Your weekly news breakdown from the Talon Online News out of Colonial Forge High School. This weekly update is for January 6 through January 13.

Script:

After a brief hiatus we at Eagle News Now are back, and we welcome you back to your weekly news bite. I’m your host, Will Hagaman, and this is Eagle News Now.

The United States House of Representatives no longer remains speaker-less. After the fourth day of voting in the house, Kevin McCarthy was elected speaker with the total votes reaching 216, just enough to officially elect him.

Political gridlock has not occurred since 1923, 100 years ago, and can be attributed to a more fractured Republican party. 20 Republican lawmakers split from the party consensus, and did not vote for McCarthy. These 20 lawmakers were eventually either brought back into the fold and voted for McCarthy, or they elected to be counted as present in the voting process and abstain from it completely.

To amass the votes, McCarthy made concessions to key lawmakers, such as making it harder to increase taxes, increase government spending, or increase the national debt limit. Also, any lawmaker can force a motion to remove the speaker.

The six-year-old elementary school student in Newport News Virginia who used their mothers handgun to shoot and injure first grade elementary school teacher Abby Zwerner, on Friday is still in custody.

No other students, staff, or police were harmed after the shooting. Only one bullet was fired, which struck the teacher in the chest, after which all students were ushered out of the room by Zwerner and the 6 year old suspect was detained. (Text Correction: The bullet that struck Zwerner first went through her hand, after which it struck her chest.)

The teacher is reported to be in a stable condition, and getting better as time goes on.

Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew also stated that the shooting is not accidental.

Over 6700 flight delays were caused after the Federal Aviation Administration’s NATOM computer system crashed causing a pause on flights to and from the US. NATOM is used to send information such as directions and flight hazards to pilots as it happens. 

As of Wednesday, flights have been slowly coming back with O’Hare International Airport welcoming flights back into Chicago. The FAA is currently investigating the cause of the shutdown.

Some have raised the idea that this was a result of a cyberattack, but this point in the investigation White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre said there is “no evidence of a cyberattack,”

Major airlines have said they will waive fees for those who change flights as a result of the delays.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces have pushed back much of the Russian invasion, with the only significant presence of the Russian forces being found in the Eastern oblasts and some southern areas of the country. A stark contrast to the beginning of the war when Russia had controlled areas all around the country.

A fierce front has opened near the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut in the Donetsk oblast, and although the city is currently defended by Ukraine, the Donetsk oblast is still under occupation of Russian forces in many areas. 

Images of Bakhmut surfaced online, and has by some been likened to the first world war battle of Verdun, as mud, dead trees, trenches, and vast swathes of no-man’s-land has become synonymous with the battle for Bakhmut.

The future of Ukraine’s defensive war is not clear, but Ukraine has been cited by many western countries to be effectively fighting back against the Russian invasion.

For school news,

The Stafford County school board elected a student representative to the board. This representative, Katherine Buckman of Mountain View High school, will serve on the board from January 10th to December 31st for the year 2023. Although the student representative is a non-voting member, the effect of having a student representative ​​can allow for more student influence on policy-making.

Spring Musical auditions for the musical “Joseph and the amazing technicolor dream coat” will be held from the 17th to the 19th, from 2:15 to 3:30 each day. And those for dance auditions will be on the 20th from 2:15 to 3:30. For more information about the sign-up process and requirements, talk to Ms. Cover-Tucci.

A talent show interest meeting will be held on the 18th, in room 207 during the first half of power hour. For any questions about the meeting or talent show, email Ms. Keenan.

That is your update for this week. This is your host, Will Hagaman, signing off, see you next week.