| | Words This Friday (WTF) with Dr. Kyle Dell | |
Executive Director Dr. Kyle Dell breaks down the words making headlines this week in “Words This Friday” (WTF) — a quick, insightful look at the language shaping our news and civic conversations. | |
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End of the longest U.S. federal government shutdown in history
Source 1: Fox News, Source 2: CNN
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Adelita Grijalva sworn in, enabling House vote on Jeffrey Epstein-related files
Source 1: Breitbart, Source 2: PBS News
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| Congress – Senate Passed HR 5371 - Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2026 | |
| Michigan (MI) – House Passed HB 4073 - Requires Officers of the Department of Natural Resources to Obtain a Warrant Before Entering Private Property | |
Pennsylvania (PA) – Senate Passed SB 111 - Authorizes Out-of-State Residents to Work in Pennsylvania Correctional Facilities | |
Ohio (OH) - Senate Passed SB 293 - Amends the Deadline to Return Absentee Ballots | |
| Democrat Dick Durbin (who is retiring from the U.S. Senate next year after five terms), along with six other moderate Senate Democrats, voted in favor of a bill that does not guarantee Affordable Care Act subsidies will be extended, which Democrats have demanded for almost six weeks. The agreement with Republicans includes a reversal of the mass firings of federal workers by the Trump Administration since the shutdown began on October 1, and would ensure federal workers, including air traffic controllers, receive back pay. | |
| Independent Senator Angus King of Maine, who caucuses with Democrats, along with seven other moderate senators, broke the now record long government shutdown stalemate this week, when they agreed to vote to advance three bipartisan annual spending bills and extend the rest of government funding until late January in exchange for a mid-December vote on extending the health care tax credits. | |
| Republican Marc Tremblay is the newest representative in the New Hampshire State Legislature. Tremblay, who was one of the few Republicans to flip a seat last week, was declared the winner of a close special election to represent Coos County District 5 in the lower chamber, and will replace former Representative Brian Valerino, who resigned from the seat in May. Tremblay, the police commissioner in Berlin, New Hampshire (where most of the district encompasses), beat out educator Corinne Cascadden by a vote of 878 to 873. The Democratic Party in New Hampshire intends to appeal the recount that ultimately decided Tremblay’s victory. | | This week, there were regular and special elections across the country. Click on the links below to view the results: | | |
Acts of Courage
"Took my elderly friend to see her first movie in years to see 'Hamilton' in the theatre." - Medford, Oregon
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