Latest news with #AirForceVeteran
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Kelvin King announces bid for Georgia Secretary of State
The Brief King announced his candidacy on Monday. He said he's a native of Georgia and an Air Force veteran who runs a construction company. His top priority is election integrity, and he believes in a hybrid-voting model where all ballots are counted by hand. GEORGIA - Kelvin King is running to be Georgia's next Secretary of State as a political outsider. What they're saying King announced his candidacy on Monday. He said he's a native of Georgia and an Air Force veteran who runs a construction company. King said he has visited all 159 counties in the state and that he hears the same thing often. "Georgians care deeply about election integrity," he said. His top priorities, he said, will be ensuring clean voter rolls and making sure votes are counted accurately. "In conversations with county election officials, they feel caught between political pressure and their duty to serve; grassroots activists feel sidelined, and those working tirelessly to ensure accuracy are dismissed or ignored," King said. King said he believes Dominion voting machines are not secure enough. He supports a hybrid model of voting, where all ballots would be hand-counted for accuracy. He also said he would fire any state employees who attack political candidates or their supporters. "A Kelvin King candidacy is rooted in service, business experience, and a commitment to truth. I'm not here to play politics — I'm here to build bridges, restore trust, and secure elections that are fair, efficient and transparent for every Georgian," he said. Beyond elections, King said he plans to address Georgia's "slow business licensing and registration systems" by expanding privatization. "The operations of Georgia's Secretary of State's office are too important to get wrong," King said. Dig deeper You can learn more about King by visiting his campaign website. The Source Information in this article came from a release by the King campaign.
CBS News
16-07-2025
- General
- CBS News
Finding hope and healing after Kerr County flood devastation
Kerr County flood survivor Georgia "Cooney" Wells, who lost everything—including her RV and neighbors' lives—finds hope and purpose amid the devastation, emphasizing faith and community resilience. "One minute you've lost everything you have and the next minute you feel blessed and full of hope," said Wells. "It's hard to look at because there's no life there right now. There's just the river, there is God, there is nature there, but life is gone." Wells said her RV was next to a huge tree. "A lot of people would come to my area and we would cook out," said Wells. "This area is hard to look at, but I still have those memories." Wells' RV was one of the dozens washed away by the flood on July Fourth. She said four of her neighbors lost their lives and that she might be lost as well, if she hadn't been working an overnight shift at a women's recovery center. "I didn't know why God put me on that job, but on July Fourth, it all came together on why God put me there, because he wasn't ready for me to leave this earth yet," Wells said. "He still has a plan for me." She said she's at peace with the loss, except for one item: the American flag she received when her dad, an Air Force veteran, passed away earlier this year. "When I realized I had lost that, that was probably the hardest thing," Wells said. "My father was watching, he's watching this happen. And he would've been out here to help people." She said the river that was once her sanctuary now holds the tears of the community, but also hope. "God is here, he is still in this River," said Wells. "He is here in these organizations, calling and checking on me. We have an army of angels who have been sent here to help us. We don't know the reason that all of this happened, but God has a plan." Despite the loss, Wells has a message of hope for her Kerr County community: keep the faith. "There is a plan, we just don't know it," she said. "I don't know why I am still here, but I am going to figure that out." Wellsa said she and many other survivors are getting help from FEMA and the Small Business Administration.
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Nebraska Republican Rep. Don Bacon cites political dysfunction in deciding not to seek reelection
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican from Nebraska, announced Monday he will not seek reelection next year amid an increasingly polarized political climate. Bacon, 61, said at a news conference at Omaha's airport that he would not seek a sixth term representing Nebraska's second district with its so-called blue dot that includes many progressive voters around Omaha. Bacon has had to navigate an ever-thinning line between staying in his party's and President Donald Trump's good graces without alienating his increasingly Democratic district. In May at an Omaha roundtable with business leaders to discuss Congress' recent tax bill, Bacon said he would decide 'by this summer' whether he would run again, citing a desire to spend more time with his family, including his eight grandchildren. When pressed, he acknowledged that the dysfunction in Washington contributed to his decision. 'It's one thing when you have the opposing party fighting you, but when you have divisions in your own party, you know — it makes it harder,' he said. An Air Force veteran first elected in 2016, he won reelection in 2024. He serves on the House Armed Services Committee and has been at the center of many debates in Congress. He has also been chairman of the conservative-centrist Republican Main Street Caucus in the House. Bacon has earned a reputation as a centrist — an increasingly rare designation among Republicans as the party has moved farther to the right. But he has long acknowledged that moderation is a necessary attribute for anyone seeking to represent the Omaha-centered district, which is closely divided between Republican and Democratic voters. Nebraska is one of two states that doesn't follow a winner-take-all system of awarding Electoral College votes. Instead, Nebraska and Maine allow presidential electoral votes to be split by congressional district. Bacon's district has seen its elector vote go to a Democratic presidential candidate three times — to Barack Obama in 2008, to Joe Biden in 2020 and to Kamala Harris in 2024. The political climate is rapidly changing in Omaha, where voters recently rejected a fourth term for Republican Mayor Jean Stothert in favor of her Democratic opponent, John Ewing. Seeing an opportunity to flip a vulnerable seat, several Democrats have already announced their candidacy. The most widely recognized is John Cavanaugh, a state senator from Omaha who's father, John J. Cavanaugh III, represented the 2nd District in Congress from 1977 to 1981. Bacon has managed to survive the district's swing to the left by staying squarely in the middle. In his most recent campaigns, he touted his bipartisan credentials in political ads and cited his willingness to buck his party to support measures such as the Biden administration's popular 2021 infrastructure investment bill. Despite Bacon's willingness to rebuke both his party and the Trump administration, he has consistently voted with most of their agenda. But his criticism of Trump has been enough to draw the growing ire of his party. Bacon faced a primary challenger in 2024 who was endorsed by the Nebraska Republican Party, which is led by Trump loyalists. Even so, Bacon has grown more vocal in his criticism of the Trump administration. That includes the president's chaotic tariff policies, with Bacon going so far as to introduce a bill to return authority to issue tariffs to Congress. On Sunday, Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina also decided to not seek reelection next year. He had held to his opposition of President Donald Trump's tax breaks and spending cuts package because of its reductions to health care programs.
Washington Post
28-06-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Centrist Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska won't seek reelection
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, a centrist Republican who represents Nebraska's second district with its so-called 'blue dot' that includes many progressive voters around Omaha, will not seek reelection. That's according to a person familiar with his plans and granted anonymity to discuss them Friday. Bacon is known as an independent-minded Air Force veteran who serves on the House Armed Services Committee and has been at the center of many debates in Congress. He has also been chairman of the conservative-centrist Republican Main Street Caucus in the House.
Associated Press
28-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Centrist Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska won't seek reelection
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, a centrist Republican who represents Nebraska's second district with its so-called 'blue dot' that includes many progressive voters around Omaha, will not seek reelection. That's according to a person familiar with his plans and granted anonymity to discuss them Friday. Bacon is known as an independent-minded Air Force veteran who serves on the House Armed Services Committee and has been at the center of many debates in Congress. He has also been chairman of the conservative-centrist Republican Main Street Caucus in the House. First elected in 2016, he won reelection in 2024, is expected to finish his term. Punchbowl News was first to report Bacon's expected decision.
