February 10, 2026

Florida congressman calls Bad Bunny's show 'disgusting.' What's next?

U.S. Rep. Randy Fine of Florida called Bad Bunny's Super Bowl LX performance "disgusting" and "illegal."

Fine said he would be asking the FCC for fines and broadcast license reviews against the NFL, NBC and Bad Bunny.

"You can't say the f-word on live TV," Fine posted on X.
...
"Bad Bunny's disgusting halftime show was illegal.

"Had he said these lyrics — and all of the other disgusting and pornographic filth in English on live TV, the broadcast would have been pulled down and the fines would have been enormous.

"Puerto Ricans are Americans and we all live by the same rules."

https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/entertainment/2026/02/10/rep-randy-fine-florida-fcc-bad-bunny-super-bowl-halftime-show-reactions/88602451007/

February 9, 2026

Cuba warns airlines it's out of jet fuel amid US oil blockade

Source: Tampa Bay Times

Cuban authorities have notified international airlines that they won’t be able to refuel at the island’s airports, as the country’s energy crisis deepens following President Donald Trump’s steps to cut the island’s oil supply in a push for negotiations.

The Federal Aviation Administration published notices Sunday alerting U.S. airlines that Jet A-1 fuel, commonly used for international flights, will not be available at Cuban international airports, including those in Havana, Santiago de Cuba and Varadero, starting Tuesday, and won’t be available again until March 11 at the earliest.

No flights to Cuba from Miami were canceled Monday morning, but regular airlines and companies operating chartered flights were assessing the impact of the announcement.

“We are closely monitoring the situation,” American Airlines, which operates 11 daily flights to six destinations in Cuba, said. The airline did not say whether it was expecting cancellations.

Read more: https://www.tampabay.com/news/nation-world/2026/02/09/cuba-out-of-jet-fuel-oil-blockade/

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That's sure to win the hearts and minds of the Cuban people.

February 9, 2026

Florida A&M: Barring 'Black' from Black History Month flyer was an error

A law student said she was told using words like ‘Black’ and ‘women’ could run afoul of state DEI laws.

Florida A&M University officials said an employee incorrectly instructed a law student to strip the word “Black” from a flyer promoting Black History Month events out of concern it could violate state rules tied to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

Last week, student Aaliyah Steward told an Orlando news station that the university said she couldn’t use “Black,” as well as “affirmative action” and “women,” on an event flyer.

That guidance was caused by a “staff-level error — an overly cautious interpretation that went beyond what the law requires,“ Cecil Howard, the associate provost and interim dean of Florida A&M’s College of Law, said in a message to the law school community obtained by the Tampa Bay Times.

Florida A&M told the Orlando station that the university has been in compliance with a state law prohibiting public universities from using state funds for diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

https://www.tampabay.com/news/education/2026/02/09/florida-am-barring-black-black-history-month-flyer-was-an-error/

Florida A&M is an HBCU.

February 9, 2026

Trump leaves Republicans guessing on midterms plans as outlook darkens

Republicans looking to the White House to lead in the face of the party’s dimming prospects for November’s midterms are facing a crucial hang-up: the president.

The party’s flagship campaign committee and super PACs have no indication of how President Donald Trump will deploy his $300 million-plus war chest because the president has not approved a spending plan. Republican donors are funding expensive Senate primaries in Texas and Georgia because Trump has not cleared the field with his endorsement, or, in the case of Louisiana, endorsed a challenger to the incumbent Republican.

People who have spoken with Trump about these obstacles said he at times can sound detached and noncommittal about his plans for spending and endorsements. One person close to the White House said some days the president seems not to care. Having already been impeached twice and indicted four times, Trump is less afraid of being impeached again than he is determined not to let a Democratic-controlled House halt his policy agenda, a White House official said. The official and others spoke to The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity to detail private conversations.

But a White House official said Trump is excited to get more engaged in midterm strategy and looking forward to increasing his travel this month, including a campaign-style event outside of Washington this week. An Oval Office meeting to go over a handful of House endorsements Wednesday night turned into a five-hour gabfest on the midterms, according to two people present. Trump said he wants to defy the tendency of the president’s party losing seats in Congress in the midterms, one of the people said.

https://wapo.st/3O0AXPb

I suspect Republican incumbents are not that eager to have Trump's endorsement because it is looking more like the kiss of death.

February 9, 2026

A wolf has come to Los Angeles County for the first time in more than a century

A wolf arrived in Los Angeles County on Saturday morning, marking the first time the apex predator has been documented in the area in at least a century, according to state wildlife officials.

Around 6 a.m., the 3-year-old female sporting a black coat reached the mountains north of Santa Clarita, according to Axel Hunnicutt, gray wolf coordinator for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Four hours earlier, she was making her way south through the desert in Kern County, he said

He knows that because the wolf — known as BEY03F — is wearing a GPS collar. She was outfitted with one last May when she was spending time with the Yowlumni Pack in Tulare County. She dispersed from that area about a week ago.

https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2026-02-07/wolf-in-los-angeles-county-documented

February 8, 2026

Winter Olympics 2026: Breezy Johnson breaks gold medal after winning Alpine downhill

The medal's ribbon detached while Johnson was celebrating, causing the break

Alpine skier Breezy Johnson earned the USA's second gold medal in women's downhill on Sunday. With a time of 1:36.10, she beat out Germany's Emma Aicher by just four hundredths of a second.

Johnson's medal was also the first won by the U.S. in the 2026 Winter Olympics. Unfortunately, her coveted prize was damaged by the time she left the medal stand. While celebrating, the ribbon attached to the medal broke away. Johnson's medal fell and was broken into three pieces.

"Well, I was jumping up and down in excitement, and it fell off," Johnson explained to reporters. "I think that's maybe why it broke."

"I don't know that the Italians are known for their engineering," she added, joking that none of the assembled media offered to fix the medal. "I assume someone will fix it.”

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/olympics/article/winter-olympics-2026-breezy-johnson-breaks-gold-medal-after-winning-alpine-downhill-184020027.html

February 8, 2026

Trump keeps reminding us why people support him. It's the racism

The president of the United States posted a racist video Thursday night depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes. On Friday, the White House dismissed criticism — but the president deleted the post. Was this episode disappointing? Yes. Surprising? Not anymore.

Last spring, after Pope Francis had died, Donald Trump posted an AI image of himself as the pope just days before cardinals convened to elect a successor.

So, no — it is not surprising that the president would choose to post virulent anti-Black imagery during Black History Month.

But it is disappointing here in 2026 that an occupant of the Oval Office is still thinking like that.

Back in 1971, the president of the United States laughed when the governor of California referred to the African delegates at the United Nations as monkeys. Less than 10 years later, that governor became the president of the United States. And here we are, half a century later, and yet another president has amplified that racist trope.

Meaning white supremacy is still on the ballot.

https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2026-02-06/trump-racist-video-post-obamas-white-supremacy

February 7, 2026

Hegseth Says Defense Department Will Cut Ties With Harvard

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday that the Defense Department would sever its academic ties with Harvard University, the latest broadside by the Trump administration in its pressure campaign to force the university to cut a deal with the government.

In a statement and video published on Friday evening, Mr. Hegseth attacked the university in hyperbolic language, decrying it as a politically liberal institution, and said that, beginning in the new school year in September, the Defense Department will “discontinue graduate-level professional military education, fellowships and certificate programs at the school.” Mr. Hegseth added that military personnel who are attending classes will be able to finish those courses of study.

It is unclear what programs will be affected, and to what extent, but there are several graduate-level programs for military officers at Harvard. Mr. Hegseth’s order appeared to squarely target his alma mater: Harvard’s Kennedy School, which teaches government and public policy programs.

The Kennedy School’s Belfer Center, for example, has a national security fellowship for mid-level U.S. military officers. Retired Gen. Joseph F. Dunford, Jr., the highest-ranking officer in the armed forces for part of President Trump’s first term, is also a fellow at the Belfer Center. There were 12 officers enrolled in the national security fellowship this year. (David E. Sanger, a White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times, is a lecturer at a defense program in the Belfer Center.)

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/06/us/politics/hegseth-defense-harvard.html?unlocked_article_code=1.KVA.SD_h.TiDvdTpi-FzL&smid=url-share

February 7, 2026

Skier dies on expert run at Mammoth -- as horrified witnesses watch from chair lift

A skier died at Mammoth Mountain on Thursday following a fatal accident in full view of other skiers riding a nearby lift. It was the fourth death at the resort this season.

The skier, who has not been identified, was attempting a run called Dropout 2 — among the steepest marked trails in California — which descends from the summit ridge of the 11,000-foot mountain. The run falls about 1,200 vertical feet below a slow, three-person lift that ferries expert skiers to some of Mammoth’s most adventurous terrain.

The man fell hard enough to pop out of his skis in the steep, icy moguls near the top of the run before sliding headfirst for hundreds of yards, apparently unable to stop himself, according to witnesses who posted on Reddit.

“He then slid while unconscious about another 150 yards down the trail leaving blood ... the entire way while the person he was skiing with was crying out and trying to catch up to jump on him to stop the slide,” one Reddit user wrote.

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-02-06/skier-dies-on-expert-run-at-mammoth-as-horrified-witnesses-watch-from-chair-lift

February 7, 2026

DeSantis unveils gilded Reagan statue in Miami

Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday unveiled a gilded statue of former President Ronald Reagan at Florida International University, marking the late conservative leader’s birthday and continuing a statewide series of commemorations tied to the United States’ upcoming 250th anniversary.

The ceremony took place Friday morning outside FIU’s Ronald W. Reagan Presidential House, the on-campus residency of university President Jeanette Nuñez, who previously served as DeSantis’ lieutenant governor. Nuñez joined DeSantis for the unveiling, with the two standing on opposite sides of the covered statue before the shroud fell away.

The life-size monument depicts Reagan in a suit and tie with a composed expression and slight smile, his hands positioned near his waist as if adjusting his jacket. Finished in a bronze tone, the figure stands atop a marble pedestal in front of the president’s mansion, framed by patriotic bunting and palm trees.

As the veil was removed, red, white and blue streamers shot in the air and fell over the crowd.

“It’s an honor to be here on what would have been President Reagan’s 115th birthday,” Nuñez told reporters after the ceremony. “I think the timing was right for a statue, and it’s good to see how lovely it is.”

https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2026/02/06/desantis-reagan-statue-fiu-miami-250-anniversary/