Six minutes of news from around the nation.

House Democrats release lewd birthday message Trump allegedly sent to Jeffrey Epstein; Ballot proposal would tax Michigan's top earners to boost schools; White nationalist 'active clubs' growing in WI; Aging NY electric grid infrastructure causes high utility bills.

TRANSCRIPT

The Public News Service Daily Newscast, September the 9th, 2025.

I'm Mike Clifford.

House Democrats Monday posted on X an image of a birthday message that President Donald Trump allegedly sent to Jeffrey Epstein in 2003.

That from NBC News.

They report that Trump has denied having anything to do with the card, which was included in a leather-bound book of birthday messages the late convicted sex offenders 50th birthday.

NBC notes the book was among the documents the House Oversight Committee had subpoenaed from Epstein's estate last month.

The GOP-led panel later released all of the documents it received as a result of the subpoena.

Meantime, a statewide coalition of parents, educators, and advocates in Michigan is launching a ballot measure that would raise more than a billion dollars a year for public education.

If Invest in Michigan Kids initiative would add a 5 percent surcharge on incomes above $1 million for couples and above 500,000 for single filers, aiming to fix disparities where billionaires now pay the same rate as teachers.

Right now, Michigan ranks in the bottom 10 nationally for funding equity.

Rachel Richards is with the Michigan League for Public Policy.

Recent research shows that there is a very significant gap between what we have been putting in and what is necessary in order to adequately educate our kids.

We're talking billions of dollars in terms of that gap.

But not everyone is on board, including the Small Business Association of Michigan, arguing the plan could function as a business tax since many small firms file income through personal return, hurting their ability to reinvest, hire and grow.

Crystal Blair reporting.

And experts say they're seeing a rise in white nationalist movements in Wisconsin and across the country that are disguising themselves as fitness groups.

They're called active clubs and present themselves as sporting clubs or fighting clubs focused on brotherhood.

Art Gibson, professor of sociology and criminology at the University of Dayton says they recruit both online and in person targeting young white men using shared interests as tools to gradually introduce and normalize racist ideologies.

You add to that the willingness to engage in violence, against people of color, LGBTQ people.

There's a clear potential for violence here.

Gibson says active clubs often meet in Christian churches and gyms with recent activity showing multi-state coordination like a Wisconsin active club regularly meeting with an Illinois active club for family days.

They use distinctive symbols like the Celtic cross, a well-known neo-Nazi symbol, and share content across social media platforms to maintain connections between chapters and other white supremacist groups.

I'm Judith Ruiz Branch reporting.

This is Public News Service.

We head next to the Empire State where New York's aging electrical grid infrastructure is causing higher utility bills.

The US Energy Information Administration finds the state's electricity costs have been steadily rising since 2020 and are among the highest in the nation.

A report from the New York Independent System Operator adds the state's grid infrastructure is past its prime and struggling to keep up with growing demand.

Marguerite Wells with the Alliance for Clean Energy New York says this stems from decades of deferred maintenance.

The Public Service Commission has not wanted the utilities to spend money on that stuff, so they haven't spent the money.

And so it's finally catching up with us.

Now we have very electrified lives, not just because we're electrifying transportation in our homes, but also because people just expect more from the electric system.

Aside from replacing old infrastructure, Wells says the PSC can also expedite certain projects, though this isn't happening.

In August, the Public Service Commission rejected a petition from New York's power authority to expedite the Clean Path Project, which would relieve transmission congestion between upstate and downstate New York.

I'm Edwin J. Vieira.

And this November, Pennsylvania voters will decide whether three state Supreme Court justices keep their seats.

All three are Democrats, and losing one could weaken the party's 5-2 majority.

Maria Andrews, director of power building at Pennsylvania Stands Up, says the state's Supreme Court has shaped everyday life for residents by protecting rights such as collective bargaining, abortion access and voting.

They've upheld reproductive and equal rights under the state constitution, which directly impacts me as someone who cares about reproductive rights.

They've ruled that the state has a duty to protect public natural resources from fracking and other harmful mining practices.

And they also struck down unfair election rules and gerrymandered maps.

Andrews points out Pennsylvania voters will decide in the Supreme Court retention race with a simple yes or no vote.

She also emphasizes that voting by mail remains a secure, accessible option for all voters, despite attempts by President Donald Trump to discredit it.

Danielle Smith reporting.

Finally, spending too much time on a smartphone or iPad is a bad habit that health researchers are paying more attention to.

A new study in the Journal of the American Heart Association says increased time on digital devices or watching TV among children and young adults is linked to risk factors like high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

The University of Minnesota's Jamie Lohr, a pediatric cardiologist, says the findings align with her research into childhood obesity.

She says kids don't suddenly shake out these effects when they become adults, and in good habits take hold at younger ages.

These are the times that we form habits for daily exercise, for healthy eating.

Study authors also point out excessive screen time makes it harder for kids to get quality sleep, elevating the heart health risks.

I'm Mike Moen.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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