Ellipsis

Ellipsis's Journal

March 22, 2025

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley hosts town hall with heated Iowans in Franklin County.

Quite enlightening. The midwest is truly pissed off. Its an hour long and Grassley wastes no time getting out of the room at the end.

March 21, 2025

34,036 in-person ballots were cast Tuesday, a 121% jump. (Supreme Court race)

More than twice as many voters cast in-person absentee ballots on the first day of early voting for Wisconsin’s April 1 elections compared to the spring elections held two years ago, with students leading voter turnout.

The Wisconsin Elections Commission reported that 34,036 in-person ballots were cast Tuesday, a 121% jump from the 15,435 in-person ballots received on the first day of early voting for the higher court election in 2023.

On Tuesday, Dane, Milwaukee and Waukesha counties led the rest of the state in absentee ballots returned on the first day of early voting.

Dane County, residence of Supreme Court candidate Susan Crawford, reported 11,784 in-person absentee ballots, 39% higher than in the 2023 race. Milwaukee County was close behind, with 11,143 ballots cast — a 32% increase from two years ago. Finally, Waukesha County, home to challenger Brad Schimel, has reported 9,867 absentee ballots so far, marking a 50% increase from 2023.

In Madison, students lead the charge in voter turnout.

The first day of early voting on Tuesday set a city record in Madison with 2,453 in-person voters, and nearly 25% of those votes came from polling locations on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus.

https://www.dailycardinal.com/article/2025/03/dane-county-sees-surge-in-early-voting-students-lead-the-charge

March 20, 2025

Ukraine strikes Russian strategic bomber airfield, triggering huge blast

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-attacked-airfield-near-engels-strategic-bomber-base-russian-officials-2025-03-20/

Videos verified by Reuters showed a huge blast spreading out from the airfield, wrecking nearby cottages. Russia's defence ministry said air defences had shot down 132 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions.

Other verified videos showed a giant plume of smoke rising into the dawn sky and an intense fire.
The base in Engels, which dates back to Soviet times, hosts Russia's Tupolev Tu-160 nuclear-capable heavy strategic bombers, known unofficially as White Swans.

Roman Busargin, governor of Saratov, said there had been a Ukrainian drone attack on the city of Engels that had left an airfield on fire, and that nearby residents had been evacuated. He did not specifically mention the Engels base, but it is the main airfield in the area.

March 19, 2025

The YouTube links are broken for me. n/t

March 18, 2025

Putin bombs energy plants hours after telling Trump he would halt attacks

Source: The Telegraph

Russia bombed Ukraine energy infrastructure just hours after Vladimir Putin told Donald Trump he would halt attacks on the grid.

Putin’s forces conducted an airstrike on the energy infrastructure of Slovyansk, a city of 100,000 people in the Donetsk region, according to local reports, leaving part of the city without electricity.

After what the Kremlin called a “frank” phone call with Mr Trump, the two leaders agreed that formal negotiations on a 30-day truce would begin “immediately” in the Middle East.

Putin ordered the Russian military to halt attacks on energy plants in Ukraine without delay, the Kremlin said after the 90-minute phone call ended.

Read more: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/03/18/russia-ukraine-zelensky-putin-peace-talks-war-latest-news/