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A weak earthquake rattled northeastern Arkansas early this morning according to USGS, not far from the heart of the New Madrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ). According to USGS, the earthquake struck near Pleasant Plains between Little Rock, Arkansas and Memphis, Tennessee at 12:25 am from a depth of 4 km; it was rated a weak magnitude 1.8 event. Generally, earthquakes with a magnitude of 2.0 or greater can be felt by most people. Earthquakes generally need a much greater intensity than that to do any harm.

This earthquake was the 14th to strike in Arkansas, Missouri, and Tennessee near the Mississippi River Valley in the last 7 days.

While last night’s earthquake was relatively inconsequential with no damage reports, authorities are concerned that people aren’t properly prepared for when a big earthquake will strike this region. The matter of a larger destructive earthquake in this area is more of a matter of “when” rather than “if.” The NMSZ has a violent history that experts say will repeat itself, although no one is sure when it’ll happen.

The U.S. Postal Service is planning to hire just 10,000 temporary employees during the current holiday season as part of a new approach that management has acknowledged comes with some risks.

The seasonal hiring marks a 64% reduction from the employees brought on in 2022 during what USPS calls its “peak season” when the agency made 28,000 temporary hires. The agency had said it would bring on just 20,000 seasonal workers that year, but a recent USPS inspector general report found it reached a higher tally.

The Postal Service is planning to hire about 4,500 retail and delivery employees, down 30% from last year, and about 5,500 operations and processing workers, a 75% reduction.

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Monday announced the appointment of former Arkansas Sen. Jason Rapert to a six year term on the State Library Board.

Rapert, described by right-leaning education and research organization Family Council as a "staunch conservative and a proponent of biblical worldview," will serve on the state board until Oct. 18, 2029.

"He will be a much-needed addition to the library board in light of recent concerns some people have voiced about inappropriate material in local libraries," Family Council President Jerry Cox wrote Monday.

According to its website, the mission of the Arkansas State Library is to provide guidance and support for the development of local public libraries and provide resources necessary to meet the education, informational, and cultural needs of Arkansas citizens.

...Sanders signed a bill into law in March that would subject librarians and booksellers to criminal charges if they provide "harmful" materials to minors. The law also created a new process to challenge library materials and request that they be relocated to areas not accessible by kids.

Law enforcement listened to music Sullivan had posted online. They found lyrics about killing the president, bombing the senate, killing his grandmother, racist lyrics about killing people and bombing churches, killing and raping children, shooting up a school and bombing a specific public event, according to a probable cause statement filed by a prosecutor.

Sullivan told police he was rapping as a humorous fictional character when he made the videos. He said he doesn't actually want to rape or kill anyone and doesn't own any weapons.

The new version of the legislation has not yet been made public, according to Marijuana Moment. But when originally introduced, the bill was seen as an alternative to the Marijuana Opportunity and Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, a federal cannabis legalization measure supported by many Democrats. The MORE Act was refiled in September by Representative Jerrold Nadler, the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, with co-sponsorship from 33 fellow Democrats.

Under the original version of Mace’s bill, cannabis would be removed from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, and the states would be allowed to take the lead on marijuana legalization and regulation for their jurisdictions. At the federal level, cannabis would be regulated like alcohol, with the U.S. Department of Agriculture responsible for regulating growers while medical uses would be overseen by the Food and Drug Administration.

House Lawmakers Introduce Bipartisan Marijuana Legalization BillThe STATES Reform Act also ensures safe harbor for state medical marijuana programs and patient access to medicinal cannabis. The legislation also specifically protects the use of medical cannabis as a treatment for arthritis, cancer, chronic pain, sickle cell disease, HIV/AIDS and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Criminal justice reform provisions of the bill include the release of prisoners convicted of federal nonviolent cannabis-related offenses and the expungement of records of such convictions. Cartel members, agents of cartel gangs, or those convicted of driving under the influence will not be eligible for relief, however. Mace’s office estimated that approximately 2,600 federal prisoners would be released if the legislation is signed into law.

Pentagon officials have been frustrated for months over an Alabama senator’s blockade of more than 300 senior military nominations. But after the Marine Corps chief was hospitalized over the weekend, that frustration is turning into rage.

Gen. Eric Smith had been filling both the No. 1 and No. 2 Marine Corps posts from July until he was finally confirmed as commandant in September. He, along with more than 300 other senior officers, was swept up in the promotions blockade put in place by GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville in protest of the Pentagon’s abortion travel policy.

In an interview Wednesday, Tuberville brushed off the comments from the DOD officials.

“They’re looking for someone to blame it on, other than themselves,” he said. “We could have all these people confirmed if they’d have just gone by the Constitution.

“I don’t listen to these people,” he added. “They’re just looking for any possible way to get themselves out of a jam.”

This weekend's mass shootings come as the country mourns the victims of its deadliest mass shooting this year. Days earlier, 18 people were killed in a shooting in Lewiston, Maine.

The Arkansas Republican Party ultimately reimbursed the state for the $19,029.25 payment via a check dated Sept. 14 -- only after Campbell called attention to it.

According to the public records Campbell released, the lectern invoice was also altered after the fact by Sanders' executive assistant, to add the “To Be Reimbursed” notation.

Henning, Sanders spokesperson, has said the use of a state credit card for the lectern was "an accounting error."

"I think the process just wasn't as clean as it should have been. Again, it's been reimbursed by private funds. Nothing was paid for by taxpayers, and that was the error on the front end," Sanders said.

According to the governor's office, the Republican Party of Arkansas reimbursed the state for all costs associated with the expense...

In a letter sent to Sen. Hickey, Rogers-based attorney Tom Mars accused the governor's office of altering non-exempt FOIA documents, withholding other documents, and removing parts of emails related to public records requests.

Sanders told 40/29 News there's no truth to the allegations and that she does not think it's necessary to launch an internal investigation.

“These documents will substantiate my client’s firsthand knowledge of how certain persons in the Governor’s Office, including the Governor’s Communications Director, interfered with the production of non-exempt FOIA documents TSS [Arkansas Department of Transformation and Shared Services] intended to produce to attorney Matt Campbell,” the letter states, followed by a list detailing four items.

Altering of documents to change their meaning and not provide the non-altered document to Campbell. Withholding other documents, including those that show purchases Sanders made on Amazon. Removing portions of email threads. By the governor’s office “sanitizing” a flash drive “all for the purpose of concealing that the Governor’s Office had altered an invoice from Beckett Events LLC and deliberately omitted from the production of responsive documents a number of documents that were not even arguably exempt from the FOIA or subject to any legal privilege.” Mars continues, stating that if this conduct occurred “it would appear to constitute a knowing violation” of Arkansas laws, including altering public records.