News from around the nation.

Trump picks Matt Gaetz for attorney general, Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence; New York lawmakers supported House bill harmful to nonprofits; Report: Chesapeake Bay cleanup deadline looms as officials propose next phase; Michiganders rally at state capital to end prison crisis.

Transcript

A public news service Thursday afternoon update.

I'm Mike Clifford.

First from CNN on the days after President-elect Donald Trump's victory, allies described his transition effort as more disciplined than his first post-victory period in 2016.

Then in a 24-hour stretch that started with Trump's election of Fox News host Pete Hegseth as defense secretary on Tuesday night, tapping former Hawaii Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence, and culminating with the selection of the bomb-throwing Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz as attorney general later that day, turned that perception on its head.

CNN notes their selections followed Trump finding the other candidates he'd interviewed boring.

Next, some New York House lawmakers supported a bill as harmful to nonprofits.

HR 9495 faced staunch opposition since it would have given the Treasury Secretary unilateral power to revoke tax exemptions for nonprofits considered terrorists supporting organizations.

The bill stems from a disinformation campaign saying Democrats support terrorists and would have jeopardized nonprofits providing aid to Palestinians in Gaza.

Beth Miller with Jewish Voice for Peace Action says this foreshadows Donald Trump's second term.

It's very clear that the far-right, MAGA Republicans are planning to take every step they can to dismantle our fundamental freedoms, including our right to free speech, our right to protest, and attacking the nonprofit civil society sector and social justice movements and progressive movements.

I'm Edwin J. Vieira.

And despite some progress, Pennsylvania and other states in the Chesapeake Bay watershed are unlikely to meet their 2025 pollution commitments to reduce nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment pollution.

Our Daniel Smith has the story.

An assessment by the Environmental Protection Agency's Chesapeake Bay program reveals that more than two-thirds of the Bay and its tidal rivers did not meet clean water standards between 2020 and 2022.

Harry Campbell with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation notes that pollution levels vary based on land use, local economies, and population, and stresses that a stronger workforce is essential for Pennsylvania to meet its goals.

There simply are not enough scientists, engineers, and planners, even in some cases construction crews and equipment to meet the demands for conservation assistance.

And hundreds from across Michigan gathered in Lansing this week, urging House Speaker Joe Tate and Senate Majority Leader Winnie Banks to advance the Second Look Sentencing Act to improve prison safety.

Chuck Warper Husky with the Michigan Collaborative to End Mass Incarceration warns there is a prison staffing crisis in Michigan.

We're seeing it in nursing.

We're seeing it in child care.

We're seeing it on the shop floor.

We're seeing it with baristas.

And it happens in a prison, and people are forced to work mandatory double shifts.

They're tired.

They're not seeing their family.

It creates unsafe conditions for everyone.

The legislation would allow people serving long sentences to have their cases reviewed for possible sentence reductions.

This is public news service.

The recent wave of racist texts targeting Black folks in Wisconsin has sparked concerns about data privacy.

The personal information that people voluntarily disclose on various online platforms is often used for marketing purposes and can be sold to data brokers who then sell it to others.

Cybersecurity professor Chad Johnson at the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point says industry estimates are that most data brokers have no less than 15 data points on every American, including age and ethnicity, detailed contact information, and even Social Security numbers.

And since there's no regulation over who can buy those, of course, it could be other advertising agencies.

It could be other platforms.

But there's also nothing stopping, for example, a white supremacist movement from buying that information for purposes exactly like this.

Personal data can also be stolen or leaked.

Johnson adds there is currently no comprehensive federal law that protects data and privacy in the U.S.

However, Wisconsin's new data privacy law goes into effect next year.

I'm Judah Thruese Branch reporting.

And nearly 13 million people nationwide, including thousands of Hoosiers on Medicare and Medicaid, may qualify for additional coverage through a dual special needs plan, also known as D-SNPs.

It is important to shop around for the plan that best fits your needs and be aware that not all plans in Indiana serve the entire state.

Jennifer Walden, a counselor with Indiana State Health Insurance Assistance Program, says it's also crucial for Hoosiers to look out for bad actors.

Whenever there's a time of need, there always seems to be scammers.

So you really want to make sure that the people that you're talking to are reliable, non-biased individuals.

This additional coverage option is for people who may need more help because of disabilities, age or health conditions.

I'm Joe Ulari, Public News Service.

Finally, a growing number of Iowa farmers supporting the sentiment behind California's Proposition 12, which bans the use of gestation crates that are small enclosures where hog producers can find pregnant pigs.

We get more in this Settlement Iowa News Service collaboration.

Ron Martison, who farms pigs in the tiny western Iowa town of Elliott, says he's never supported using the crates, which measure about seven feet long and two feet wide.

When you cram an animal that weighs up to 600 pounds into that, all they can do is stand up and lie down.

They can't turn around.

They can't walk.

They're forced to lay on a hard concrete floor.

And I think after working with pigs, cows in particular, for the last 50 years, that that's way too intelligent of an animal to be forced to subjugate to a lifestyle like that.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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