| Thursday, September 3, 2026 |
| MSU hosts blues legend Jesse Robinson for free concert tonight | |
 | Mississippi blues legend Jesse Robinson will give a free concert Thursday, Sept. 3, on Mississippi State's campus. Hosted by MSU's Department of Music, "Echoes from the Delta" takes place at 7:30 p.m. in the Recital Hall of MSU's Music Building, 124 Hardy Rd. Robinson is joined by The Hip Waders Band for an evening of blues, jazz and soul music. Known as "the Mayor of Jackson's Blues Scene," Robinson has been a fixture in the state's music landscape since the 1960s and was the winner of the 2026 Governor's Arts Award for Lifetime Achievement. Through his decades-long career as a performing artist, educator and community ambassador, he has enriched the state's cultural landscape and inspired generations to embrace the power and soul of the blues. His mastery of the guitar places him among the finest blues musicians in the world. A complete listing of the Department of Music's fall events is available at www.music.msstate.edu. |
| Interview: Blues legend Jesse Robinson to play free MSU concert | |
 | Video: A Mississippi blues legend is giving a free concert at Mississippi State University this week. |
| Mississippi National Guard hosting unmanned aircraft systems forum | |
 | On September 9-10, the Mississippi National Guard, in partnership with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Mississippi State University, will host Magnolia Crucible 2026, a two-day unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and counter-unmanned aircraft systems (cUAS) forum and exercise at Camp Shelby Joint Forces Training Center. Magnolia Crucible 2026 will bring together military, law enforcement, government, critical infrastructure, academia and industry partners to demonstrate, validate and integrate emerging UAS and cUAS capabilities while strengthening collaboration across participating organizations. The event will include live-action demonstrations, technology showcases, static displays, panel discussions, specialized breakout sessions and tabletop exercises focused on current and emerging UAS challenges. |
| Aldermen look to expand Leisure and Recreation District | |
 | The board of aldermen is considering expanding the city's Leisure and Recreation District and adding a new sticker requirement. If passed, Starkville's Leisure and Recreation District would expand to include a portion of Dr. Douglas L. Conner Drive between West Main Street and Dr. Martin Luther King Drive, North Lafayette Street, a small portion of South Lafayette Street, Jefferson Street, Lummus Drive and Colonel Muldrow Drive. Mayor Lynn Spruill told The Dispatch expanding the district would support proposed new mixed-use developments in those areas that could include restaurants but the full scope of the projects won't be determined until after the board votes on the expansion. "We've got people that are ... buying property and intending to invest and that includes for residential, for new restaurants, for office, for retail," Spruill told The Dispatch. "So all of that is indicative of the city being a place where people want to invest and increase their footprint and their opportunity." Starkville established its Leisure and Recreation District in 2018, which allows for to-go cups of alcohol to be taken outside of restaurants and bars and consumed in the district. The existing boundaries include the Cotton District and large swaths of downtown. Spruill hopes if this ordinance passes it will encourage more investment in Starkville's downtown. |
| Drought worsens across region, farmers face rising costs | |
 | Drought conditions are worsening across northern Mississippi, and farmers are among those most affected. Parts of Lafayette County have received a tenth of an inch of rain over the last 30 days. Much of the area has significantly worsened over the last month. According to the latest drought monitor, most of Yalobusha, Grenada, and Montgomery counties are under a severe drought or a moderate drought. The drought monitor will update Thursday morning and is expected to worsen for those counties and the area. In Lafayette County, it has rained on four out of the last 30 days. Those days totaled 0.13 inches of rain. On average, the area should have nearly four inches of rain during that stretch. The City of Oxford asked residents Wednesday morning to limit their water usage due to the drought and heat. High heat and low rainfall have put many farmers in west Mississippi in a difficult situation. The owners at Fudgetown Farms, just outside of Oxford, conserve water as best they can with their irrigation, but the bills pile up when rainfall slows down. |
| Shipbuilding company to create 121 new jobs in Gulfport with $43.8 million expansion | |
| Shipbuilding company Gulf Ship is expanding operations along the Mississippi Gulf Coast with a $43.81 million investment. Gulf Ship, a subsidiary of marine transportation company Edison Chouest Offshore, plans to create 121 new jobs at its existing location in Gulfport. The business has operated in Gulfport for more than two decades and is undertaking a major modernization of its existing shipbuilding and steel fabrication facilities. "Mississippians are the best shipbuilders in America, so this investment makes a lot of sense for Gulf Ship and our state. Mississippi has a long history of building the vessels that keep our nation moving," Gov. Tate Reeves said. "This investment will create 121 new jobs while advancing one of Mississippi's signature industries. Demand for American-built vessels is growing, and Mississippi has the workforce, expertise and industrial base to help meet it." Gulf Ship expects to complete the upgrades by the fourth quarter of 2027 and plans to fill the 121 jobs by 2028. |
| Mississippi's August revenue collections come in $51 million above estimate | |
| Mississippi revenues outpaced legislative estimates again in August, pushing the first two months of the current fiscal year to $71.7 million above estimates. August collections were $51,141,604, or 9.71% above the revenue estimate for the month. Fiscal year-to-date revenue collections through August were $71,726,867, or 6.52% above the revenue estimate. The July and August collections combined came in above the year-to-date revenue collections for the prior year by $59,707,651, or 5.36%. Lawmakers set the total revenue estimate for Fiscal Year 2027 at $7,532,400,000. August General Fund collections were $53,023,485, or 10.10% above the same month in the prior fiscal year. Driving the increase were sales tax collections, individual income tax collections, and corporate income tax collections, as all came in above the same month in the prior fiscal year. Sales tax collections for the month of August were above the prior year by $12.3 million while individual income tax collections and corporate income tax collections totaled $20.9 million and $5.6 million, respectively, above the prior year. |
| Mississippi Supreme Court marks milestone with three women Justices | |
| The Mississippi Supreme Court marked a milestone on Sept. 1, 2026, when, for the first time in its history, three women serve on the state's highest court at the same time. Justice Amanda Jones Tollison of Oxford was sworn in on Sept. 1 to serve as a Justice in District 3, Place 2. She is the seventh woman to served on the Mississippi Supreme Court during its 208-year history. Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Randolph of Hattiesburg, who administered the oath of office to Justice Tollison, said, "I personally could not be more excited about what's going on today. Amanda, you are going to be the first lady to be a member of a nine-member court that has three ladies on it. It's a first." He also introduced Justices Jenifer Branning of Philadelphia and Justice Celeste Embrey Wilson of Southaven. The percentage of women on the Supreme Court matches the percentage of women practicing law in Mississippi: 33 percent. Of the 6,638 attorneys actively practicing in Mississippi, 2,201 are women, according to July 2026 data from the Mississippi Bar. Women make up 37.4 percent of the Mississippi state judiciary. Among the 163 currently serving trial and appellate judges, 61 are women. |
| Sen. Daniel Sparks, state auditor candidate, talks budget, spending | |
 | Long-term fiscal reform in Mississippi isn't sexy. But it's the key to turning the state around, said Sen. Daniel Sparks, R-Belmont, and potentially getting him elected as state auditor in November 2027. Sparks addressed an audience at the Monday, Aug. 31, Stennis-Capitol Press Forum meeting, a monthly venue for politicians and government executives to discuss policy held at Hal and Mal's in Downtown Jackson. Sparks used the stage to discuss a wide range of bills that the Legislature has passed and his goals for the future. Some of the most important paths for legislators to take, he said, are the ones with the least glory. "We've paid off $1.2 billion of the state's debt," Sparks told the group. "We'll be closer to $2 billion by the end of the two terms that I've been in office. Nobody gets reelected saying, 'Hey, we paid this off.' We could have taken that same money and had ribbon cuttings, but yet, those seven years of fat, biblically, are often followed by seven years of lean." The thread connecting nearly every point in Sparks' speech was money, mirroring his tenure in the Legislature. The Public Employees' Retirement System has been his signature project for several years. The program has a shortfall of approximately $26 billion and is less than 60% funded, the "red line of pension systems," as Sparks put it. |
| Are 'Opportunity Zones' Creating Opportunity? Rural America Is Waiting. | |
| Montgomery County, Illinois, is roughly 700 square miles of sparsely populated land almost perfectly situated in between Springfield and St. Louis. It's home to a Route 66 Welcome Center and, if a federal tax-incentive program is successful, is supposed to be a hotspot for new economic development. But when Mike Plunkett, a county coordinator whose job it is to field those millions of dollars in investment, looks around, he wonders why a developer would come there. "What do we have to offer that a million other Midwestern communities don't have? We have very little competitive advantage," Plunkett said. In the eight years since the federal government implemented "opportunity zones," a tax-incentive program that aims to spur economic development in selected low-income census tracts in the U.S., many counties have been experiencing what Montgomery has. As the Treasury Department fields nominations from governors' offices for the second round of opportunity zone investments this summer -- tracts that will be eligible for tax-incentivized investments starting in January 2027 -- communities are wondering whether they will actually experience the benefits of the program this time. Corey Proctor, the planning director for Forrest County, Mississippi, said his county needs new housing and has vast swathes of land he believes could attract industry, but local developers lack the requisite information to leverage the tax incentive. Those developers could benefit from workshops that provide a rundown on how to invest in an opportunity zone, whether delivered by his office or the state or federal government, Proctor said. |
| Southaven Board of Aldermen approve new SpaceXAI data center | |
| SpaceXAI is looking to build another data center in the Mid-South. On Sept. 1, the Southaven Mayor and Board of Aldermen approved two development resolutions, including a design review approval for a "data storage warehouse" along Tulane Road. (The other resolution was for a subdivision of the property, combining two parcels of land.) The property, 8425 Tulane Road, sits directly across from SpaceXAI's Southaven power plant (former Duke Energy site) at 2875 Stanton Road. The 51-acre Tulane Road site was formerly owned by the City of Southaven and used by the Southaven Police Department. Southaven Planning and Development Director Whitney Choat-Cook said Sept. 1 the plans are for a "roughly 660,000 square foot data storage facility" at the site. Choat-Cook said the site plans were approved by the planning commission unanimously. The area was used for police and fire training. The city entered into a land swap agreement with SpaceXAI affiliate MZX Tech LLC for the property. Per the agreement, Southaven gave MZX Tech LLC the Tulane Road property in exchange for 69 acres along Swinnea Road and $40 million to build new city facilities, according to city documents. |
| Trump Fatigue Starts to Rattle Republicans | |
 | Congressional Republican leaders are putting President Trump front and center in their campaign to keep control of the House and Senate, even as some in the party say the strategy could increase the likelihood of a drubbing in the midterms. "Nobody better to turn out the base than President Trump," said House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R., La.). That Trump-centric approach will be on display next week in Dallas as the president stars at an unusual midterm GOP convention. While many GOP lawmakers are embracing the president, others have started to sound the alarm publicly and privately that Trump's low approval ratings could drag the party down in November. They say resentment is building as Trump focuses more on legacy construction projects and fights with allies than on helping Republicans keep control of Congress. "Some of the things he's done, it smells like chaos, it smells destructive," said Rep. Don Bacon (R., Neb.), who is retiring. He pointed to Trump's recent executive order renaming Lake Ontario "Lake America," calling it a "silly" own goal by the president. "Most people think it's dumb," he said. Democrats need to gain just three seats to win back the House and four to retake the Senate, and nonpartisan election analysts have steadily shifted more races in Democrats' direction over the summer. For Republicans, "the three most plausible outcomes are that it will be bad, really bad, or truly horrible," wrote political analyst Charlie Cook, the founder of Cook Political Report. |
| Hegseth headed for clash with GOP senators as frustrations grow | |
 | Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is on a collision course with GOP senators as key lawmakers have major concerns about the turnover of senior staff, the lack of a clear plan for ending the Iran war, and the failure of the administration to reach out to Democrats to build support for funding priorities. Hegseth has been a controversial figure throughout his leadership of the Pentagon, but the growing tensions between him and senior GOP lawmakers will come to a head this fall when the administration makes a push for more than $70 billion in emergency national security spending to cover the growing costs of the Iran war. Senate Republicans will demand more information about the departures of senior military officials, such as Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll, who resigned this week, and about the conduct of the military conflict with Iran, which has now stretched for more than six months. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), a former member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, on Wednesday accused Hegseth of "inept management" of the Pentagon and called on President Trump to fire him. "I have never witnessed more inept management of the brave men and women who serve our country. He is intimidated by competence and retreats to ginning up culture wars instead of soberly attending to the vital work of our national defense and the health and well-being of our fighting force," Tillis posted on social platform X. |
| Why Trump's 'golden shares' are enticing progressives | |
 | The Trump administration is shaking up federal involvement in the mining, tech, energy and defense sectors by making the government a part owner of dozens of U.S. companies -- and sparking a conversation among progressives about how a future Democratic president might reboot the party's approach to climate and labor policy. Starting with Trump's surprise moves to take a "golden share" in U.S. Steel and then a 10 percent share in Intel more than a year ago, the administration is approaching $30 billion in equity stakes, warrants or similar plans in U.S. companies by most estimates, a fairly radical departure from orthodoxy outside of times of financial crisis -- like the massive government bailouts of 2008-2009 -- or world war. That's not counting some international arrangements, like the Trump administration's announcement Friday that it would take a stake in the Venezuelan oil industry, which it said will be engineered by the Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital. The new approach has sparked a mixture of support, criticism and confusion across both parties, with libertarian conservatives pointing out the irony of Trump's attacks on Democrats as communists and some elected Democrats pledging to investigate equity stake arrangements involving ties to Trump family or allies if they win back power in the midterms. Critics dispute the administration's authority to take equity stakes in private companies at all. But many Democrats, including some former Biden administration officials working outside the government, also see an opening. |
| Iowa farmers grow impatient with Trump on tariffs, Iran war | |
 | "Compared to my grandfather, I'm not a farmer." That's how Josh Manske, a farmer from Algona, Iowa, feels. His grandfather provided for five children by raising 800 head of livestock and farming hundreds of acres. By contrast, Mr. Manske juggles a farm drainage operation and sells real estate alongside growing corn and soybeans. These days, it's not possible to get by just growing crops, he says. "That is not the [agricultural world] that we, for the most part, live in anymore." Soon, even those extra endeavors might not be enough. Between tariffs and the Iran war, America's farmers say they're facing the worst economic outlook in years – and there's no sign that things will improve anytime soon. The last few years have felt like a recession, says Mr. Manske. "Where's the light at the end of this tunnel?" Farmers have long been used to difficult conditions and uncertainty, starting with the weather. But many say they're now facing a perfect storm, squeezed by soaring operating costs even as the price they can command for their product falls through the floor because of tariffs and supply outpacing demand. Rural voters, long a conservative constituency, delivered 94 of Iowa's 99 counties to Donald Trump in the 2024 election. But many of the current problems besetting farmers are a result of the president's policies, and in some farming communities, patience might be wearing thin. |
| The Gulf South has plenty of native tribes, but no tribal colleges or universities | |
 | The August heat in Choctaw, Mississippi, has parents and children ducking in and out of Pearl River Head Start quickly. Inside, Tina Hickman, the center's facilities coordinator and secretary, says it'll be getting even busier soon with the start of the school year. When Hickman, 41, started community college after graduating high school in 2003, she was originally interested in accounting. Instead, she fell in love with teaching while at the center, where she's served in a couple of different roles since 2008. In 2024, she started working toward her bachelor's in early childhood education. "I only took one class at first, but after that I started taking three classes: that determination just kind of came over me," Hickman said. "And then my kids, they were about to graduate high school. I was like, I need to do this for them, to show them it can be done, no matter what age." Hickman's earlier undergraduate classes were at East Central and Meridian community colleges. To get her teaching degree, however, she decided to attend Bay Mills Community College, a tribal college in Michigan. Hickman said the choice to attend Bay Mills wasn't just a chance to finish her bachelor's, but also to gain a new perspective on her Indigenous heritage. Like with her favorite class, Native American Contributions to Society. But Bay Mills is in Brimley, Michigan -- more than 1,000 miles from Choctaw -- making online classes the only way for Hickman to realistically attend a tribal institution for her specific degree. |
| Amid criticism, game day parking rates remain unchanged | |
 | The Oxford Board of Aldermen declined to change game day parking rates on the Square at its Sept. 1 meeting, as proposed by downtown business owners. Mayor Robyn Tannehill raised concerns that businesses would be negatively impacted if parking prices were to increase. Tannehill suggested that game day parking issues be addressed using an alternate approach. This was the board's second time hearing the proposed game day parking ordinance, with the first being at its Aug. 18 meeting. Downtown parking is a notable concern among Oxford residents and business owners, particularly on game days. Local business owners have expressed frustration over residents who leave their vehicles parked on the Square for extended periods of time on game days for the low price, resulting in fewer premium parking spaces for restaurant and boutique patrons. "I have seen all of Facebook (people saying) it is a money grab by the city and all these things. ... This is a proposal that was brought to us by downtown business owners who are rightfully frustrated by the fact that people use our downtown parking as game day parking," Tannehill said. |
| Aerial imagery firm partners with USM's Gulf Blue during hurricane season | |
| Near Space Labs, a private, U.S.-based aerial imagery and geospatial data company, has partnered with the University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Blue to map Gulf Coast shorelines from miles above the ground. "That's the goal, is to match the data collection with the rate of change that's happening," said Alex Kapur of Near Space Labs. An autonomous Swift vehicle climbed to about 45,000 feet in mid-August, capturing high-resolution imagery across roughly 772 square miles. Kapur, Near Space Labs' senior vice president of business development, documented coastlines, wetlands, ports, barrier islands and inland areas across Mississippi and Louisiana. "Two-thousand square kilometers over a period of three hours -- the Louisiana wetlands, barrier islands, the coastline, various shoreline assets such as ports," Kapur said. "It's gonna take us about a few weeks to fully produce the results of the survey so we can see and interpret exactly what we saw," Kapur said. |
| LSU installed the Ten Commandments in classrooms this summer, but many classes don't have them | |
| When students arrived on campus after summer break, they were met with posters of the Ten Commandments hung in classrooms. In June 2024, Gov. Jeff Landry signed Act 676 into action, requiring that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom in the state. A key provision of the law is that the posters cannot be provided by state funds; however, schools may use donations to cover the cost of the displays. After the ruling, LSU President Wade Rousse was quick to comply with the law. "Personally, I think shining a light on God is never a negative thing, but that's just a personal statement of mine. We're going to move as quickly as we need to to stay in compliance with the law," Rousse said to the media after a February 2026 Board of Supervisors meeting. Meg Sunstrom, the chief communications officer at LSU, confirmed that the posters had been installed since the summer. She said if there are classes without them, she assumes they have been taken down. Some students said they haven't seen the posters on campus at all. "I haven't seen any signs in my classroom since high school, honestly," said William Swann, a sophomore engineering student. Regardless, Swann believes the signs are exclusionary and unproductive, and he believes students and faculty have the right to take them down. |
| UT SGA honors Dolly Parton, reviews bylaw amendments | |
| Senators in the University of Tennessee's Student Government Association honored the late Dolly Parton through a proclamation at Tuesday night's Undergraduate Student Senate meeting. Seven senators collaborated to write the proclamation, which recognizes Parton's impact on East Tennessee. "The Undergraduate Student Senate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville recognizes and honors the life of Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean, a person who dedicated her life to others, embodying the volunteer spirit," the proclamation reads. ... The senate welcomed Vice Chancellor for Student Life Frank Cuevas and Dean of Students Byron Hughes to Tuesday night's meeting to speak about the senators' responsibilities. "We continue in our division, and across campuses, to create an environment for you to be successful and thrive near the University of Tennessee," Cuevas said. Cuevas emphasized the senate's role in making the UT campus feel like a small, connected community to incoming students despite its population of over 40,000 students. |
| Texas A&M searches for new research security chief | |
| Texas A&M University System regents opened the first Board of Regents meeting of the 2026-27 academic year Wednesday, with leaders naming the search for a new chief research security officer as a top priority. The search comes after a year of leadership turnover across the system, including a new Texas A&M University president and a newly named interim provost. System Vice Chancellor for Research Joe Elabd said current Chief Research Security Officer Kevin Gamache is retiring this year, and finding his replacement is a priority for the system's flagship research university. "As you know, that's a critical, important piece for us, making sure that all of our research is secure from our adversaries," Elabd said. "Our current person is retiring this year, so we have a position open and we will be filling that by the end of this calendar year." The search for a new security chief comes as Texas A&M's research enterprise -- and the broader Brazos Valley region -- continues to grow, in part due to SpaceX's TeraFab facility moving forward in nearby Grimes County. The security search isn't the only major story out of this week's meeting. On Thursday, the Board's agenda takes on national scope when federal, state and A&M System leaders brief regents on the coordinated response to New World screwworm. |
| Texas A&M System considers removing courses on LGBTQ, ethnic studies and climate change from core offerings | |
| Students at 11 Texas A&M University System schools may soon have fewer classes related to LGBTQ literature, climate change and women writers that would meet graduation requirements under a proposal to remove more than 200 classes from general-education course lists. System regents are scheduled to vote Thursday on scaling back the classes that qualify because a new state law requires them to review at least once every five years the classes undergraduates must take regardless of their majors. Regents must ensure those courses "are foundational and fundamental" for a college education and that they prepare students for civic life and the workforce, according to Senate Bill 37. The system's review comes ahead of a Jan. 1 deadline. The law also requires public university governing boards to consider the potential tuition, fee and time costs of those requirements to students. The agenda packet contains 360 entries marked "remove" across 11 universities' general-education course lists. However, some courses appear more than once because they are listed under multiple departments or in more than one general-education category. |
| Mizzou gets a record $50 million donation for Payne Energy Innovation Center | |
 | University of Missouri alumnus David Payne donated $50 million to the College of Engineering for the new Payne Energy Innovation Center, the university announced in a news release Wednesday. Payne broke ground on the new center alongside university, state and community officials Wednesday. The donation is "the single largest investment in a school or college in (Mizzou) history," according to the release. Payne's donation will assist the College of Engineering by supporting programs, students, faculty research and -- namely -- improving facilities, including the "significant" renovation of Naka Hall, home to the electrical engineering and computer science department, according to the release. The department will now be named the "David L. Payne Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science" to recognize the generosity of his donation, according to the release. Additionally, funds from Payne's gift will be utilized for the new energy innovation center, announced in June 2025. The Payne Energy Innovation Center is expected to open in fall 2028, and will bring together experts across sectors to create energy solutions, according to the release. |
| Miami University Prohibits Faculty From Teaching Outside for Labor Day Action | |
 | Three days before Miami University faculty planned to celebrate Labor Day by teaching class outside, university officials forbade the action, faculty union leaders told Inside Higher Ed. "We wanted to have what we imagined as a really celebratory, nice event where we showed our labor by bringing our classes outside and teaching them outside," said Theresa Kulbaga, an English and gender studies professor at Miami and president of the faculty union. Organizers had been planning and advertising the event, scheduled for Sept. 2, for "more than a month," Kulbaga said. On Sunday, they received a letter from Miami University's lawyers stating that "as advertised, the event is not permissible." According to the letter, the teach-out would violate the union's collective bargaining agreement, which states that university officials retain "sole authority" over academic matters, including class schedules and methods and teaching facilities; it also prohibits "any interruption or interference with the operations of the University." Citing Ohio's Senate Bill 1, the letter also noted that public university faculty members are prohibited from participating in "strike activity," which the law defines "more broadly than the definition of a traditional strike," the lawyers wrote. |
| Hundreds of Colleges Are Sending Acceptance Letters to Kids Who Didn't Even Apply | |
| Hundreds of colleges are sending students letters of admission -- without even requiring an application. Schools are increasingly agreeing to admit students based on a handful of criteria, like high school transcripts. Known as "direct admissions," this expedited process is free and omits required essays, questions about extracurriculars and mandated standardized tests. In turn, the colleges -- which are seeking ways to attract more students amid broader financial headwinds -- gain exposure to prospects who may never have heard of them otherwise. They then woo the young people into enrolling. Proponents call the approach a solution for both sides. "Instead of a student applying to the institution, the institution applies to them," said Angel Perez, chief executive of the National Association for College Admission Counseling. "It's a way for students not to have to jump through hoops in order to get into college." Direct admission has ballooned in popularity, particularly among less-selective private schools vying for a shrinking pool of college-goers. |
| Trump Moves to Strip Tax Exemption From Schools That Aid Minority Students | |
 | The Trump administration released new rules that could revoke tax-exempt status from any school offering targeted support to Black or other minority students, a sweeping change that opens another front in the president's campaign to reshape American education. The proposed regulations, which the Treasury Department published on Thursday, would add another element to the guidelines schools and other organizations must follow to qualify for tax-exempt status with the Internal Revenue Service. The rules would deny tax-exempt status to any school, including secondary schools and universities, if it has any policy or program, including admissions and scholarships, that the I.R.S. finds to be racially discriminatory. Such a change would thrust the I.R.S. into the center of the Trump administration's push to pressure schools to abandon initiatives aimed at supporting Black and other minority students, efforts meant to address the nation's long history of racial discrimination and segregation. Trump officials, however, view such programs as a form of discrimination against white and Asian Americans, and federal civil rights lawyers have opened investigations on those grounds into admissions policies at Harvard, Yale and other schools. The threat of losing tax-exempt status would tighten the financial squeeze the administration has applied to higher education by withholding federal research funding. |
| Happy Labor Day! The robots are coming | |
| Mississippi newspaper publisher and columnist Wyatt Emmerich writes: As I write yet another Labor Day's column, I am fascinated by the fact that the richest man in the world can become the first trillionaire if he is able to produce and sell a million Optimus humanoid robots, deploy a million Robotaxis for commercial use, sell 20 million cumulative vehicles, increase Tesla's operating income to $400 billion, and increase its market capitalization from 1.1 to 8.5 trillion dollars. That's some pretty impressive labor. More importantly, if Musk succeeds there will be big ramifications for the U. S. labor market. ... Gemini AI predicts that in ten years, humanoid robots will be capable of performing between 20 and 50 percent of all manufacturing tasks with far less cost, whining, absenteeism, union threats and coffee breaks. ... So should we be celebrating or worried? I have friends in both camps. Personally, I think it would be great to live in a world where all physically demanding, repetitive work is done by machines. More time to play and enjoy. Many people believe work is a key part of human existence. It gives us perseverance, strength, and character. There's probably some truth in both perspectives. |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State makes upgrades to Davis Wade Stadium ahead of 2026 season | |
 | Mississippi State University (MSU) Athletics announced several changes that fans can expect to see during the 2026 football season at Davis Wade Stadium. According to the university, the changes are part of a $9 million investment by MSU for stadium and gameday enhancements as part of a multi-year approach. Upgrades include premium seating, retail, technology and in-stadium production, as well as Mississippi State's plans to retake the cowbell ringing world record on September 26, 2026, against Missouri. Fans can expect more fire and fireworks throughout the game, with expanded pregame, in-game and postgame pyrotechnics adding to the atmosphere on the biggest plays of the day. Mississippi State is adding laser effects for select SEC games this season, layering another visual element into the gameday atmosphere. Fans will notice additional speakers on the north concourse, refreshed branding throughout the main concourses, including at Gate D, and expanded chilled hydration access on the north, east and west sides of the stadium. West 100 seating also gets an upgrade with larger, outdoor-rated TVs. The ROTC cannon has been relocated to the southeast corner of Davis Wade Stadium for improved fan visibility. |
| Bulldogs Return To MSU Soccer Field Thursday Against Louisiana | |
| Mississippi State will host its fourth and final member of the Sun Belt Conference's west division on Thursday when the Bulldogs welcome Louisiana to the MSU Soccer Field. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. CT on SEC Network+. Hailey Johnson has led the way for State (5-0-0), recording a point in all but one match this year and contributing an assist or scoring herself on more than a third of the Bulldogs' 15 goals this year. Behind her, Kati Anne Shepherd has produced a dynamic start to her freshman season, totaling eight points (3 G, 2 A) in her first five games. Meanwhile, Jenny Harrison has posted two shutouts and ranks fourth in the SEC with a 0.42 goals against average, but she has not been tested often as the Bulldogs are allowing just 4.4 shots per game this season. Only Auburn (3.2) is allowing fewer in the SEC this season. Louisiana comes into the match fresh off the best opening month in program history, and its 18 goals lead the Sun Belt. Last time out, the Ragin' Cajuns (4-1-1) scored four times in a 10-minute span. The Bulldogs host Charlotte on Sunday for Senior Day. Kickoff on SEC Network+ is scheduled for 1 p.m. with senior ceremonies beginning at 12:45 p.m. |
| Volleyball Makes Home Debut In Big Ten x SEC Challenge | |
| Mississippi State volleyball will welcome a pair of foes from the Big Ten to the Newell-Grissom Building for their first home matches of the regular season, as the Bulldogs are set to take on Iowa on Thursday and Northwestern on Friday. Iowa enters the Big Ten x SEC Challenge on a three-game winning streak. The Hawkeyes are led by Jim Barnes, who is in his 30th season as a head coach and entering his fifth at Iowa. Northwestern picked up their first victory in their last match against Georgetown, 3-0. Tim Nollan enters his third season as the Wildcats head coach. Iowa and Mississippi State will be playing each other for the first time ever. Northwestern and Mississippi State have faced off once, with the last match seeing a 3-1 Wildcat victory on September 1, 2001. |
| Fire marshals inspecting fireworks ahead of college football games | |
| As the college football season kicks off, the State Fire Marshal's Office is hard at work. They are inspecting fireworks setups that will be providing additional entertainment at games across the state. The State Fire Marshal's Office is performing fireworks inspections at the University of Southern Mississippi, Ole Miss, Mississippi State University, Jackson State University and Alcron State University. When fireworks or pyrotechnics are used on state property, including colleges and universities, a permit is required. The fire marshal's office conducts pre-show inspections before the permit is used and the fireworks are shot off publicly. Someone from the fire marshal's office must also be present during the game or event. |
| A courtroom near LSU becomes the focus of college football and NCAA eligibility for pros | |
 | A courtroom a couple miles from LSU's Tiger Stadium was the focus of college football Thursday, when several dozen athletes awaited a ruling that could clear the way for them to compete in NCAA games this fall -- even if they already turned pro. Attorneys for the athletes, the NCAA and Southeastern Conference were slated to appear before East Baton Rouge Parish Judge William Jorden, who scheduled a hearing concerning the status of his earlier temporary injunction preventing the NCAA from ruling recent former pros or fifth-year college athletes ineligible. Jorden also wanted the NCAA to explain why it should not be held in contempt after the SEC and other power conferences adopted rules providing for draconian punishments of member schools who place former NFL or NBA athletes on their football or basketball rosters. The players in question include former Cleveland Browns tight end Dae'Quan Wright, former New Orleans Saints defensive lineman Zxavian Harris and former Denver Broncos defensive back Blake Cotton, who have been recruited by new LSU coach Lane Kiffin. Kiffin said he did not expect anyone from LSU's football program to attend the hearing. |
| Georgia AG to Greg Sankey: Take 'all measures available' against LSU | |
 | As its standoff with LSU intensifies, the SEC is receiving some support from beyond the conference and its member universities. Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr is encouraging SEC commissioner Greg Sankey to take "all measures available" against the Tigers if they field a team featuring former NFL players returning to college, and to "use all legal means necessary to protect the University of Georgia, student athletes, and the integrity of college athletics," according to a letter from Carr to Sankey obtained by USA TODAY Sports. Those potential punishments could escalate to suspending and/or removing LSU from the conference, of which it has been a member since the league's founding in 1932. "College athletics are for college athletes only, and we are grateful the SEC has taken swift action to maintain that standard," Carr wrote in the letter. "However, the rules cannot be ignored or twisted to benefit one coach, one institution, or one program, and we refuse to stand by while that happens." |
| The Renegade College Football Coach Going to War With the Entire Sport | |
| From the moment Lane Kiffin arrived at LSU, one thing was certain: College football's most controversial coach would start making enemies. But what nobody knew at the time was that Kiffin's target in his first year in Baton Rouge wouldn't be a rival coach or an opposing fan base. Kiffin would be going to war with college football itself. In recent weeks, Kiffin has enraged nearly every stakeholder in the sport with an audacious plan. He was going to bring players back from NFL training camps to fill out the Tigers' roster. And on Thursday afternoon, just two days before LSU's marquee season opener against Clemson, a Louisiana judge will determine whether the former pros will be allowed to suit up. "This is the most emotion-packed, high-profile, dramatic legal battle in the history of college sports," said Tom Mars, an attorney who specializes in tussling with the NCAA but isn't involved in this case. The particular issue in question on Thursday is the legality of an SEC rule -- a direct response to Kiffin's ploy -- that deems players who have gone through the pro draft process ineligible to compete. But the broader reality is that college football's power brokers have drawn a line in the sand, with institutions and conferences across the country insisting that players swapping NFL helmets for college ones is a bridge too far. On the other side of that line stands Kiffin, boldly sticking by his plan while the rest of the college football world heaps scorn on him. |
| LSU's AD shares ideas to save college sports from financial ruin: 'It's not sustainable, the cliff is coming.' | |
 | Verge Ausberry stood at the front of the room and started telling stories. He talked about Michigan basketball's Fab Five, and how the Wolverines' starting lineup from the 1990s, despite their fame, didn't make any money off of their name, image and likeness. He told a story about Shabazz Napier, the former UConn point guard who told reporters during the Huskies' 2014 national championship season that there were nights where he'd go to bed starving. He also discussed lawsuits, namely landmark cases that finally began paying the athletes, that pushed the college sports world to where it is today: On the verge of driving itself off a financial cliff. "It's not sustainable, the cliff is coming," Ausberry, LSU's athletic director, warned the Baton Rouge Rotary Club on Wednesday. "And by December, if we don't have any (new legistlation) in place, we're looking at football teams jumping from $50 million to $65-70 million." LSU, led by Ausberry, is playing a leading role in the chaos that has enveloped college sports. |
| Nick Saban endorses Protect College Sports Act in new commercial | |
 | Nick Saban has long been a supporter of the Protect College Sports Act. The ESPN "GameDay" analyst and former Alabama coach is now its sporkesperson. "College sports are built on tradition," Saban said in a new commercial for the legislation. "Our pride in our schools, the rivalries we pass down, and the way they develop the character of tomorrow's leaders. That tradition is worth defending. The Protect College Sports Act ends the NIL chaos in college athletics by protecting our student athletes and teams, and safeguarding women's sports and Olympic programs. Join the winning team today, and help Congress protect this winning tradition." Saban has been a supporter of the bipartisan bill, introduced by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) in May. The hope was it would receive a vote in the U.S. Senate before legislators broke for a month-long recess, but that never materialized. |
| Democrats face a tough call: Cut a college sports deal with Trump, or hold out? | |
| After warring with President Donald Trump for more than 20 months, Senate Democrats are considering a high-profile bipartisan deal with him that would reshape college sports. Their party is in a tricky spot on the subject. The Democratic coalition is fractured over the legislation championed by Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. -- the AFL-CIO, NAACP, and Congressional Black Caucus oppose it, raising questions about its ability to clear the narrowly divided House even if it can pass the Senate. But historically Black athletic conferences support the bill, as does the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, the United Negro College Fund, and college sports' power conferences. If that's enough to get the Senate Democratic votes needed to pass it, Republicans can claim a high-profile bipartisan victory just weeks before the midterms. There's a reason why bipartisanship tends to plummet before elections. Still, some Democrats believe they may never get a better deal than this one. After whipping votes all August long and playing an integral role in shaping the legislation behind the scenes, Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., told Semafor he thinks as many as half of the 47-member Democratic caucus could support the bill. "The more folks actually dig into the details, reach out to their communities, and hear from their home state universities, the more [they] are getting on board," Coons said. |
| Stephen A. Smith has some words for Democrats as he makes his 2028 plans clear | |
| Sports broadcaster Stephen A. Smith has been bouncing around cable TV but insists he's staying out of one arena: the political one. The outspoken ESPN personality isn't staying away from talking politics -- far from it. But Smith told POLITICO in an interview airing Thursday that he's not running for president in 2028 in his firmest rejection yet of speculation that has surrounded him for the past year. "The minute I announce that I'm running, I would be taken off the air," Smith said in an interview on The Conversation with Dasha Burns. "I wouldn't be able to work, and I would lose a contract that I worked my entire career for, you know, and I'm not giving that up." Smith, who has repeatedly doled out criticism of both parties, offered blunt advice for Democrats seeking a path back to power: Purge the Democratic Socialists of America and restrain the party's progressive flank. The Democrats, he said, should only welcome people who "march lockstep" with the party. "We should never want to hear anything about the Democratic Party being a 'big tent,'" he said. Asked how Democrats should handle the progressives, Smith said: "Tell them to sit their ass down and get with the program." |
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