Air Force veterans tell NewsNation’s Natasha Zouves they spent their youth on a shadow-locked stretch of Nevada desert — a secret range wrapped around the myth and machinery of Area 51. Now, decades later, many say they are developing tumors, rare diseases, crippling conditions, and cancers that are cutting lives tragically short.
They say the government they served won’t even admit they were there. With no official record of their service at the range, they can’t access the benefits or medical care they believe they earned — leaving these Area 51 veterans fighting a second battle, this time to prove their own existence.

Arkansas’ prohibition on the use of SNAP benefits for unhealthy food items like soda and candy takes effect next year, and state lawmakers and retailers are questioning how it can realistically be implemented.

The House on Wednesday voted to repeal a measure that creates a new legal avenue for senators to sue the government for at least $500,000 each if federal investigators access their phone records without notifying them.

The unanimous 426-to-0 vote reflected the deep well of bipartisan fury that built up over the provision, quietly inserted by Senate Republicans into legislation to reopen the government, that blindsided senior lawmakers overseeing spending bills.

But the repeal is likely to die in the Senate, where G.O.P. leaders appear intent on preserving the provision, saying that it protects their members against investigatory overreach.

“I am not backing off,” said Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, one of eight Republican senators whose phone records were obtained as part of a special prosecutor’s investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. “I am not going to take this crap anymore. I am going into court and we’ll see what happens.”

NEW YORK (AP) — Three men were arrested Monday for allegedly offering to pay $100,000 in cash to a juror at the Brooklyn drug trial of former heavyweight boxer Goran Gogic, leading a federal judge to abruptly dismiss the jury just as it was about to hear opening statements.

An anonymous jury will be chosen when Gogic’s trial resumes after a 30-day break, said John Marzulli, a spokesperson for federal prosecutors in Brooklyn. Judge Joan Azrack scheduled a Dec. 17 conference.

Gogic, of Montenegro, was set to stand trial for allegedly conspiring to smuggle 20 tons (18.1 metric tons) of cocaine to Europe from Colombia through U.S. ports using commercial cargo ships. He has pleaded not guilty. His lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Three individuals were arrested after they approached a juror and offered to pay $100,000 to return a not guilty verdict, Assistant U.S. Attorney Francisco Navarro told Azrack.

Iran is experiencing its worst drought for decades, and officials are warning residents in the capital Tehran of possible evacuations. Experts say part of the blame lies with the government for decades of mismanagement.