SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged kidnapping and continue asking for help to locate a suspect.

Aldrick L. Scott, 47, of Topeka, is wanted by the Douglas County Nebraska Sheriff's Office in connection with the disappearance of 43-year-old Cari Allen.

Nebraska officials are working to locate Allen, according to a social media report from Omaha Police. She is described as a white female, 5-foot-8, 130 pounds, blonde hair and hazel eyes. She&nbsp;was last seen Saturday, Nov. 19 at 11 p.m. Scott has ties to Topeka and Shawnee County, according to the sheriff's department. On Monday, the sheriff's office released photos of Scott.

Anyone with information on Allen's whereabouts is encouraged to call the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office tip line at 402-444-6000 or 911.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/11/1669652492930.png" alt="Scott-photo Shawnee County" />
 <figcaption>Scott-photo Shawnee County</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged kidnapping and continue asking for help to locate a suspect.Aldrick L. Scott, 47, of Topeka, is wanted by the Douglas County Nebraska Sheriff's Office in connection with the disappearance of 43-year-old Cari Allen.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/11/1669587276863.png" alt="Allen-photo Omaha Police" />
 <figcaption>Allen-photo Omaha Police</figcaption>
 </figure>Nebraska officials are working to locate Allen, according to a social media report from Omaha Police. She is described as a white female, 5-foot-8, 130 pounds, blonde hair and hazel eyes. She&nbsp;was last seen Saturday, Nov. 19 at 11 p.m. Scott has ties to Topeka and Shawnee County, according to the sheriff's department. On Monday, the sheriff's office released photos of Scott.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/11/1669652758142.png" alt="Scott-photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Scott-photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>Anyone with information on Allen's whereabouts is encouraged to call the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office tip line at 402-444-6000 or 911.

Search continues for man in Nebraska woman's disappearance 

GRAND ISLAND, NEB.&nbsp; — The Nebraska State Patrol is investigating a Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office pursuit that ended with a fatal crash Saturday night.

Preliminary information shows that a Hamilton County Sheriff’s Deputy attempted a traffic stop at approximately 10:15 p.m. Saturday. After a short time, the vehicle, a Toyota 4 Runner crashed and overturned in a ditch near the intersection of F Road and 11 Road in Hamilton County. The driver of the Toyota was ejected during the crash and transported to Grand Island Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced deceased.

The driver of the Toyota has been identified as Jordan Eastman, 34, of Giltner. The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office has requested the Nebraska State Patrol conduct the investigation into the incident. The investigation is ongoing.

By Nebraska State Patrol&nbsp;GRAND ISLAND, NEB.&nbsp; — The Nebraska State Patrol is investigating a Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office pursuit that ended with a fatal crash Saturday night.Preliminary information shows that a Hamilton County Sheriff’s Deputy attempted a traffic stop at approximately 10:15 p.m. Saturday. After a short time, the vehicle, a Toyota 4 Runner crashed and overturned in a ditch near the intersection of F Road and 11 Road in Hamilton County. The driver of the Toyota was ejected during the crash and transported to Grand Island Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced deceased.The driver of the Toyota has been identified as Jordan Eastman, 34, of Giltner. The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office has requested the Nebraska State Patrol conduct the investigation into the incident. The investigation is ongoing.

NSP investigating Hamilton Co. Sheriff’s Office pursuit, fatal crash

By ROBERT ZULLO <a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/reliability-watchdog-warns-of-potential-electric-shortfalls-this-winter/">States Newsroom</a>

The nonprofit regulator charged with 
helping ensure the reliability of the North American electric grid is 
warning of potential electric supply shortfalls during severe weather 
this winter in several regions of the country.

Earlier this month, the North 
American Electric Reliability Corporation, which sets and enforces 
reliability standards for the bulk power system in the U.S., Canada and 
part of Mexico, said New England and parts of the South and Midwest, are
 “at risk of having insufficient energy supplies during severe winter 
weather.”

The organization <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nerc.com/pa/RAPA/ra/Reliability%20Assessments%20DL/NERC_WRA_2022.pdf">pointed</a> to fuel supply problems, potential shipping disruptions,
 limited natural gas infrastructure, fossil and nuclear plant 
retirements and high potential peak electric demand as contributing risk
 factors during sustained cold weather.

“While the grid has a sufficient 
supply of capacity resources under normal winter conditions, we are 
concerned that some areas are highly vulnerable to extreme and prolonged
 cold,” said John Moura, NERC’s director of reliability assessment and 
performance analysis, in a statement. “As a result, load-shedding may be
 required to maintain reliability.” 
(<a target="_blank" href="https://www.entergynewsroom.com/storm-center/restoration/loadshed/#:~:text=When%20the%20demand%20for%20electricity,is%20called%20%E2%80%9Cshedding%20load.%E2%80%9D">Load-shedding</a> means intentionally interrupting the flow of electricity to customers to reduce the strain on the grid.)

For the part of the grid overseen by the <a target="_blank" href="https://minnesotareformer.com/2022/09/26/amid-a-massive-american-clean-energy-shift-grid-operators-play-catch-up/">Midcontinent Independent System Operator</a>,
 an area that includes all or parts of 15 U.S. states including Nebraska
 and Iowa. &nbsp;NERC worries that more than 4.2 gigawatts of nuclear and 
coal power plants have been retired. That’s the rough equivalent of four
 large (1,000 megawatt) power plants.

“An extreme cold-weather event that 
extends deep into MISO’s area could lead to high generator outages from 
inadequate weatherization in southern units and unavailability of fuel 
for natural-gas-fired generators,” the report says.

MISO predicts its peak winter demand 
will be 102 gigawatts, with 113 gigawatts of electric generation 
available “under normal grid conditions,” Brandon Morris, a spokesman, 
said in an email. The organization’s all-time peak winter record for 
power demand was 109 gigawatts on Jan. 6, 2017.&nbsp; However, Morris said 
staff members from the organization noted in a winter readiness workshop
 last month that extreme cold weather, intense winter storms and/or fuel
 supply issues could create challenges for MISO and local utilities.

Power generators in MISO, however, 
have shown improvement in preparing their plants for extreme weather, 
according to a winterization survey the organization conducted, Morris 
said.&nbsp;

NERC made a broad series of 
recommendations to mitigate risks to the power grid from extreme 
weather. First, it said power generators should be preparing for winter 
conditions and communicating with grid operators. They also should 
ensure they have adequate fuel on hand and the organizations that 
monitor them should keep tabs on fuel supplies as well. But NERC also 
urged state regulators and policymakers to “preserve critical generation
 resources at risk of retirement prior to the winter season and support 
requests for environmental and transportation waivers.”

Holly Bender, the Sierra Club’s 
senior director of energy campaigns, called NERC’s suggestion to suspend
 environmental rules to keep fossil plants running “the wrong strategy.”
 Rather, Bender said the report makes the case that reliance on fossil 
fuels itself poses risks and she urged state regulators to instead push 
energy efficiency and weatherization programs that will cut power use. 
“Whether it’s water shortages in the summer or frozen coal piles and 
short fuel supply in the winter, fossil fuels like coal and gas struggle
 through extreme weather,” she said. “In addition to the public health, 
environmental, and climate impacts, fossil fuels are increasingly 
unreliable, contributing to energy insecurity and unpredictable price 
spikes that impact the most vulnerable members of our communities the 
most.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1670086191293.jpg" alt="Image courtesy of Pixabay" />
 <figcaption>Image courtesy of Pixabay</figcaption>
 </figure>By ROBERT ZULLO <a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/reliability-watchdog-warns-of-potential-electric-shortfalls-this-winter/">States Newsroom</a>The nonprofit regulator charged with 
helping ensure the reliability of the North American electric grid is 
warning of potential electric supply shortfalls during severe weather 
this winter in several regions of the country.Earlier this month, the North 
American Electric Reliability Corporation, which sets and enforces 
reliability standards for the bulk power system in the U.S., Canada and 
part of Mexico, said New England and parts of the South and Midwest, are
 “at risk of having insufficient energy supplies during severe winter 
weather.”The organization <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nerc.com/pa/RAPA/ra/Reliability%20Assessments%20DL/NERC_WRA_2022.pdf">pointed</a> to fuel supply problems, potential shipping disruptions,
 limited natural gas infrastructure, fossil and nuclear plant 
retirements and high potential peak electric demand as contributing risk
 factors during sustained cold weather.“While the grid has a sufficient 
supply of capacity resources under normal winter conditions, we are 
concerned that some areas are highly vulnerable to extreme and prolonged
 cold,” said John Moura, NERC’s director of reliability assessment and 
performance analysis, in a statement. “As a result, load-shedding may be
 required to maintain reliability.” 
(<a target="_blank" href="https://www.entergynewsroom.com/storm-center/restoration/loadshed/#:~:text=When%20the%20demand%20for%20electricity,is%20called%20%E2%80%9Cshedding%20load.%E2%80%9D">Load-shedding</a> means intentionally interrupting the flow of electricity to customers to reduce the strain on the grid.)For the part of the grid overseen by the <a target="_blank" href="https://minnesotareformer.com/2022/09/26/amid-a-massive-american-clean-energy-shift-grid-operators-play-catch-up/">Midcontinent Independent System Operator</a>,
 an area that includes all or parts of 15 U.S. states including Nebraska
 and Iowa. &nbsp;NERC worries that more than 4.2 gigawatts of nuclear and 
coal power plants have been retired. That’s the rough equivalent of four
 large (1,000 megawatt) power plants.“An extreme cold-weather event that 
extends deep into MISO’s area could lead to high generator outages from 
inadequate weatherization in southern units and unavailability of fuel 
for natural-gas-fired generators,” the report says.MISO predicts its peak winter demand 
will be 102 gigawatts, with 113 gigawatts of electric generation 
available “under normal grid conditions,” Brandon Morris, a spokesman, 
said in an email. The organization’s all-time peak winter record for 
power demand was 109 gigawatts on Jan. 6, 2017.&nbsp; However, Morris said 
staff members from the organization noted in a winter readiness workshop
 last month that extreme cold weather, intense winter storms and/or fuel
 supply issues could create challenges for MISO and local utilities.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1670086259419.png" alt=" Utility area covered by the Midcontinent Independent System Operator. (Courtesy of MISO)" />
 <figcaption> Utility area covered by the Midcontinent Independent System Operator. (Courtesy of MISO)</figcaption>
 </figure>Power generators in MISO, however, 
have shown improvement in preparing their plants for extreme weather, 
according to a winterization survey the organization conducted, Morris 
said.&nbsp;NERC made a broad series of 
recommendations to mitigate risks to the power grid from extreme 
weather. First, it said power generators should be preparing for winter 
conditions and communicating with grid operators. They also should 
ensure they have adequate fuel on hand and the organizations that 
monitor them should keep tabs on fuel supplies as well. But NERC also 
urged state regulators and policymakers to “preserve critical generation
 resources at risk of retirement prior to the winter season and support 
requests for environmental and transportation waivers.”Holly Bender, the Sierra Club’s 
senior director of energy campaigns, called NERC’s suggestion to suspend
 environmental rules to keep fossil plants running “the wrong strategy.”
 Rather, Bender said the report makes the case that reliance on fossil 
fuels itself poses risks and she urged state regulators to instead push 
energy efficiency and weatherization programs that will cut power use. 
“Whether it’s water shortages in the summer or frozen coal piles and 
short fuel supply in the winter, fossil fuels like coal and gas struggle
 through extreme weather,” she said. “In addition to the public health, 
environmental, and climate impacts, fossil fuels are increasingly 
unreliable, contributing to energy insecurity and unpredictable price 
spikes that impact the most vulnerable members of our communities the 
most.”

Reliability watchdog warns of winter electric shortfalls

KANSAS CITY (AP) —When members of the small Pennsylvania chapter of Secular Democrats of America log on for their monthly meetings, they're not there for a virtual happy hour.

“We don’t sit around at our meetings patting ourselves on the back for not believing in God together,” said David Brown, a founder from the Philadelphia suburb of Ardmore.

The group, mostly consisting of atheists and agnostics, mobilizes to knock on doors and make phone calls on behalf of Democratic candidates “who are pro-science, pro-democracy, whether or not they are actually self-identified secular people,” he said. “We are trying to keep church and state separate. That encompasses LGBTQIA+, COVID science, bodily autonomy and reproductive rights.”

Brown describes his group as “small but mighty," yet they're riding a big wave.

Voters with no religious affiliation supported Democratic candidates and abortion rights by staggering percentages in the 2022 midterm elections.

And they're voting in large numbers. In 2022, some 22% of voters claimed no religious affiliation, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-donald-trump-race-and-ethnicity-only-on-ap-congress-a15f6d6ebd6f629c6e92531a0c7172e6">AP VoteCast</a>, an expansive survey of more than 94,000 voters nationwide. They contributed to voting coalitions that gave Democrats victories in battleground states such as Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Arizona.

The unaffiliated — often nicknamed the “nones” — voted for Democratic House candidates nationwide over Republicans by more than a 2-1 margin (65% to 31%), according to VoteCast. That echoes the 2020 president election, when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/votecast-trump-wins-white-evangelicals-d0cb249ea7eae29187a21a702dc84706">Democrat Joe Biden took 72% of voters</a>&nbsp;with no religious affiliation, while Republican Donald Trump took 25%, according to VoteCast.

For all the talk of the overwhelmingly Republican voting by white evangelical Christians in recent elections, the unaffiliated are making their presence felt.

Among all U.S. adults, 29% are nones — those who identify as atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular” — according a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2021/12/14/about-three-in-ten-u-s-adults-are-now-religiously-unaffiliated/">2021 report</a>&nbsp;by the Pew Research Center. That’s up 10 percentage points from a decade earlier, according to Pew. And the younger the adults, the more likely they are to be unaffiliated, according to a 2019 Pew analysis, further signaling the growing clout of the nones.

“People talk about how engaged white evangelicals are, but you don’t know the half of it,” said Ryan Burge, a professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University who focuses on the interaction of religious and political behavior.

Atheists and agnostics form only a subset of nones and are less numerous than evangelicals. But they are more likely than evangelicals to make a campaign donation, attend a political meeting or join a protest, Burge said, citing the Harvard-affiliated Cooperative Election Study.

“When you consider how involved they are in political activity, you realize how important they are at the ballot box,” he said.

The nones equaled Catholics at 22% of the electorate, though they were barely half the figure for Protestants and other Christians (43%), according to VoteCast. Other religious groups totaled 13%, including 3% Jewish and 1% Muslim.

Separately, 30% of voters identified as born again or evangelical Christians.

In several bellwether races this year, the secular vote made its impact felt, according to AP VoteCast.

__About four in five people with no religious affiliation voted against abortion restrictions in referendums in Michigan and Kentucky.

__Between two-thirds and three-quarters of nones supported Democratic candidates in statewide races in Arizona and Wisconsin.

__About four in five people with no religion voted for Josh Shapiro and John Fetterman, the Democrats elected Pennsylvania's newest governor and senator, respectively.

While Shapiro openly speaks about his Jewish values motivating his public service, Fetterman has not incorporated any discernible religious tradition in his public statements. He often frames issues in ethical terms— such as promoting criminal justice reform and raising the minimum wage, even calling abortion rights “sacred” — without reference to a religious tradition.

Fetterman's campaign did not return a request for comment.

The secular population is a diverse group, Pew reported in 2021. Two-thirds identify as “nothing in particular” — a group that is alienated from politics as well as religion, Burge said.

But atheists and agnostics, though only a third of the nones, punch above their weight, given their heavy involvement in politics.

The twin trends of a growing secular cohort among Democrats and the increased religiosity of Republicans are not coincidental.

Several prominent Republican candidates and their supporters have promoted Christian nationalism, which fuses an American and Christian sense of identity, mission and symbols.

That prompts a reaction by many secular voters, Burge said: “At least among white people, it’s become clear the Democratic Party has become the party for the non-religious people.”

Yet it's not their party alone. The Democratic coalition draws heavily from religious groups — Black Protestants, liberal Jews, Catholics of color. The Black church tradition, in particular, has a highly devout base in support of moderate and progressive policies.

“I think the Democrats have the biggest problem in the world because they have to keep atheists and Black Protestants happy at the same time,” Burge said.

Tensions surfaced in 2019 when the Democratic National Committee passed a resolution praising the religiously unaffiliated in language that some saw as overstating their clout and denigrating religious values.

Differences between secular and religious Democrats showed up in VoteCast. Majorities of Democratic voters across all religious affiliations say abortion should be legal at least most of the time, but 6 in 10 Democratic voters unaffiliated with a religion say it should always be legal, compared with about 4 in 10 Democratic voters affiliated with Christian traditions. In general, 69% of Democratic voters unaffiliated with a religion identify as liberal, compared with 46% of Christians who voted for Democrats.

But growing secular constituency doesn't worry Bishop William Barber, a leader in one of the nation's most prominent faith-based progressive movements.

“Jesus didn’t worry about it, so why would I?” said Barber, president of Repairers of the Breach, which calls for moral advocacy by faith and other leaders on behalf of the poor, immigrants and other marginalized communities. “Jesus said the one who is not against me is for me.”

“We have a lot of people who claim they’re agnostic or atheist, and they will come to our rallies,” said Barber, who is also co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign. “They will say, ‘I don’t necessarily believe in God, but I believe in right. I believe in love. I do believe in justice.’”

Brown, of the Secular Democrats group in Pennsylvania, said he had no problem supporting Democratic candidates like Shapiro, who talked openly about his Jewish values on the campaign trail. His opponent, Republican Doug Mastriano, incorporated Christian nationalist themes and imagery in his campaign.

“While on the one hand I am frustrated that politicians feel the need to justify their doing the right thing by religious affiliation, I also appreciate that this was a calculated decision to appeal to religious voters,” Brown said. “I have no problem with it because I feel it was in the service of defeating a Christian nationalist candidate on the other side.”

In fact, Brown even traveled to Georgia in late November to campaign door-to-door for an ordained minister — Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, the Democrat in a runoff election. And for the same reason — despite religious differences, he sees Warnock as sharing many of the values of secular voters.

By PETER SMITH&nbsp;KANSAS CITY (AP) —When members of the small Pennsylvania chapter of Secular Democrats of America log on for their monthly meetings, they're not there for a virtual happy hour.“We don’t sit around at our meetings patting ourselves on the back for not believing in God together,” said David Brown, a founder from the Philadelphia suburb of Ardmore.The group, mostly consisting of atheists and agnostics, mobilizes to knock on doors and make phone calls on behalf of Democratic candidates “who are pro-science, pro-democracy, whether or not they are actually self-identified secular people,” he said. “We are trying to keep church and state separate. That encompasses LGBTQIA+, COVID science, bodily autonomy and reproductive rights.”Brown describes his group as “small but mighty," yet they're riding a big wave.Voters with no religious affiliation supported Democratic candidates and abortion rights by staggering percentages in the 2022 midterm elections.And they're voting in large numbers. In 2022, some 22% of voters claimed no religious affiliation, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-donald-trump-race-and-ethnicity-only-on-ap-congress-a15f6d6ebd6f629c6e92531a0c7172e6">AP VoteCast</a>, an expansive survey of more than 94,000 voters nationwide. They contributed to voting coalitions that gave Democrats victories in battleground states such as Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Arizona.The unaffiliated — often nicknamed the “nones” — voted for Democratic House candidates nationwide over Republicans by more than a 2-1 margin (65% to 31%), according to VoteCast. That echoes the 2020 president election, when&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/votecast-trump-wins-white-evangelicals-d0cb249ea7eae29187a21a702dc84706">Democrat Joe Biden took 72% of voters</a>&nbsp;with no religious affiliation, while Republican Donald Trump took 25%, according to VoteCast.For all the talk of the overwhelmingly Republican voting by white evangelical Christians in recent elections, the unaffiliated are making their presence felt.Among all U.S. adults, 29% are nones — those who identify as atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular” — according a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2021/12/14/about-three-in-ten-u-s-adults-are-now-religiously-unaffiliated/">2021 report</a>&nbsp;by the Pew Research Center. That’s up 10 percentage points from a decade earlier, according to Pew. And the younger the adults, the more likely they are to be unaffiliated, according to a 2019 Pew analysis, further signaling the growing clout of the nones.“People talk about how engaged white evangelicals are, but you don’t know the half of it,” said Ryan Burge, a professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University who focuses on the interaction of religious and political behavior.Atheists and agnostics form only a subset of nones and are less numerous than evangelicals. But they are more likely than evangelicals to make a campaign donation, attend a political meeting or join a protest, Burge said, citing the Harvard-affiliated Cooperative Election Study.“When you consider how involved they are in political activity, you realize how important they are at the ballot box,” he said.The nones equaled Catholics at 22% of the electorate, though they were barely half the figure for Protestants and other Christians (43%), according to VoteCast. Other religious groups totaled 13%, including 3% Jewish and 1% Muslim.Separately, 30% of voters identified as born again or evangelical Christians.In several bellwether races this year, the secular vote made its impact felt, according to AP VoteCast.__About four in five people with no religious affiliation voted against abortion restrictions in referendums in Michigan and Kentucky.__Between two-thirds and three-quarters of nones supported Democratic candidates in statewide races in Arizona and Wisconsin.__About four in five people with no religion voted for Josh Shapiro and John Fetterman, the Democrats elected Pennsylvania's newest governor and senator, respectively.While Shapiro openly speaks about his Jewish values motivating his public service, Fetterman has not incorporated any discernible religious tradition in his public statements. He often frames issues in ethical terms— such as promoting criminal justice reform and raising the minimum wage, even calling abortion rights “sacred” — without reference to a religious tradition.Fetterman's campaign did not return a request for comment.The secular population is a diverse group, Pew reported in 2021. Two-thirds identify as “nothing in particular” — a group that is alienated from politics as well as religion, Burge said.But atheists and agnostics, though only a third of the nones, punch above their weight, given their heavy involvement in politics.The twin trends of a growing secular cohort among Democrats and the increased religiosity of Republicans are not coincidental.Several prominent Republican candidates and their supporters have promoted Christian nationalism, which fuses an American and Christian sense of identity, mission and symbols.That prompts a reaction by many secular voters, Burge said: “At least among white people, it’s become clear the Democratic Party has become the party for the non-religious people.”Yet it's not their party alone. The Democratic coalition draws heavily from religious groups — Black Protestants, liberal Jews, Catholics of color. The Black church tradition, in particular, has a highly devout base in support of moderate and progressive policies.“I think the Democrats have the biggest problem in the world because they have to keep atheists and Black Protestants happy at the same time,” Burge said.Tensions surfaced in 2019 when the Democratic National Committee passed a resolution praising the religiously unaffiliated in language that some saw as overstating their clout and denigrating religious values.Differences between secular and religious Democrats showed up in VoteCast. Majorities of Democratic voters across all religious affiliations say abortion should be legal at least most of the time, but 6 in 10 Democratic voters unaffiliated with a religion say it should always be legal, compared with about 4 in 10 Democratic voters affiliated with Christian traditions. In general, 69% of Democratic voters unaffiliated with a religion identify as liberal, compared with 46% of Christians who voted for Democrats.But growing secular constituency doesn't worry Bishop William Barber, a leader in one of the nation's most prominent faith-based progressive movements.“Jesus didn’t worry about it, so why would I?” said Barber, president of Repairers of the Breach, which calls for moral advocacy by faith and other leaders on behalf of the poor, immigrants and other marginalized communities. “Jesus said the one who is not against me is for me.”“We have a lot of people who claim they’re agnostic or atheist, and they will come to our rallies,” said Barber, who is also co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign. “They will say, ‘I don’t necessarily believe in God, but I believe in right. I believe in love. I do believe in justice.’”Brown, of the Secular Democrats group in Pennsylvania, said he had no problem supporting Democratic candidates like Shapiro, who talked openly about his Jewish values on the campaign trail. His opponent, Republican Doug Mastriano, incorporated Christian nationalist themes and imagery in his campaign.“While on the one hand I am frustrated that politicians feel the need to justify their doing the right thing by religious affiliation, I also appreciate that this was a calculated decision to appeal to religious voters,” Brown said. “I have no problem with it because I feel it was in the service of defeating a Christian nationalist candidate on the other side.”In fact, Brown even traveled to Georgia in late November to campaign door-to-door for an ordained minister — Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, the Democrat in a runoff election. And for the same reason — despite religious differences, he sees Warnock as sharing many of the values of secular voters.

Non-religious voters wield clout, tilt heavily Democratic

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — When BNSF railroad conductor Justin Schaaf needed to take time off from work this summer, he had to make a choice: go to the dentist to get a cavity in his molar filled or attend a party for his son's 7th birthday.

"Ultimately I decided to take the day off for my kid’s birthday party,” Schaaf said. “Then when I am finally able to get into the dentist four, five, six months later, the tooth is too bad to repair at that point, so I have to get the tooth pulled out.”

Those are the kind of tradeoffs that railroad workers worry they might still have to make after Congress voted this week to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-pete-buttigieg-strikes-congress-c95510555dcd4cdc2d839e61d1195b06">impose a contract</a>&nbsp;on them to avoid the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-economy-strikes-climate-and-environment-government-politics-92ea7632a29f807ccc0e2658c50d731e">economic disaster</a>&nbsp;that would accompany a railroad strike. Workers and their unions say the deal didn’t do enough to address their&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-economy-government-and-politics-207229bcd558b6a6c1d58f3f85e2d804">quality-of-life concerns</a>&nbsp;and didn’t add any sick days.

President Joe Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-business-economy-government-and-politics-fe5f657b036b2b612d072368584e00cd">signed a bill</a>&nbsp;Friday to block a strike and force workers to accept the agreements union leaders made in September, even though four of the 12 unions — which include a majority of rail workers — voted to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-business-congress-government-and-politics-79d2e2c2779598b0a14396464ee4f7e9">reject them.</a>&nbsp;Business groups had been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-business-economy-congress-government-and-politics-6b60d53fefc7b85f301b0a3e7011715b">urging</a>&nbsp;Biden to intervene for weeks.

For Schaaf, he's not sure if the new contract will make it any easier to find another day off sometime next year to pay to have a fake tooth implanted in his mouth.

“If I had the option of taking a sick day ... I would have never been in that situation,” he said from his home in Glasgow, Montana.

Schaaf said it was discouraging, but not surprising, to see Congress step in to settle the contract dispute ahead of next Friday's strike deadline. Lawmakers have made a habit of stepping in to impose contracts when railroads and their unions reach the brink of a strike — 18 times since the passage of the 1926 Railway Labor Act, by the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.uschamber.com/security/supply-chain/fact-sheet-congress-has-intervened-18-times-in-railroad-labor-negotiations">U.S. Chamber of Commerce's count</a>&nbsp;— because of the potential economic consequences.

Many businesses rely on railroads to deliver raw materials and ship their final products, so a rail strike would send a catastrophic ripple through the economy. Passenger railroads also would be disrupted because so many use tracks owned by the freight railroads.

The five-year deals that rail workers wound up with include 24% raises and $5,000 in bonuses. But concerns about the lack of paid sick time and the demanding schedules that unions say make it hard for workers to ever take a day off dominated the contract talks. The rail unions say they weren’t able to get more concessions out of the railroads because the big companies knew Congress would intervene.

The railroads&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-and-politics-business-strikes-940da8fc519f8c526ca614e201d01216">refused</a>&nbsp;to add paid sick days to the deal at the end of three years of negotiations because they didn’t want to pay much more than a special board of arbitrators appointed by Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-strikes-a83dffef79d38e36dc25588b19bf54b4">recommended</a>&nbsp;this summer. Plus, the railroads say the unions have agreed over the years to forego paid sick leave in favor of higher wages and strong short-term disability benefits that kick in after as little as four days.

The railroads agreed to offer&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-government-and-politics-6172442e20ccf3295b39c2f3184e03cf">three unpaid days</a>&nbsp;for engineers and conductors to tend to medical needs as long as they are scheduled at least 30 days in advance. They also promised to negotiate further to improve the way regular days off are scheduled to help workers better know when they will be off.

But to retired engineer Jeff Kurtz, there is still a lot of work to be done to restore the quality of life he enjoyed before he left the railroad eight years ago. He doubts rail workers today would be able to get time off for key family events on short notice the way he did when he found out his son was getting his doctorate right before Christmas in 2009.

“You hear when you hire out on the railroad you’re going to miss some things. But you’re not supposed to miss everything,” said Kurtz, who remains active even in retirement with the Railroad Workers United coalition that includes workers from every union. “You shouldn’t miss your kids growing up. You shouldn’t miss the seminal moments in your family’s life.”

Over the past six years, the major railroads have eliminated nearly one-third of their jobs as they&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-aab7d3084a8d17d8d721d2cb750be323">overhauled operations</a>, making the work more demanding for those who remain.

The unions say they won’t stop fighting for more paid sick leave, but now they may have to wait for negotiations on the next contract beginning in 2025.

The head of the Association of American Railroads trade group, Ian Jefferies, acknowledged “there is more to be done to further address our employees’ work-life balance concerns” but he said the compromise deals that Congress voted to impose should help make schedules more predictable while delivering the biggest raises rail workers have seen in more than four decades.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1669996927368.png" alt="President Joe Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-business-economy-government-and-politics-fe5f657b036b2b612d072368584e00cd">signed a bill</a>&nbsp;Friday to block a strike and force workers to accept the agreements union leaders made in September-White House photo" />
 <figcaption>President Joe Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-business-economy-government-and-politics-fe5f657b036b2b612d072368584e00cd">signed a bill</a>&nbsp;Friday to block a strike and force workers to accept the agreements union leaders made in September-White House photo</figcaption>
 </figure>OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — When BNSF railroad conductor Justin Schaaf needed to take time off from work this summer, he had to make a choice: go to the dentist to get a cavity in his molar filled or attend a party for his son's 7th birthday.He chose his son."Ultimately I decided to take the day off for my kid’s birthday party,” Schaaf said. “Then when I am finally able to get into the dentist four, five, six months later, the tooth is too bad to repair at that point, so I have to get the tooth pulled out.”Those are the kind of tradeoffs that railroad workers worry they might still have to make after Congress voted this week to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-pete-buttigieg-strikes-congress-c95510555dcd4cdc2d839e61d1195b06">impose a contract</a>&nbsp;on them to avoid the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-economy-strikes-climate-and-environment-government-politics-92ea7632a29f807ccc0e2658c50d731e">economic disaster</a>&nbsp;that would accompany a railroad strike. Workers and their unions say the deal didn’t do enough to address their&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-economy-government-and-politics-207229bcd558b6a6c1d58f3f85e2d804">quality-of-life concerns</a>&nbsp;and didn’t add any sick days.President Joe Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-business-economy-government-and-politics-fe5f657b036b2b612d072368584e00cd">signed a bill</a>&nbsp;Friday to block a strike and force workers to accept the agreements union leaders made in September, even though four of the 12 unions — which include a majority of rail workers — voted to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-business-congress-government-and-politics-79d2e2c2779598b0a14396464ee4f7e9">reject them.</a>&nbsp;Business groups had been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-business-economy-congress-government-and-politics-6b60d53fefc7b85f301b0a3e7011715b">urging</a>&nbsp;Biden to intervene for weeks.For Schaaf, he's not sure if the new contract will make it any easier to find another day off sometime next year to pay to have a fake tooth implanted in his mouth.“If I had the option of taking a sick day ... I would have never been in that situation,” he said from his home in Glasgow, Montana.Schaaf said it was discouraging, but not surprising, to see Congress step in to settle the contract dispute ahead of next Friday's strike deadline. Lawmakers have made a habit of stepping in to impose contracts when railroads and their unions reach the brink of a strike — 18 times since the passage of the 1926 Railway Labor Act, by the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.uschamber.com/security/supply-chain/fact-sheet-congress-has-intervened-18-times-in-railroad-labor-negotiations">U.S. Chamber of Commerce's count</a>&nbsp;— because of the potential economic consequences.Many businesses rely on railroads to deliver raw materials and ship their final products, so a rail strike would send a catastrophic ripple through the economy. Passenger railroads also would be disrupted because so many use tracks owned by the freight railroads.The five-year deals that rail workers wound up with include 24% raises and $5,000 in bonuses. But concerns about the lack of paid sick time and the demanding schedules that unions say make it hard for workers to ever take a day off dominated the contract talks. The rail unions say they weren’t able to get more concessions out of the railroads because the big companies knew Congress would intervene.The railroads&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-and-politics-business-strikes-940da8fc519f8c526ca614e201d01216">refused</a>&nbsp;to add paid sick days to the deal at the end of three years of negotiations because they didn’t want to pay much more than a special board of arbitrators appointed by Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-strikes-a83dffef79d38e36dc25588b19bf54b4">recommended</a>&nbsp;this summer. Plus, the railroads say the unions have agreed over the years to forego paid sick leave in favor of higher wages and strong short-term disability benefits that kick in after as little as four days.The railroads agreed to offer&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-government-and-politics-6172442e20ccf3295b39c2f3184e03cf">three unpaid days</a>&nbsp;for engineers and conductors to tend to medical needs as long as they are scheduled at least 30 days in advance. They also promised to negotiate further to improve the way regular days off are scheduled to help workers better know when they will be off.But to retired engineer Jeff Kurtz, there is still a lot of work to be done to restore the quality of life he enjoyed before he left the railroad eight years ago. He doubts rail workers today would be able to get time off for key family events on short notice the way he did when he found out his son was getting his doctorate right before Christmas in 2009.“You hear when you hire out on the railroad you’re going to miss some things. But you’re not supposed to miss everything,” said Kurtz, who remains active even in retirement with the Railroad Workers United coalition that includes workers from every union. “You shouldn’t miss your kids growing up. You shouldn’t miss the seminal moments in your family’s life.”Over the past six years, the major railroads have eliminated nearly one-third of their jobs as they&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-aab7d3084a8d17d8d721d2cb750be323">overhauled operations</a>, making the work more demanding for those who remain.The unions say they won’t stop fighting for more paid sick leave, but now they may have to wait for negotiations on the next contract beginning in 2025.The head of the Association of American Railroads trade group, Ian Jefferies, acknowledged “there is more to be done to further address our employees’ work-life balance concerns” but he said the compromise deals that Congress voted to impose should help make schedules more predictable while delivering the biggest raises rail workers have seen in more than four decades.

Railroad workers: Deal won't resolve quality-of-life concerns

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. flu season keeps getting worse.

Health officials said Friday that 7.5% of outpatient medical visits last week were due to flu-like illnesses. That's as high as the peak of the 2017-18 flu season and higher than any season since.

The annual winter flu season usually doesn’t get going until December or January, but this one began early and has been complicated by the simultaneous spread of other viruses.

The measure of traffic in doctor's offices is based on reports of symptoms like coughs and sore throats, not on lab-confirmed diagnoses. So it may include other respiratory illnesses.

That makes it hard to compare to flu seasons from before the COVID-19 pandemic. Other years also didn't have this year's unusually strong wave of RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, a common cause of cold-like symptoms that can be serious for infants and the elderly.

Meanwhile, 44 states reported high or very high flu activity last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday.

That may not bode well for the near future. It's likely there was more spread of respiratory viruses during Thanksgiving gatherings and at crowded airports, experts say.

The dominant flu strain so far is the kind typically associated with higher rates of hospitalizations and deaths, particularly in people 65 and older.

The CDC estimates there have been at least 78,000 hospitalizations and 4,500 deaths from flu so far this season. The deaths include at least 14 children.

Flu shots are recommended for nearly all Americans who are at least 6 months old or older.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1670014458189.png" alt="CDC Flu map&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>CDC Flu map&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. flu season keeps getting worse.Health officials said Friday that 7.5% of outpatient medical visits last week were due to flu-like illnesses. That's as high as the peak of the 2017-18 flu season and higher than any season since.The annual winter flu season usually doesn’t get going until December or January, but this one began early and has been complicated by the simultaneous spread of other viruses.The measure of traffic in doctor's offices is based on reports of symptoms like coughs and sore throats, not on lab-confirmed diagnoses. So it may include other respiratory illnesses.That makes it hard to compare to flu seasons from before the COVID-19 pandemic. Other years also didn't have this year's unusually strong wave of RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, a common cause of cold-like symptoms that can be serious for infants and the elderly.Meanwhile, 44 states reported high or very high flu activity last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday.That may not bode well for the near future. It's likely there was more spread of respiratory viruses during Thanksgiving gatherings and at crowded airports, experts say.The dominant flu strain so far is the kind typically associated with higher rates of hospitalizations and deaths, particularly in people 65 and older.The CDC estimates there have been at least 78,000 hospitalizations and 4,500 deaths from flu so far this season. The deaths include at least 14 children.Flu shots are recommended for nearly all Americans who are at least 6 months old or older.

Flu season worsens as 44 states report high activity

PALMDALE , Calif. (AP) — America’s newest nuclear stealth bomber made its debut Friday after years of secret development and as part of the Pentagon’s answer to rising&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-middle-east-china-united-states-beijing-4521a349b4171b4e9792a5ed96f6f44f">concerns over a future conflict with China</a>.

The B-21 Raider is the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-air-force-technology-mo-state-wire-politics-df0e81b91ad9a945032ba4972c754426">first new American bomber aircraft</a>&nbsp;in more than 30 years. Almost every aspect of the program is classified.

As evening fell over the Air Force’s Plant 42 in Palmdale, the public got its first glimpse of the Raider in a tightly controlled ceremony. It started with a flyover of the three bombers still in service: the B-52 Stratofortress, the B-1 Lancer and the B-2 Spirit. Then the hangar doors slowly opened and the B-21 was towed partially out of the building.

“This isn’t just another airplane,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. “It’s the embodiment of America’s determination to defend the republic that we all love.”

The B-21 is part of the Pentagon’s efforts to modernize all three legs of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/north-america-donald-trump-ap-top-news-nuclear-weapons-politics-01ec89ceb9224443880acd4213ef6c73">its nuclear triad</a>, which includes silo-launched nuclear ballistic missiles and submarine-launched warheads, as it shifts from the counterterrorism campaigns of recent decades to meet China’s rapid military modernization.

China is on track to have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/taiwan-europe-china-united-states-beijing-af4dd76e993f450df7af8e63d1a0187c">1,500 nuclear weapons</a>&nbsp;by 2035, and its gains in hypersonics, cyber warfare and space capabilities present “the most consequential and systemic challenge to U.S. national security and the free and open international system,” the Pentagon said this week in its annual China report.

”We needed a new bomber for the 21st Century that would allow us to take on much more complicated threats, like the threats that we fear we would one day face from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-china-beijing-moscow-europe-3d694c61d318e083076b681cd913102d">China, Russia,</a>&nbsp;” said Deborah Lee James, the Air Force secretary when the Raider contract was announced in 2015.

While the Raider may resemble the B-2, once you get inside, the similarities stop, said Kathy Warden, chief executive of Northrop Grumman Corp., which is building the bomber.

“The way it operates internally is extremely advanced compared to the B-2, because the technology has evolved so much in terms of the computing capability that we can now embed in the software of the B-21,” Warden said.

Other changes include advanced materials used in coatings to make the bomber harder to detect, Austin said.

“Fifty years of advances in low-observable technology have gone into this aircraft,” Austin said. “Even the most sophisticated air defense systems will struggle to detect a B-21 in the sky.”

Other advances likely include new ways to control electronic emissions, so the bomber could spoof adversary radars and disguise itself as another object, and use of new propulsion technologies, several defense analysts said.

“It is incredibly low observability,” Warden said. “You’ll hear it, but you really won’t see it.”

Six Raiders are in production. The Air Force plans to build 100 that can deploy either nuclear weapons or conventional bombs and can be used with or without a human crew. Both the Air Force and Northrop also point to the Raider’s relatively quick development: The bomber went from contract award to debut in seven years. Other new fighter and ship programs have taken decades.

The cost of the bombers is unknown. The Air Force previously put the price at an average cost of $550 million each in 2010 dollars — roughly $753 million today — but it’s unclear how much is actually being spent. The total will depend on how many bombers the Pentagon buys.

“We will soon fly this aircraft, test it, and then move it into production. And we will build the bomber force in numbers suited to the strategic environment ahead,” Austin said.

The undisclosed cost troubles government watchdogs.

“It might be a big challenge for us to do our normal analysis of a major program like this,” said Dan Grazier, a senior defense policy fellow at the Project on Government Oversight. “It’s easy to say that the B-21 is still on schedule before it actually flies. Because it’s only when one of these programs goes into the actual testing phase when real problems are discovered." That, he said, is when schedules start to slip and costs rise.

The B-2 was also envisioned to be a fleet of more than 100 aircraft, but the Air Force built only 21, due to cost overruns and a changed security environment after the Soviet Union fell. Fewer than that are ready to fly on any given day due to the significant maintenance needs of the aging bomber.

The B-21 Raider, which takes its name from the 1942 Doolittle Raid over Tokyo, will be slightly smaller than the B-2 to increase its range, Warden said. It won’t make its first flight until 2023. However, Warden said Northrop Grumman has used advanced computing to test the bomber’s performance using a digital twin, a virtual replica of the one unveiled Friday.

Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota will house the bomber’s first training program and squadron, though the bombers are also expected to be stationed at bases in Texas and Missouri.

U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, a Republican of South Dakota, led the state’s bid to host the bomber program. In a statement, he called it “the most advanced weapon system ever developed by our country to defend ourselves and our allies.”

Northrop Grumman has also incorporated maintenance lessons learned from the B-2, Warden said.

In October 2001, B-2 pilots set a record when they flew 44 hours straight to drop the first bombs in Afghanistan after the Sept. 11 attacks. The B-2 often does long round-trip missions because there are few hangars globally that can accommodate its wingspan, which limits where it can land for maintenance. The hangars also must be air-conditioned because the Spirit’s windows don’t open and hot climates can cook cockpit electronics.

The new Raider will also get new hangars to accommodate its size and complexity, Warden said.

However, with the Raider’s extended range, ’it won’t need to be based in-theater,” Austin said. “It won’t need logistical support to hold any target at risk.”

A final noticeable difference was in the debut itself. While both went public in Palmdale, the B-2 was rolled outdoors in 1988 amid much public fanfare. Given advances in surveillance satellites and cameras, the Raider was just partially exposed, keeping its sensitive propulsion systems and sensors under the hangar and protected from overhead eyes.

“The magic of the platform,” Warden said, “is what you don’t see.”

PALMDALE , Calif. (AP) — America’s newest nuclear stealth bomber made its debut Friday after years of secret development and as part of the Pentagon’s answer to rising&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-middle-east-china-united-states-beijing-4521a349b4171b4e9792a5ed96f6f44f">concerns over a future conflict with China</a>.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Unveiled today, the B-21 Raider will be a dual-capable, penetrating-strike stealth bomber capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear munitions. The B-21 will form the backbone of the future Air Force bomber force consisting of B-21s and B-52s.(U.S. Air Force photo) <a href="https://t.co/X6KSU7sy6U">pic.twitter.com/X6KSU7sy6U</a>&mdash; U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) <a href="https://twitter.com/usairforce/status/1598858254615912448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The B-21 Raider is the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-news-air-force-technology-mo-state-wire-politics-df0e81b91ad9a945032ba4972c754426">first new American bomber aircraft</a>&nbsp;in more than 30 years. Almost every aspect of the program is classified.As evening fell over the Air Force’s Plant 42 in Palmdale, the public got its first glimpse of the Raider in a tightly controlled ceremony. It started with a flyover of the three bombers still in service: the B-52 Stratofortress, the B-1 Lancer and the B-2 Spirit. Then the hangar doors slowly opened and the B-21 was towed partially out of the building.“This isn’t just another airplane,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said. “It’s the embodiment of America’s determination to defend the republic that we all love.”The B-21 is part of the Pentagon’s efforts to modernize all three legs of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/north-america-donald-trump-ap-top-news-nuclear-weapons-politics-01ec89ceb9224443880acd4213ef6c73">its nuclear triad</a>, which includes silo-launched nuclear ballistic missiles and submarine-launched warheads, as it shifts from the counterterrorism campaigns of recent decades to meet China’s rapid military modernization.China is on track to have&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/taiwan-europe-china-united-states-beijing-af4dd76e993f450df7af8e63d1a0187c">1,500 nuclear weapons</a>&nbsp;by 2035, and its gains in hypersonics, cyber warfare and space capabilities present “the most consequential and systemic challenge to U.S. national security and the free and open international system,” the Pentagon said this week in its annual China report.”We needed a new bomber for the 21st Century that would allow us to take on much more complicated threats, like the threats that we fear we would one day face from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-china-beijing-moscow-europe-3d694c61d318e083076b681cd913102d">China, Russia,</a>&nbsp;” said Deborah Lee James, the Air Force secretary when the Raider contract was announced in 2015.While the Raider may resemble the B-2, once you get inside, the similarities stop, said Kathy Warden, chief executive of Northrop Grumman Corp., which is building the bomber.“The way it operates internally is extremely advanced compared to the B-2, because the technology has evolved so much in terms of the computing capability that we can now embed in the software of the B-21,” Warden said.Other changes include advanced materials used in coatings to make the bomber harder to detect, Austin said.“Fifty years of advances in low-observable technology have gone into this aircraft,” Austin said. “Even the most sophisticated air defense systems will struggle to detect a B-21 in the sky.”Other advances likely include new ways to control electronic emissions, so the bomber could spoof adversary radars and disguise itself as another object, and use of new propulsion technologies, several defense analysts said.“It is incredibly low observability,” Warden said. “You’ll hear it, but you really won’t see it.”Six Raiders are in production. The Air Force plans to build 100 that can deploy either nuclear weapons or conventional bombs and can be used with or without a human crew. Both the Air Force and Northrop also point to the Raider’s relatively quick development: The bomber went from contract award to debut in seven years. Other new fighter and ship programs have taken decades.The cost of the bombers is unknown. The Air Force previously put the price at an average cost of $550 million each in 2010 dollars — roughly $753 million today — but it’s unclear how much is actually being spent. The total will depend on how many bombers the Pentagon buys.“We will soon fly this aircraft, test it, and then move it into production. And we will build the bomber force in numbers suited to the strategic environment ahead,” Austin said.The undisclosed cost troubles government watchdogs.“It might be a big challenge for us to do our normal analysis of a major program like this,” said Dan Grazier, a senior defense policy fellow at the Project on Government Oversight. “It’s easy to say that the B-21 is still on schedule before it actually flies. Because it’s only when one of these programs goes into the actual testing phase when real problems are discovered." That, he said, is when schedules start to slip and costs rise.The B-2 was also envisioned to be a fleet of more than 100 aircraft, but the Air Force built only 21, due to cost overruns and a changed security environment after the Soviet Union fell. Fewer than that are ready to fly on any given day due to the significant maintenance needs of the aging bomber.The B-21 Raider, which takes its name from the 1942 Doolittle Raid over Tokyo, will be slightly smaller than the B-2 to increase its range, Warden said. It won’t make its first flight until 2023. However, Warden said Northrop Grumman has used advanced computing to test the bomber’s performance using a digital twin, a virtual replica of the one unveiled Friday.Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota will house the bomber’s first training program and squadron, though the bombers are also expected to be stationed at bases in Texas and Missouri.U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, a Republican of South Dakota, led the state’s bid to host the bomber program. In a statement, he called it “the most advanced weapon system ever developed by our country to defend ourselves and our allies.”Northrop Grumman has also incorporated maintenance lessons learned from the B-2, Warden said.In October 2001, B-2 pilots set a record when they flew 44 hours straight to drop the first bombs in Afghanistan after the Sept. 11 attacks. The B-2 often does long round-trip missions because there are few hangars globally that can accommodate its wingspan, which limits where it can land for maintenance. The hangars also must be air-conditioned because the Spirit’s windows don’t open and hot climates can cook cockpit electronics.The new Raider will also get new hangars to accommodate its size and complexity, Warden said.However, with the Raider’s extended range, ’it won’t need to be based in-theater,” Austin said. “It won’t need logistical support to hold any target at risk.”A final noticeable difference was in the debut itself. While both went public in Palmdale, the B-2 was rolled outdoors in 1988 amid much public fanfare. Given advances in surveillance satellites and cameras, the Raider was just partially exposed, keeping its sensitive propulsion systems and sensors under the hangar and protected from overhead eyes.“The magic of the platform,” Warden said, “is what you don’t see.”

Pentagon debuts new stealth bomber, the B-21 Raider

WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI Director Chris Wray is raising national security concerns about TikTok, warning Friday that control of the popular video sharing app is in the hands of a Chinese government “that doesn't share our values.”

Wray said the FBI was concerned that the Chinese had the ability to control the app’s recommendation algorithm, “which allows them to manipulate content, and if they want to, to use it for influence operations.” He also asserted that China could use the app to collect data on its users that could be used for traditional espionage operations.

"All of these things are in the hands of a government that doesn’t share our values and that has a mission that's very much at odds with what’s in the best interests of the United States. That should concern us,” Wray told an audience at the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.

Those concerns are similar to ones he raised during congressional appearances last month when the issue came up. And they come during ongoing dialogue in Washington about the app.

TikTok is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance. A TikTok spokesperson did not immediately return an email seeking comment on Friday.

But at a Senate hearing in September, TikTok Chief Operating Officer Vanessa Pappas responded to questions from members of both parties by saying that the company protects all data from American users and that Chinese government officials have no access to it.

“We will never share data, period,” Pappas said.

Concerned about China’s influence over TikTok, the Trump administration in 2020 threatened to ban the app within the U.S. and pressured ByteDance to sell TikTok to a U.S. company. U.S. officials and the company are now in talks over a possible agreement that would resolve American security concerns, a process that Wray said was taking place across U.S. government agencies.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1670097767255.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI Director Chris Wray is raising national security concerns about TikTok, warning Friday that control of the popular video sharing app is in the hands of a Chinese government “that doesn't share our values.”Wray said the FBI was concerned that the Chinese had the ability to control the app’s recommendation algorithm, “which allows them to manipulate content, and if they want to, to use it for influence operations.” He also asserted that China could use the app to collect data on its users that could be used for traditional espionage operations."All of these things are in the hands of a government that doesn’t share our values and that has a mission that's very much at odds with what’s in the best interests of the United States. That should concern us,” Wray told an audience at the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.Those concerns are similar to ones he raised during congressional appearances last month when the issue came up. And they come during ongoing dialogue in Washington about the app.TikTok is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance. A TikTok spokesperson did not immediately return an email seeking comment on Friday.But at a Senate hearing in September, TikTok Chief Operating Officer Vanessa Pappas responded to questions from members of both parties by saying that the company protects all data from American users and that Chinese government officials have no access to it.“We will never share data, period,” Pappas said.Concerned about China’s influence over TikTok, the Trump administration in 2020 threatened to ban the app within the U.S. and pressured ByteDance to sell TikTok to a U.S. company. U.S. officials and the company are now in talks over a possible agreement that would resolve American security concerns, a process that Wray said was taking place across U.S. government agencies.

FBI director raises national security concerns about TikTok

By JAZARI KUAL <a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/gov-ricketts-and-nebraska-delegation-wrap-up-trade-mission-to-japan/">Nebraska Examiner</a>

LINCOLN
 — Gov. Pete Ricketts on Friday wrapped up his second trip in about a 
month to Japan, calling the past week’s trade mission to promote 
Nebraska ag products a success.

According to a media release, the 
governor and trade delegation met with Japanese government and business 
leaders to promote Nebraska beef, pork, ethanol and other ag products. 
The Husker team encouraged Japanese businesses to invest in Nebraska.

Nebraska’s delegation included Ivan 
Rush, director at the Nebraska Beef Council; Shana Beattie, past 
president of the Nebraska Pork Producers Association; Mark Knobel, 
chairman of the Nebraska Wheat Board; and Mark McHargue, president of 
the Nebraska Farm Bureau. They met with leaders of agencies including the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and U.S. Embassy in Japan.

On Thursday, the governor and 
delegation met with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to 
discuss the benefits of Nebraska ethanol and to explore opportunities 
for partnership, said a tweet on the governor’s official account.&nbsp;

The governor and industry experts, 
including Jan tenBensel, chairman of the Nebraska Ethanol Board, also 
spoke with Japanese officials about solutions Nebraska ethanol offers as
 Japan seeks to provide cheaper, cleaner fuel for vehicle and air 
travel.&nbsp;

Throughout the week, the delegation spoke with several companies 
investing in Nebraska to thank them and to discuss growth opportunities.
 Companies included Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which has invested in 
Monolith Materials, a Lincoln-based manufacturer focused on 
emissions-free, commercial-scale hydrogen production. Others included 
Nippon Steel, which launched Captain Beef, a premium beef brand sourced 
from Nebraska packers; Toho Cinemas, a theatre chain that serves 
Preferred Popcorn from Chapman; and Prima Ham, a food manufacturer that 
buys pork from Wholestone Farms in Fremont.

During his earlier Japan trip, 
Ricketts on Nov. 9th received the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and 
Silver Star Award from the Japanese government at the Imperial Palace 
for his work on strengthening the relationship between Nebraska and 
Japan.&nbsp;

“Nebraska has a long-established 
friendship with Japan,” said Ricketts. “I have appreciated the 
hospitality, kindness, and partnership of Japanese leaders during my 
time as governor. Working together, we’ve been able to grow our 
relationship both through trade and cultural exchange.”

Currently, Japan is the largest 
international investor in Nebraska, with dozens of companies that 
support roughly 6,500 jobs in the state.

Last year, Nebraska exported over 
$1.4 billion of products and services to Japan, an all-time high, 
including $457 million in beef. Japan was also Nebraska’s largest 
purchaser of pork and eggs in 2021.

Nebraska is the first state to visit 
Japan after new beef tariff trigger levels were approved. The new levels
 will make it less likely that beef exports will reach levels that 
trigger higher tariffs, which will provide the state with increased 
opportunity to meet Japan’s growing demand for quality beef.&nbsp;

This trade mission was Ricketts’ fourth one to Japan, with the others being in 2015, 2017 and 2019.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1670086071134.png" alt="Gov. Pete Ricketts’ trade mission includes visit with Japanese leaders to Toho Cinemas, which serves Nebraska-made Preferred Popcorn. (Courtesy of Gov. Ricketts Office)" />
 <figcaption>Gov. Pete Ricketts’ trade mission includes visit with Japanese leaders to Toho Cinemas, which serves Nebraska-made Preferred Popcorn. (Courtesy of Gov. Ricketts Office)</figcaption>
 </figure>By JAZARI KUAL <a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/gov-ricketts-and-nebraska-delegation-wrap-up-trade-mission-to-japan/">Nebraska Examiner</a>LINCOLN
 — Gov. Pete Ricketts on Friday wrapped up his second trip in about a 
month to Japan, calling the past week’s trade mission to promote 
Nebraska ag products a success.According to a media release, the 
governor and trade delegation met with Japanese government and business 
leaders to promote Nebraska beef, pork, ethanol and other ag products. 
The Husker team encouraged Japanese businesses to invest in Nebraska.<h2>Ethanol partnership</h2>Nebraska’s delegation included Ivan 
Rush, director at the Nebraska Beef Council; Shana Beattie, past 
president of the Nebraska Pork Producers Association; Mark Knobel, 
chairman of the Nebraska Wheat Board; and Mark McHargue, president of 
the Nebraska Farm Bureau. They met with leaders of agencies including the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and U.S. Embassy in Japan.On Thursday, the governor and 
delegation met with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to 
discuss the benefits of Nebraska ethanol and to explore opportunities 
for partnership, said a tweet on the governor’s official account.&nbsp;The governor and industry experts, 
including Jan tenBensel, chairman of the Nebraska Ethanol Board, also 
spoke with Japanese officials about solutions Nebraska ethanol offers as
 Japan seeks to provide cheaper, cleaner fuel for vehicle and air 
travel.&nbsp;Throughout the week, the delegation spoke with several companies 
investing in Nebraska to thank them and to discuss growth opportunities.
 Companies included Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which has invested in 
Monolith Materials, a Lincoln-based manufacturer focused on 
emissions-free, commercial-scale hydrogen production. Others included 
Nippon Steel, which launched Captain Beef, a premium beef brand sourced 
from Nebraska packers; Toho Cinemas, a theatre chain that serves 
Preferred Popcorn from Chapman; and Prima Ham, a food manufacturer that 
buys pork from Wholestone Farms in Fremont.During his earlier Japan trip, 
Ricketts on Nov. 9th received the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and 
Silver Star Award from the Japanese government at the Imperial Palace 
for his work on strengthening the relationship between Nebraska and 
Japan.&nbsp;<h2>All-time high for exports</h2>“Nebraska has a long-established 
friendship with Japan,” said Ricketts. “I have appreciated the 
hospitality, kindness, and partnership of Japanese leaders during my 
time as governor. Working together, we’ve been able to grow our 
relationship both through trade and cultural exchange.”Currently, Japan is the largest 
international investor in Nebraska, with dozens of companies that 
support roughly 6,500 jobs in the state.Last year, Nebraska exported over 
$1.4 billion of products and services to Japan, an all-time high, 
including $457 million in beef. Japan was also Nebraska’s largest 
purchaser of pork and eggs in 2021.Nebraska is the first state to visit 
Japan after new beef tariff trigger levels were approved. The new levels
 will make it less likely that beef exports will reach levels that 
trigger higher tariffs, which will provide the state with increased 
opportunity to meet Japan’s growing demand for quality beef.&nbsp;This trade mission was Ricketts’ fourth one to Japan, with the others being in 2015, 2017 and 2019.

Ricketts, Nebraska delegation wrap up trade mission to Japan

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Mickey Joseph, Nebraska's interim football coach for nine games this season, is accused of putting his hands around a woman's throat, pulling her hair and punching her before being taken into custody, according to a police affidavit filed Thursday.

Joseph, 54, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of strangulation and third-degree domestic assault. Joseph denied to police that he assaulted the woman. Nebraska placed Joseph on administrative leave.

Joseph made his initial court appearance on video from the Lancaster County Jail on Thursday. He did not enter a plea. His bond was set at $20,000 and he was ordered not to have contact with the alleged victim. His next court appearance was set for Jan. 30. His attorney, Sean Brennan, did not respond to a message seeking comment.

Police went to a Lincoln residence Wednesday afternoon after a report of a domestic disturbance.

The woman said she and Joseph were in an argument when Joseph pushed her, causing her to fall onto a couch. She said Joseph got on top of her and placed his hands around her throat.

"He pushed me on the couch and strangled me," she said, according to the affidavit. She said her breathing was impeded and that she wasn't able to breathe until she pushed him off.

When she went into the kitchen, she said, Joseph grabbed her hair from behind and pulled her backward, causing her to fall to the floor. In the process of falling, she said, Joseph struck her in the left temple with a closed fist.

Police said she had visible redness and swelling around her left eye which was consistent with being struck, and she was observed to have several strands of hair clinging to her upper pant leg. She said the hairs were pulled from her when Joseph grabbed her.

The Associated Press generally does not identify people who say they have been subjected to extreme abuse. The woman in the Joseph case has not publicly identified herself.

The woman also said Joseph also grabbed her phone and attempted to flush it down a toilet. Police said they saw the phone inside a container of rice on the kitchen counter.

A relative of the woman also was at the residence, and he told police he saw Joseph's hands around the woman's throat and that Joseph pushed her onto the couch after he yelled to him. Joseph left the home and was located by police at another location.

Joseph's arrest came two days after Matt Rhule was introduced as the Cornhuskers' new head coach. Rhule had said Monday he planned to meet with Joseph to discuss the possibility of Joseph remaining on the staff. Rhule declined comment through an athletic department spokesman.

Joseph is under contract through Dec. 31, 2023, and his annual salary is listed at $600,000. Under terms of the contract, he could be fired for cause if convicted of a misdemeanor or felony that impairs his ability to perform duties on behalf of the university. If a firing for cause is upheld, the university would not have to pay the remaining money owed on the contract.

Joseph was a quarterback for the Cornhuskers from 1988-91 and had run-ins with police during his playing days. He returned to Nebraska last December as receivers coach and was named interim head coach Sept. 11 after Alberts fired Scott Frost. The Huskers were 3-6 under Joseph and finished the season 4-8.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1669892752505.png" alt="Joseph-photo Lincoln Police" />
 <figcaption>Joseph-photo Lincoln Police</figcaption>
 </figure>LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Mickey Joseph, Nebraska's interim football coach for nine games this season, is accused of putting his hands around a woman's throat, pulling her hair and punching her before being taken into custody, according to a police affidavit filed Thursday.Joseph, 54, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of strangulation and third-degree domestic assault. Joseph denied to police that he assaulted the woman. Nebraska placed Joseph on administrative leave.Joseph made his initial court appearance on video from the Lancaster County Jail on Thursday. He did not enter a plea. His bond was set at $20,000 and he was ordered not to have contact with the alleged victim. His next court appearance was set for Jan. 30. His attorney, Sean Brennan, did not respond to a message seeking comment.Police went to a Lincoln residence Wednesday afternoon after a report of a domestic disturbance.The woman said she and Joseph were in an argument when Joseph pushed her, causing her to fall onto a couch. She said Joseph got on top of her and placed his hands around her throat."He pushed me on the couch and strangled me," she said, according to the affidavit. She said her breathing was impeded and that she wasn't able to breathe until she pushed him off.When she went into the kitchen, she said, Joseph grabbed her hair from behind and pulled her backward, causing her to fall to the floor. In the process of falling, she said, Joseph struck her in the left temple with a closed fist.Police said she had visible redness and swelling around her left eye which was consistent with being struck, and she was observed to have several strands of hair clinging to her upper pant leg. She said the hairs were pulled from her when Joseph grabbed her.The Associated Press generally does not identify people who say they have been subjected to extreme abuse. The woman in the Joseph case has not publicly identified herself.The woman also said Joseph also grabbed her phone and attempted to flush it down a toilet. Police said they saw the phone inside a container of rice on the kitchen counter.A relative of the woman also was at the residence, and he told police he saw Joseph's hands around the woman's throat and that Joseph pushed her onto the couch after he yelled to him. Joseph left the home and was located by police at another location.Joseph's arrest came two days after Matt Rhule was introduced as the Cornhuskers' new head coach. Rhule had said Monday he planned to meet with Joseph to discuss the possibility of Joseph remaining on the staff. Rhule declined comment through an athletic department spokesman.Joseph is under contract through Dec. 31, 2023, and his annual salary is listed at $600,000. Under terms of the contract, he could be fired for cause if convicted of a misdemeanor or felony that impairs his ability to perform duties on behalf of the university. If a firing for cause is upheld, the university would not have to pay the remaining money owed on the contract.Joseph was a quarterback for the Cornhuskers from 1988-91 and had run-ins with police during his playing days. He returned to Nebraska last December as receivers coach and was named interim head coach Sept. 11 after Alberts fired Scott Frost. The Huskers were 3-6 under Joseph and finished the season 4-8.

Woman tells police: Univ. of Nebraska coach strangled me

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats voted Friday to remove Iowa as the leadoff state on the presidential nominating calendar and replace it with South Carolina starting in 2024, a dramatic shakeup championed by President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;to better reflect the party’s deeply diverse electorate.

The Democratic National Committee's rule-making arm made the move to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-nevada-presidential-race-and-ethnicity-iowa-f1d330309665d8041f0e0f3070b2e331">strip Iowa</a>&nbsp;from the position it has held for five decades after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ee095683c85f6c97e51b6589b412f674">technical meltdowns sparked chaos</a>&nbsp;and marred results of the state's 2020 caucus. The change also comes after a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-south-carolina-government-and-politics-d73dd6455829d3ee8aee65ab83fd8ef9">long push</a>&nbsp;by some of the party's top leaders to start choosing a president in states that are less white, especially given the importance of Black voters as Democrats' most loyal electoral base.

Discussion on prioritizing diversity drew such impassioned reaction at the committee gathering in Washington that DNC chair Jaime Harrison wiped away tears as committee member Donna Brazile suggested that Democrats had spent years failing to fight for Black voters: “Do you know what it’s like to live on a dirt road? Do you know what it’s like to try to find running water that is clean?”

“Do you know what it’s like to wait and see if the storm is going to pass you by and your roof is still intact?” Brazile asked. “That’s what this is about.”

The committee approved moving South Carolina's primary to Feb. 3 and having Nevada and New Hampshire vote three days later. Georgia would go the following week and Michigan two weeks after that.

The move marks a dramatic shift from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-nevada-presidential-race-and-ethnicity-iowa-b4a270fdf437e9b072cf295953b841d2">the current calendar</a>, which has had Iowa holding the first-in-the-nation caucuses since 1972, followed by New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary since 1920. Nevada and South Carolina have gone next since the 2008 presidential election, when Democrats last did a major overhaul of their primary calendar.

The changes will still have to be approved by the full DNC in a vote likely early next year, but it will almost certainly follow the rule-making committee’s lead.

The revamped schedule could largely be moot for 2024 if Biden opts to seek a second term, but may remake Democratic presidential cycles after that. The president has said for months that he intends to run again, and White House aides have begun making staffing discussions for his likely reelection campaign, even though no final decision has been made.

The DNC also plans to revisit the primary calendar again before 2028 — meaning more changes could be coming before then.

Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-iowa-south-carolina-e738592ee088fa4ca5614ba501d63726">wrote in a letter to rules committee members</a>&nbsp;on Thursday that the party should scrap “restrictive” caucuses altogether because their rules on in-person participation can sometimes exclude working-class and other voters. He told also told party leaders privately that he'd like to see South Carolina go first to better ensure that voters of color aren't marginalized as Democrats choose a presidential nominee.

Four of the five states now poised to start the party's primary are presidential battlegrounds, meaning the eventual Democratic winner would be able to lay groundwork in important general election locales. That's especially true for Michigan and Georgia, which both voted for Donald Trump in 2016 before flipping to Biden in 2020. The exception is South Carolina, which hasn't gone Democratic in a presidential race since 1976.

The first five voting states would be positioned to cast ballots before Super Tuesday, the day when much of the rest of the country holds primaries. That gives the early states outsize influence since White House hopefuls struggling to raise money or gain political traction often drop out before visiting much of the rest of the country.

Scott Brennan, a rules committee member from Iowa, said “small, rural states” like his “must have a voice in the presidential nominating process.”

“Democrats cannot forget about entire groups of voters in the heart of the Midwest without doing significant damage to the party in newer generations," Brennan said.

The Republican National Committee has already decided to keep Iowa’s caucus as the first contest in its 2024 presidential primary, ensuring that GOP White House hopefuls —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-2024-updates-cd5339d48064a149527e8f9a1aa7614e">which include Trump</a>&nbsp;— have continued to frequently campaign there.

House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, South Carolina’s lone congressional Democrat and one of Biden’s top supporters in Congress, said the president called him Thursday to inform him of his push to move his state up.

“I didn’t ask to be first," Clyburn said. "It was his idea to be first.”

Clyburn's endorsement of Biden in 2020 boosted the candidate's flagging presidential campaign just ahead of South Carolina’s primary, which he won big. That helped Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/elections-in-state-wire-election-2020-ma-state-wire-joe-biden-b9872b58b495fd17044f359338ab3f2a">shake off early losses</a>&nbsp;in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada and eventually take the White House.

“He knows what South Carolina did for him, and he’s demonstrated that time and time again, by giving respect to South Carolina,” Clyburn said.

Still, the vote by the rules committee has faced serious pushback, with some states vowing to ignore the changes altogether. That's despite the panel approving language saying states could lose all of their delegates to the party's national convention if they attempt to violate new rules.

Iowa and New Hampshire have said laws in their states mandate them going before others, and they intend to abide by those, not DNC decrees. Only committee members from Iowa and New Hampshire objected to the proposal that passed Friday, with everyone else supporting it.

Nevada, with its heavily Hispanic population, initially balked at sharing the second-place slot with New Hampshire, a state 2,500 miles away. Nevada committee member Artie Blanco’s voice cracked as she argued against the change.

“If we want to build a strong relationship with Latinos,” Blanco said, “then Nevada must stand alone on a date and not have to share that date.”

After more discussion, Blanco said later that she would support the new calendar. It was “not ideal” for her state to go the same day as another, she said, but “we accept what the will of the president is.”

Harrison said the new slate of five early voting states will need to show they are working toward moving their primaries to those dates by early next year or risk losing their place. Some state legislatures set primary dates; others have their secretaries of state or the directors of their state parties do it.

The DNC chair choked up after the vote as he talked about South Carolina once having been the site of the first attack of the Civil War and now being in line to lead off his party’s primary.

“This proposal reflects the best of our party as a whole, and it will continue to make our party and our country stronger,” Harrison said.

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;has declared that Democrats should give up “restrictive” caucuses and prioritize diversity at the start of their presidential primary calendar — dealing a major blow to Iowa's decadeslong status as the state that leads off the process.

In a letter Thursday to the rule-making arm of the Democratic National Committee, Biden did not mention specific states he'd like to see go first. But he has told Democrats he wants South Carolina moved to the first position, according to three people familiar with his recommendation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.

The president's direction came as the DNC rules committee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-biden-iowa-323020f9b1ef8fc7dbaecbe3dcb3418d">gathered in Washington on Friday</a>&nbsp;to vote on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-nevada-presidential-race-and-ethnicity-iowa-f1d330309665d8041f0e0f3070b2e331">shaking up the presidential primary calendar starting in 2024</a>. Members now expect to approve new rules putting South Carolina first, followed by New Hampshire and Nevada on the same day a week later.

Georgia and Michigan would move into the top five as new early states, and each would hold primaries in subsequent weeks, committee members say. The two battlegrounds were critical to Biden's 2020 victory over then-President Donald Trump, who had won both states in his 2016 White House campaign.

Much of the rest of the country would vote as part of Super Tuesday soon afterward.

Such changes are set to come after years of calls from many top Democrats for the voting calendar to better reflect the party's deeply diverse base than mostly white Iowa, which holds the country's first caucus, and New Hampshire, which holds the first primary. The new calendar would still have to be approved by the full DNC in a vote likely to come early next year, but the DNC will almost certainly heed the rule-making panel's recommendations.

The proposed order of the early states was first reported by The Washington Post.

“For decades, Black voters in particular have been the backbone of the Democratic Party but have been pushed to the back of the early primary process," Biden wrote in a letter on personal stationery that did not carry the White House seal. “We rely on these voters in elections but have not recognized their importance in our nominating calendar. It is time to stop taking these voters for granted, and time to give them a louder and earlier voice in the process.”

He said caucuses were “restrictive and anti-worker” because they require voters “to spend significant amounts of time” on one night gathering to choose candidates in person, “disadvantaging hourly workers and anyone who does not have the flexibility to go to a set location at a set time.”

The changes could be implemented as soon as 2024 but would be rendered largely meaningless until 2028 if Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-5a8fd26a4a9ffa9b47c5de52fface72d">opts to seek a second term</a>. The president has said for months that he intends to run again, and White House aides and Biden allies have begun staffing and structural discussions for his likely 2024 bid while refraining from overt steps while the president weighs a final decision.

Such a shakeup would nonetheless be seismic given that Iowa’s caucus has led off the Democratic voting calendar since 1976. Still, it would come two years after a series of technical glitches&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ee095683c85f6c97e51b6589b412f674">so marred party results</a>&nbsp;that they prevented The Associated Press from declaring a 2020 Iowa Democratic caucus winner.

Iowa Democratic Party Chair Ross Wilburn said in a statement Thursday night that the state party intended to abide by Iowa law and hold its caucus first.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1670001141259.png" alt="Joe Biden on the campaign trail in 2020-photo courtesy WZTV" />
 <figcaption>Joe Biden on the campaign trail in 2020-photo courtesy WZTV</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats voted Friday to remove Iowa as the leadoff state on the presidential nominating calendar and replace it with South Carolina starting in 2024, a dramatic shakeup championed by President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;to better reflect the party’s deeply diverse electorate.The Democratic National Committee's rule-making arm made the move to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-nevada-presidential-race-and-ethnicity-iowa-f1d330309665d8041f0e0f3070b2e331">strip Iowa</a>&nbsp;from the position it has held for five decades after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ee095683c85f6c97e51b6589b412f674">technical meltdowns sparked chaos</a>&nbsp;and marred results of the state's 2020 caucus. The change also comes after a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-south-carolina-government-and-politics-d73dd6455829d3ee8aee65ab83fd8ef9">long push</a>&nbsp;by some of the party's top leaders to start choosing a president in states that are less white, especially given the importance of Black voters as Democrats' most loyal electoral base.Discussion on prioritizing diversity drew such impassioned reaction at the committee gathering in Washington that DNC chair Jaime Harrison wiped away tears as committee member Donna Brazile suggested that Democrats had spent years failing to fight for Black voters: “Do you know what it’s like to live on a dirt road? Do you know what it’s like to try to find running water that is clean?”“Do you know what it’s like to wait and see if the storm is going to pass you by and your roof is still intact?” Brazile asked. “That’s what this is about.”The committee approved moving South Carolina's primary to Feb. 3 and having Nevada and New Hampshire vote three days later. Georgia would go the following week and Michigan two weeks after that.The move marks a dramatic shift from&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-nevada-presidential-race-and-ethnicity-iowa-b4a270fdf437e9b072cf295953b841d2">the current calendar</a>, which has had Iowa holding the first-in-the-nation caucuses since 1972, followed by New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary since 1920. Nevada and South Carolina have gone next since the 2008 presidential election, when Democrats last did a major overhaul of their primary calendar.The changes will still have to be approved by the full DNC in a vote likely early next year, but it will almost certainly follow the rule-making committee’s lead.The revamped schedule could largely be moot for 2024 if Biden opts to seek a second term, but may remake Democratic presidential cycles after that. The president has said for months that he intends to run again, and White House aides have begun making staffing discussions for his likely reelection campaign, even though no final decision has been made.The DNC also plans to revisit the primary calendar again before 2028 — meaning more changes could be coming before then.Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-iowa-south-carolina-e738592ee088fa4ca5614ba501d63726">wrote in a letter to rules committee members</a>&nbsp;on Thursday that the party should scrap “restrictive” caucuses altogether because their rules on in-person participation can sometimes exclude working-class and other voters. He told also told party leaders privately that he'd like to see South Carolina go first to better ensure that voters of color aren't marginalized as Democrats choose a presidential nominee.Four of the five states now poised to start the party's primary are presidential battlegrounds, meaning the eventual Democratic winner would be able to lay groundwork in important general election locales. That's especially true for Michigan and Georgia, which both voted for Donald Trump in 2016 before flipping to Biden in 2020. The exception is South Carolina, which hasn't gone Democratic in a presidential race since 1976.The first five voting states would be positioned to cast ballots before Super Tuesday, the day when much of the rest of the country holds primaries. That gives the early states outsize influence since White House hopefuls struggling to raise money or gain political traction often drop out before visiting much of the rest of the country.Scott Brennan, a rules committee member from Iowa, said “small, rural states” like his “must have a voice in the presidential nominating process.”“Democrats cannot forget about entire groups of voters in the heart of the Midwest without doing significant damage to the party in newer generations," Brennan said.The Republican National Committee has already decided to keep Iowa’s caucus as the first contest in its 2024 presidential primary, ensuring that GOP White House hopefuls —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-2024-updates-cd5339d48064a149527e8f9a1aa7614e">which include Trump</a>&nbsp;— have continued to frequently campaign there.House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, South Carolina’s lone congressional Democrat and one of Biden’s top supporters in Congress, said the president called him Thursday to inform him of his push to move his state up.“I didn’t ask to be first," Clyburn said. "It was his idea to be first.”Clyburn's endorsement of Biden in 2020 boosted the candidate's flagging presidential campaign just ahead of South Carolina’s primary, which he won big. That helped Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/elections-in-state-wire-election-2020-ma-state-wire-joe-biden-b9872b58b495fd17044f359338ab3f2a">shake off early losses</a>&nbsp;in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada and eventually take the White House.“He knows what South Carolina did for him, and he’s demonstrated that time and time again, by giving respect to South Carolina,” Clyburn said.Still, the vote by the rules committee has faced serious pushback, with some states vowing to ignore the changes altogether. That's despite the panel approving language saying states could lose all of their delegates to the party's national convention if they attempt to violate new rules.Iowa and New Hampshire have said laws in their states mandate them going before others, and they intend to abide by those, not DNC decrees. Only committee members from Iowa and New Hampshire objected to the proposal that passed Friday, with everyone else supporting it.Nevada, with its heavily Hispanic population, initially balked at sharing the second-place slot with New Hampshire, a state 2,500 miles away. Nevada committee member Artie Blanco’s voice cracked as she argued against the change.“If we want to build a strong relationship with Latinos,” Blanco said, “then Nevada must stand alone on a date and not have to share that date.”After more discussion, Blanco said later that she would support the new calendar. It was “not ideal” for her state to go the same day as another, she said, but “we accept what the will of the president is.”Harrison said the new slate of five early voting states will need to show they are working toward moving their primaries to those dates by early next year or risk losing their place. Some state legislatures set primary dates; others have their secretaries of state or the directors of their state parties do it.The DNC chair choked up after the vote as he talked about South Carolina once having been the site of the first attack of the Civil War and now being in line to lead off his party’s primary.“This proposal reflects the best of our party as a whole, and it will continue to make our party and our country stronger,” Harrison said.-----------WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;has declared that Democrats should give up “restrictive” caucuses and prioritize diversity at the start of their presidential primary calendar — dealing a major blow to Iowa's decadeslong status as the state that leads off the process.In a letter Thursday to the rule-making arm of the Democratic National Committee, Biden did not mention specific states he'd like to see go first. But he has told Democrats he wants South Carolina moved to the first position, according to three people familiar with his recommendation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.The president's direction came as the DNC rules committee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-biden-iowa-323020f9b1ef8fc7dbaecbe3dcb3418d">gathered in Washington on Friday</a>&nbsp;to vote on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-nevada-presidential-race-and-ethnicity-iowa-f1d330309665d8041f0e0f3070b2e331">shaking up the presidential primary calendar starting in 2024</a>. Members now expect to approve new rules putting South Carolina first, followed by New Hampshire and Nevada on the same day a week later.Georgia and Michigan would move into the top five as new early states, and each would hold primaries in subsequent weeks, committee members say. The two battlegrounds were critical to Biden's 2020 victory over then-President Donald Trump, who had won both states in his 2016 White House campaign.Much of the rest of the country would vote as part of Super Tuesday soon afterward.Such changes are set to come after years of calls from many top Democrats for the voting calendar to better reflect the party's deeply diverse base than mostly white Iowa, which holds the country's first caucus, and New Hampshire, which holds the first primary. The new calendar would still have to be approved by the full DNC in a vote likely to come early next year, but the DNC will almost certainly heed the rule-making panel's recommendations.The proposed order of the early states was first reported by The Washington Post.“For decades, Black voters in particular have been the backbone of the Democratic Party but have been pushed to the back of the early primary process," Biden wrote in a letter on personal stationery that did not carry the White House seal. “We rely on these voters in elections but have not recognized their importance in our nominating calendar. It is time to stop taking these voters for granted, and time to give them a louder and earlier voice in the process.”He said caucuses were “restrictive and anti-worker” because they require voters “to spend significant amounts of time” on one night gathering to choose candidates in person, “disadvantaging hourly workers and anyone who does not have the flexibility to go to a set location at a set time.”The changes could be implemented as soon as 2024 but would be rendered largely meaningless until 2028 if Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-5a8fd26a4a9ffa9b47c5de52fface72d">opts to seek a second term</a>. The president has said for months that he intends to run again, and White House aides and Biden allies have begun staffing and structural discussions for his likely 2024 bid while refraining from overt steps while the president weighs a final decision.Such a shakeup would nonetheless be seismic given that Iowa’s caucus has led off the Democratic voting calendar since 1976. Still, it would come two years after a series of technical glitches&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ee095683c85f6c97e51b6589b412f674">so marred party results</a>&nbsp;that they prevented The Associated Press from declaring a 2020 Iowa Democratic caucus winner.Iowa Democratic Party Chair Ross Wilburn said in a statement Thursday night that the state party intended to abide by Iowa law and hold its caucus first.“Our state law requires us to hold a caucus before the last Tuesday in February, and before any other contest,” Wilburn said. "When we submit our delegate selection plan to the Rules and Bylaws Committee early next year, we will adhere to the State of Iowa’s legal requirements, and address compliance with DNC rules in subsequent meetings and hearings.”New Hampshire state law calls for it to hold the first actual primary, and officials there have for months threatened to simply move up their election regardless of what new rules the DNC approvesOn the current Democratic calendar, Iowa has been followed by New Hampshire, which has held the nation’s first primary since 1920. Nevada and South Carolina have gone next since the 2008 presidential election, when Democrats last did a major primary calendar overhaul.The Republican National Committee, meanwhile, has already decided to keep Iowa’s caucus as the first contest in its 2024 presidential calendar, ensuring that GOP White House hopefuls — which include Trump — will continue campaigning there frequently.South Carolina holds special relevance to Biden.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/elections-in-state-wire-election-2020-ma-state-wire-joe-biden-b9872b58b495fd17044f359338ab3f2a">His victory</a>&nbsp;in the state's first-in-the-South primary in 2020 kickstarted his presidential campaign after poor finishes in Iowa and New Hampshire on his way to winning the Democratic nomination.Dick Harpootlian, a longtime Biden ally, fundraiser and former South Carolina Democratic Party chair, said Thursday that he and Biden discussed South Carolina’s possible advancement the night of Biden’s 2020 primary victory there. Harpootlian said he’d impressed upon Biden that the state was a better place than Iowa to hold an even earlier presidential voting contest — to which Harpootlian said Biden was receptive.“I think he agreed that this was a much more dynamic process,” Harpootlian said. “Iowa was just a nightmare.”The DNC rules committee has been discussing reordering the early calendar for months, touching off a fierce battle among many states to go first. In a joint statement Thursday night, Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes and U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell said, “We have always said that any road to the White House goes through the heartland and President Biden understands that.”Several states have previously tried to violate party rules and jump closer to the front, only to be threatened with having their delegates not count.New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen issued a statement blasting “the White House’s short-sighted decision,” while fellow New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan said, “I strongly oppose the President’s deeply misguided proposal."“But make no mistake," Hassan said in a statement. “New Hampshire’s law is clear and our primary will continue to be first in the nation.”