Jefferson County Layoffs: Wes Gregory’s Story
News headlines are filled with stories about Jefferson County’s budget crisis. The county put nearly a thousand employees on unpaid administrative leave over the weekend. The Birmingham News reports long lines for drivers’ licenses and car tags. The New York Times says the county-run nursing home doesn’t enough money to bury indigent residents.
But behind the public headlines, there are the personal stories of hundreds of county employees who find their lives turned upside down. Wes Gregory is one of them. He’s been working in the county road department for 12 years, until this week. He talked with WBHM’s Tanya Ott.
Trump administration asks court to toss suit restricting access to abortion drug
The Trump administration on Monday asked a judge to toss out a lawsuit from three GOP-led states seeking to cut off telehealth access to abortion medication mifepristone.
El Salvador president orders arrest of bus company heads for defying free ride policy
Bukele had announced that all bus fares for a week would be completely free due to construction the government was carrying out on one of the main highways running through San Salvador.
Trump restricts funding for ‘gain-of-function’ research — calling it dangerous
President Trump issued an executive order Monday banning federal funding for any research abroad that involves a field of scientific study known as "gain-of-function" research. Here's what it means.
States sue Trump administration for blocking the development of wind energy
Attorneys general from 17 states and D.C. are challenging an executive order Trump signed on his first day in office pausing approvals, permits and loans for all wind energy projects.
Former Palantir workers condemn company’s work with Trump administration
In a rare rebuke, more than a dozen former workers of the powerful data-mining and surveillance company say the firm's work with the Trump administration violates the company's founding principles.
Trump’s plan for movie tariffs leads to global confusion
Production in Hollywood has been suffering. But it's unclear how a 100% tariff on movies produced outside the United States would work – or who it would help.