The Daily Slice, your Black Hills news podcast in under 10 minutes. Delivered every morning Monday-Friday at homesliceaudio.com/dailyslice
Larry Rhoden Sworn In as South Dakota Governor, Replacing Kristi Noem
PIERRE, S.D. – New Gov. Larry Rhoden took the oath of office Monday morning in his office which is a small, intimate room compared to the expanse of his job as Governor of South Dakota. Rhoden replaces fellow Republican Kristi Noem who resigned to become the Secretary of Homeland Security. Rhoden served as Lt. Governor for at six years. Under state law, the Lt. Governor replaces the Governor, should the Governor resign. Rhoden says he will announce his Lt. Governor sometime this week.
South Dakota Lawmakers Oppose Cuts to Dual Credit Program Supporting High School Students
PIERRE, S.D. — South Dakota lawmakers are pushing back against cuts to a popular college credit program for high school students. The House Education Committee Monday voted overwhelmingly against reducing state funding for dual credit courses. The program helps over six thousand high school students earn college credits before graduation. The proposed cuts would save the state about one million dollars but increase student costs by approximately $25 per course. The bill now moves to the Joint Appropriations Committee with a recommendation to reject the cuts.
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Trump signs an order to revise the Pentagon’s policy on transgender troops
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has signed a flurry of executive orders focused on the military. One directs Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to revise the Pentagon’s policy on transgender troops, likely setting in motion a future ban on their military service. Other orders would roll back diversity programs, create a space-based missile defense system and reinstate troops booted for refusing COVID-19 vaccines. The orders come just after Hegseth began his first day on the job Monday. A transgender ban had been widely expected, and lawyers for transgender troops have already pledged to fight it.
Immigration officers are operating with a new sense of mission. Now, ‘nobody gets a free pass’
SILVER SPRING, Md. — A week into Donald Trump’s second presidency and his efforts to crack down on illegal immigration, federal officers are operating with a new sense of mission. A dozen officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement gathered before dawn Monday in a Maryland parking lot, then fanned out to the Washington suburbs to find their targets: someone wanted in El Salvador for homicide, a person convicted of armed robbery in Maryland, a migrant found guilty of possessing child sexual abuse material and another with drug and gun convictions. All were in the country illegally. The Associated Press accompanied the officers, who offered a glimpse of how their work has changed.
RFK Jr. Faces Tough Confirmation Hearings Amid Vaccine Skepticism and GOP Concerns
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vocal vaccine skeptic nominated by President Donald Trump to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, is set to face two high-profile confirmation hearings this week. Despite Trump’s endorsement, some Republican senators are seeking clear commitments from Kennedy on issues like abortion and vaccines before offering their support. A recent poll shows fewer than half of U.S. adults trust Trump and Kennedy on health matters, with opinions largely split along party lines, especially on vaccines. Kennedy’s past promotion of debunked claims linking vaccines to autism has drawn sharp criticism from public health experts.
China’s DeepSeek Unveils AI Breakthrough, Challenges U.S. Tech Giants
China’s tech startup DeepSeek and its founder are being celebrated after revealing their latest artificial intelligence model, DeepSeek R1, which rivals top American AI systems at a fraction of the cost. The company claims it developed the model for under $6 million, compared to the billions spent by U.S. tech giants like Meta and OpenAI. Meta announced plans to invest $65 billion in AI this year, while OpenAI estimates the industry will need trillions for AI chip development. President Donald Trump called DeepSeek’s achievement a “wake-up call” for America in its tech rivalry with China.
