The Colorado shooting suspect is charged; Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts seeks Senate seat; and an “office apocalypse” hits the U.S. These stories and more highlight the midday update for Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022.
Colorado suspect charged in club shooting
The suspect in the Colorado gay nightclub shooting has formally been charged by officials. The shooter is facing five counts of first-degree murder, and five hate crime charges. He will remain in custody without bail.
5 people were killed on Nov. 19, and another 22 people were injured during the mass shooting at the Club Q nightclub.
Nebraska’s governor to seek Senate seat
Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts is seeking a Senate seat. His office made the announcement this morning.
The two-term Republican governor is looking to fill the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Ben Sasse. Sasse is resigning to take a job as president of the University of Florida.
Ricketts will submit his application for consideration alongside the other applicants. Ricketts said he wants to run Nebraska’s government more like a business.
Gov. Ricketts is the son of Straight Arrow News CEO Joe Ricketts.
Gold medals awarded to Capitol police
Today, law enforcement officers in Washington D.C. will be presented with Congressional Gold Medals.
The ceremony comes about a year since President Biden announced the officers present at the Capitol on Jan. 6 would be awarded with Congress’ highest honor. U.S. Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police are credited for stopping a breach of the Capitol building that happened almost two years ago.
Americans polled on support for Ukraine
The U.S. has sent $20 billion worth of aid to Ukraine since President Biden took office. A new poll asked Americans if they agree with the support being sent to the region.
According to the poll, more than two-thirds of Americans agree with the funneling of arms and aid being sent to Ukraine. But with the war in Ukraine now in its 10th month with no end in sight, Americans are split over whether Washington should urge Ukraine into accepting a peace settlement.
47% of Americans, or nearly half of those polled, say Ukraine needs to better its attempt at ending the war. The consensus is that Americans largely support helping Ukraine, but hope the help is only temporary.
Hertz settles with customers accused of theft
The rental car company Hertz will pay $168 million to settle hundreds of claims from customers who were accused of stealing rental cars.
The car company falsely reported customers to authorities, claiming they stole and never returned their rental car. Some of those customers even spend weeks or months in jail.
Hertz previously said in a statement that “the vast majority” of cases involved customers who were late returning vehicles.
Meta threatens to remove news from Facebook
Many Americans get their news headlines from social media, but imagine a world where news has no place on social media platforms.
Facebook’s parent company Meta is warning they could strip news completely off its social media platforms if Congress passes a bill that would open the door for news agencies to get a cut of ad revenue social media sites earn off of its news content.
“The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act fails to recognize the key fact: Publishers and broadcasters put their content on our platform themselves because it benefits their bottom line,” said a Meta spokesperson.
That bill is now intertwined with the annual defense authorization bill that is currently in Congress. Leaders in Congress said the defense bill will pass this month, which would then trigger this measure to take effect.
Half of office spaces vacant post-pandemic
As people continue to work from home, the U.S. is dealing with what’s being called an “office apocalypse.”
The pandemic has cleared out office spaces across the country. A new report has half of the offices in the U.S. unoccupied.
Before the pandemic, 95% of offices were in use. But today, it’s closer to 47%. Now, a developer in New York is raising money to turn empty office towers into apartments and condos. Converting the empty buildings into residential properties could help combat New York’s housing crisis.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated.
