Arkansas and America, people at the bottom of the pay scale are straining thin budgets and confronting bare cupboards. Some 240,000 Arkansans — most of them children — are awaiting the release of federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance...
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LR airport workers struggle unpaid as shutdown lingers
At Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport/Adams Field, where more than 130 federal workers have gone over a month without pay, frustration over the longest government shutdown in history is mounting. “I feel useless,” a Transportation Security...
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