
North Carolina’s GOP-controlled legislature erodes incoming Democrats’ political powers
CNN
The North Carolina House voted Wednesday to override Democratic Governor Roy Cooper’s veto of a bill that will restrict the powers of the incoming governor and other Democrats, clearing the way for the legislation to become law.
The North Carolina House voted Wednesday to override Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of a bill that will restrict the powers of the incoming governor and other Democrats, clearing the way for the legislation to become law. The bill passed with 72 members voting for the override and 46 against. The state Senate voted to override the governor’s veto last week. Under the bill, the incoming Democratic governor, Josh Stein, would be stripped of appointments to key state boards and control of the State Board of Elections will be transferred to the state auditor, a Republican. The legislation also shifts power away from the incoming lieutenant governor, attorney general and superintendent of public instruction, all Democrats. The bill was introduced after last month’s elections, when Democrats broke the GOP’s legislative supermajority. Republicans will lose their ability to override gubernatorial vetoes after the new legislature is seated in January. During Wednesday’s debate over the veto override, Republican state Rep. Destin Hall argued the legislation had become a “political football.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth risked compromising sensitive military information that could have endangered US troops through his use of Signal to discuss attack plans, a Pentagon watchdog said in an unclassified report released Thursday. It also details how Hegseth declined to cooperate with the probe.

Two top House lawmakers emerged divided along party lines after a private briefing with the military official who oversaw September’s attack on an alleged drug vessel that included a so-called double-tap strike that killed surviving crew members, with a top Democrat calling video of the incident that was shared as part of the briefing “one of the most troubling things” he has seen as a lawmaker.

Authorities in Colombia are dealing with increasingly sophisticated criminals, who use advanced tech to produce and conceal the drugs they hope to export around the world. But police and the military are fighting back, using AI to flag suspicious passengers, cargo and mail - alongside more conventional air and sea patrols. CNN’s Isa Soares gets an inside look at Bogotá’s war on drugs.

As lawmakers demand answers over reports that the US military carried out a follow-up strike that killed survivors during an attacked on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean, a career Navy SEAL who has spent most of his 30 years of military experience in special operations will be responsible for providing them.









