Six minutes of news from around the nation.

Hegseth starts proceedings against Sen. Mark Kelly over his remarks; AR public school enrollment falls as vouchers are available to all; IN coal plants benefit from EPA pause; Vigils outside MA ICE facility attract growing number of activists; Postal changes threaten rural mail-in voters in FL, advocates say.

TRANSCRIPT

The Public News Service Daily Newscast, January 6, 2026.

I'm Mike Clifford.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the military had started administrative actions against Senator Mark Kelly, Democrat of Arizona, that could result in a reduction in his retirement rank and military position.

That from the New York Times.

They report in November, Kelly and five other Democratic lawmakers who served in the military or the intelligence community, released a video reminding their still-serving counterparts that their oblige to refuse illegal orders.

In a social media message issued Monday, Hegseth called the video "seditious."

Kelly and his lawyers maintained last month the senator was simply articulating a fundamental principle of military law.

CNN reports they noted Hexeth had made similar statements in the past.

Meantime, public school enrollment in Arkansas is experiencing a decline due in part to the state school voucher program.

Money from the LEARNS Act was made available to all students across Arkansas for the 2025-2026 school year.

Families can use the funds to pay for private school or homeschooling.

April Reismo with the Arkansas Education Association says 17,000 households took advantage of the homeschooling vouchers, and she fears kids won't receive a quality education.

You go to a public school and you've got an expert in mathematics.

You've got an expert in science.

You've got an expert in English.

You've got an expert in social studies and all the different subjects.

Now for one person to be able to be an expert in all of those different subjects, it's kind of a lot to ask.

Proponents of the voucher program say Arkansas is creating an environment that allows parents to provide what they believe is the best education for their children.

Since last year, more than 8,900 students have left the public school system.

I'm Freda Ross reporting.

Next to Indiana where coal plants that discharge wastewater into rivers under state permits are under renewed scrutiny after the Environmental Protection Agency delayed tougher pollution rules by five years.

Our Joe Ulori has more.

The EPA decision affects the Rockport coal plant in Spencer County.

It regularly discharges treated coal wastewater into the Ohio River and would have faced stricter cleanup deadlines under the original rule.

The delay applies to limits on pollutants like arsenic, mercury, bromide, and lead.

Tom Smarr is deputy managing attorney for the Midwest Regional Office of Earth Justice.

He says the timing of the announcement stood out.

The night before Christmas, EPA announced that it was going to be taking action to push back the deadlines for coal power plant owners to decide whether to invest more in cleaning up their toxic coal ash wastewater.

The EPA says the delay gives power companies more flexibility as electricity demand rises and concerns grow about grid reliability and affordability.

This is public news service.

As more immigrants are detained in Massachusetts, a growing number of protesters are holding weekly vigils to bear witness and show their support for immigrant rights.

Activists attend multiple weekly gatherings outside the ICE processing facility in Burlington, which has been described by former detainees as overcrowded and inhumane.

Todd Palmer with the Greater Assabit Indivisible Network says people are sleeping on concrete floors in windowless rooms where the lights are always on.

This is a violation of the Eighth Amendment against cruel and unusual punishments.

And that really was part of what drew me out there to think that such a thing was happening in Massachusetts.

Nearly 9,000 people across New England were detained by ICE last year.

Many were processed through the Burlington facility.

Palmer says the vigils are peaceful, often joyful, and show immigrant families they are not alone.

I'm Catherine Carley.

And proposed changes to the US Postal Service's processing network could delay mail delivery and alter postmarked dates.

Michael Shemitis of the Rural Democracy Initiative says the plan to consolidate regional facilities and eliminate evening pickups at some rural post offices will mostly impact rural communities.

The postal leadership wants to wait until they transport my mail from the post office to a separate regional facility, which will mean the postmark will likely have a different day than when I actually mail it.

The changes, part of the Postal Service's Delivering for America plan, are intended to modernize operations, but have drawn criticism for potentially slowing mail and creating confusion around election deadlines.

Shemitis warns that voters who submit ballots on time could still have them rejected due to incorrect postmarks.

I'm Trammell Gomes.

Finally, a leading watchdog group says that Governor Tim Walz's ending his re-election bid should not distract from conversations around fraud reform in Minnesota.

Walz announced Monday he's no longer seeking a third term as the state garners scrutiny over claims it didn't do enough to shield social service programs from fraudsters.

Anastasia Belladonna-Carrera with Common Cause Minnesota says discussions on fraud reform, no matter which elected official or candidate is involved, has to be more than symbolic.

Minnesotans are getting a bit saturated with the party line narratives and are more hungry for fact-based outcomes.

The state legislature and the governor's office have each touted steps they've taken in response to high-profile investigations on both the state and federal level.

But Bella Donna Carretta feels the public's voice is being left out too much.

She points to hearings on fraud and other key issues were held in the middle of the day when most people are at work.

I'm Mike Moen.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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