If Americans are desperate for manufacturing jobs, why are so many factory jobs vacant?

Reshoring American manufacturing could take time
and big money. (Photo by Brice Cooper, Unsplash)

Despite the Trump administration's full press effort to revive American manufacturing, it's unclear if Americans want factory jobs. "American manufacturers say they are struggling to fill the jobs they already have," reports Greg Rosalsky of NPR's Planet Money. "According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are nearly half a million open manufacturing jobs right now."

Although a tight labor market explains some of the labor shortage, it's also a product of economic and educational circumstances. Rosalsky explains, "Manufacturers can't fill these jobs overnight because they require workers to have particular skills. And it's not just skills needed to work on assembly lines. . . . Manufacturers also employ people to do research and development, engineering, design, finance. . ."

Politicians typically tout factory work because it can "provide good jobs and career ladders for people without a college education," Rosalsky writes. "However, many manufacturing jobs these days actually require college degrees. . . That said. . . half of the open manufacturing jobs don't require a bachelor's degree. And manufacturers say they are also struggling to fill those."

A fair question manufacturers may need to revisit: Do they pay enough? Higher wages might "convince workers to invest in acquiring coveted skills and enter the manufacturing workforce," Rosalsky adds. "But the higher pay that Americans demand to work in manufacturing is one of the big reasons that many manufacturers left America in the first place."

Oren Cass, the chief economist and founder of American Compass, a conservative think tank, "believes that tariffs can help even the playing field with foreign competitors," Rosalsky reports. "And he stresses that one of the keys to reshoring manufacturing — while maintaining well-paying manufacturing jobs — is higher productivity."

In late April, Trump "issued an executive order aimed at 'preparing Americans for high-paying skilled trade jobs of the future,'" Rosalsky writes. 

The Republican tax break plan would give many Americans more money, but most cuts would end in early 2029

 Many lawmakers seek Medicaid cuts to pay for
the new tax legislation. (Adobe Stock photo)

The tax break plan currently being crafted by Republicans on Capitol Hill would put more cash in the hands of many Americans, but the strategy comes with a catch: Many of the cuts will end when President Trump's second term comes to a close. "Almost all of the cuts that Republicans hope to pass in the coming weeks will last only until President Trump is set to leave office," reports Andrew Duehren of The New York Times.

Despite the short-term gains, many Americans may see the cuts as a hard-earned respite from years of post-pandemic inflation. They include "a $500 increase to the child tax credit and a $1,000 bonus to the standard deduction, as well as Trump’s pledges to not tax tips or overtime pay," Duehren writes. "The effect would be to shower many Americans with hundreds of dollars per year, starting when they file taxes next year, a windfall that would dry up as Mr. Trump leaves office."

Not every tax break will be time-limited. "Much of the legislation is focused on preserving the architecture of the last Republican tax cut, passed during Trump’s first term," explains Duehren. For instance, the lower income rates for individual filers and the larger standard deduction would remain intact.

Tax policy experts do not see the new cuts substantially impacting the U.S. economy. Duehren reports, "The Tax Foundation, a think tank that is generally bullish on tax cuts’ ability to spur economic growth, estimated this week that the bill would increase gross domestic product by 0.6% in the long term."

Part of the money needed to pay for the tax cuts will come from Medicaid cuts. "More than eight million low-income Americans could lose their health insurance as a result of the Medicaid cuts that the G.O.P. has drafted," Duehren adds. "All while the biggest benefits of the tax cuts would flow to high-income Americans who owe the most in income tax . . . ."

Opinion: The American wilderness is part of what makes Americans different

The Wet Beaver Wilderness in Coconino National Forest in Arizona is one of many designated wilderness areas in the United States. (Photo by Deborah Lee Soltesz via The Conversation)

U.S. state and federal parks are full of breathtaking views, unique plant life and animals roaming in their natural habitats. But their abundant wildness offers more to the country than fabulous hiking trails and jaw-dropping beauty; it's "crucial to American freedom and identity," write Leisl Carr Childers and Michael Childers in their opinion for The Conversation.

When Congress passed the Wilderness Act in 1965, it intended to protect and honor "places that evoked mystery and wonder, 'where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain,'" the writers explain. "These are wild landscapes that present nature in its rawest form."

The law instructs the federal government to "protect these areas 'for the permanent good of the whole people,'" they write. "Wilderness areas are found in national parks, conservation land overseen by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, national forests and U.S. Fish and Wildlife refuges."

How the Wilderness Act came to be is a part of our national history and illustrates how Americans planned to share the country's natural wealth with future generations and the world.

It began with the Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission, which was established by Congress in 1958, and a letter penned by the "noted Western writer Wallace Stegner about why he cared about preserving wildlands. [His] letter became known as the Wilderness Letter," Childers and Childers explain. The Wilderness Letter sat dormant until "its publication in The Washington Post on June 17, 1962. . . .Then the letter reached a national audience and captured the imagination of generations of Americans. . . . Stegner’s Wilderness Letter became a rallying cry to pass the Wilderness Act."

Wallace Stegner, right, with his son and wife, on a Yosemite National
Park hiking trail. (University of Utah photo via The Conversation)

With flair and an eloquent appeal, Stegner's letter "connected the idea of wilderness to a fundamental part of American identity. He called wilderness 'something that has helped form our character and that has certainly shaped our history as a people … the challenge against which our character as a people was formed … (and) the thing that has helped to make an American different,'" Childers and Childers write. "Without wild places, he argued, the U.S. would be just like every other over-industrialized place in the world."

Stegner’s letter and the spirit it imbues "still resonate as Americans head for their public lands and enjoy the beauty of the wild places protected by wilderness legislation this summer," they write. "With visitor numbers increasing annually and agency budgets at historic lows, we believe it is useful to remember how precious these places are for all Americans. . . . And we agree with Stegner that wilderness, public lands writ large, are more valuable to Americans’ collective identity and expression of freedom than they are as real estate that can be sold or commodities that can be extracted."

Upcoming 'Make America Healthy Again' report targeting farming chemicals is already under review

U.S. farmers apply almost 300 million pounds of
glyphosate, or Roundup, per year. (Adobe Stock photo)

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may want his "Make America Healthy Again" strategy to include rooting out farm herbicides and pesticides as a national health concern, but the idea is already facing pushback, report Kristina Peterson, Josh Dawsey and Liz Essley Whyte of The Wall Street Journal. "Some White House and agency officials are concerned the move would disrupt the food-supply chain."

Kennedy plans to use MAHA's May 22 report to push U.S. food producers away from heavy chemical use. "White House officials have raised concerns about the pesticide push and are closely reviewing the coming report," the Journal reports. Although President Trump committed to investigating pesticides during his campaign, where he will finally stand on the issue remains unclear.

The report will likely target glyphosate, the primary ingredient in Roundup, as an ongoing danger to human health; however, removing it from the U.S. food supply seems nearly impossible. Not only is glyphosate the world's most popular herbicide, "more than 90% of soybean, corn and cotton crops planted in the U.S. are genetically modified to withstand glyphosate-based weedkiller," the Journal reports. "American farmers apply almost 300 million pounds of glyphosate to their fields each year, according to data from the U.S. Geological Survey." 

The report is also expected to call out "atrazine, a herbicide used on grasses and corn, as a possible problematic toxin," Peterson, Dawsey and Whyte add. Between glyphosate and atrazine, glyphosate is more popular with farmers, and limiting its use could prove detrimental.

U.S. Rep. Andy Harris (Rep., Md.), during a Wednesday hearing, "told Kennedy that going after pesticides could hurt farmers," the Journal reports. "Kennedy said he shared that concern and that the government 'cannot be putting [farmers] out of business.'"

Comments by a White House spokesman depicted MAHA's first report as a foundational review that could guide further research into chronic health issues in the United States.

Quick hits: Racing cars with a 'twist;' egg prices slide; lower tariff for 'happy nut;' bird flu cases slow; PFAS trial

The Gary Wilson Jr. 2009 Toyota Yaris heads down the track. (Photo by Sam Wolfe, NPR)

Camden, S.C., may only have 7,800 people, but it hosts a raucous event where residents and visitors are treated to cars with bad rap sheets and crazy detailing. "The race cars roll into downtown like an old-fashioned circus . . . . A Honda Civic has a lawnmower, squirrels and flamingoes on its roof," reports Bill Chappell of NPR. "They're all here for the local installment of 24 Hours of Lemons, an endurance car race with a major twist: The cars can't cost more than $500. The series bills itself as 'racing for real people.' The 24 Hours of Lemons races started more than 15 years ago in California. There are now 23 races each year, from coast to coast."

Good news! Sort of. "The average price for a dozen Grade A eggs declined to $5.12 last month after reaching a record $6.23 in March," reports Dee-Ann Durbin of The Associated Press. "It was the first month-to-month drop in egg prices since October 2024. Overall, the average price of eggs of all sizes fell 12.7%, the steepest monthly decline since March 1984. . . . Still, retail egg prices remain near historic highs."

California farmers grow millions of pounds of
pistachios a year. (Adobe Stock photo)

U.S. farmers aren't the only ones grateful for a break from extreme U.S.-China tariffs -- Chinese pistachio lovers are also rejoicing. "Chinese consumers crave pistachios for their taste and health benefits, referring to them in a way that translates to 'happy nuts,'" reports Jim Carlton of The Wall Street Journal. "Since 2017, the value of U.S. pistachios shipped into China has shot up 20-fold from $42 million to $842 million last year, accounting for almost a third of the $3 billion crop."

Dairy trade between the United States and the United Kingdom has historically been skewed in the UK's favor; however, the new negotiation framework announced by the Trump administration "marks a crucial turning point as the U.S. seeks a level playing field with global dairy exporters," reports Karen Bohnert of Dairy Herd Management. "According to Gregg Doud, president of the National Milk Producers Federation, achieving a robust trade agreement with the UK is a vital step in correcting the current imbalances in the dairy trade."

Chickens, farmers and farm workers enjoy a reprieve from bird flu infections. (MedPage Today photo)

While not entirely explainable, "detections of H5N1 avian influenza have slowed in both animals and humans, but continued surveillance is warranted, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers said," reports Kristina Fiore of MedPage Today. "Someone questioned whether there was seasonality to H5N1. . . .Todd Davis, PhD, chief of the virology at the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said any seasonality noted in other countries 'primarily corresponds to migratory bird patterns.'"

The first PFAS, or "forever chemicals," personal injury trial will focus on plaintiffs who allege they developed kidney cancer from firefighting foam. "The trial, set for Oct. 20, could include up to three individuals who claim their exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in aqueous film-forming foams (AFFF) caused their cancer," reports Pat Rizzuto of Bloomberg Law. "In [an] effort to manage the nearly 10,000 personal injury cases that are part of the Aqueous Film-Forming Foams Products Liability Litigation MDL 2873, Judge Richard M. Gergel, with the U.S. District Court for the District of S.C., established three batches of cases involving different illnesses."

U.S. and China push pause on tariffs, and while businesses and some farmers celebrate, 'repercussions will linger'

The U.S. and China will reduce reciprocal tariffs
by 115%. (Adobe Stock photo)

The United States and China agreed to scale back their reciprocal tariffs in an effort to ease tensions as they begin trade negotiations.

Both countries agreed to "temporarily reduce the punishing tariffs they have imposed on each other," report Daisuke Wakabayashi, Amy Chang Chien and Alan Rappeport of The New York Times. "The Trump administration [has] backed off, for now. . . and agreed to hold more formal talks with Beijing after companies and consumers started showing signs of economic strain."

According to the 90-day rollback agreement, the United States would "reduce the tariff on Chinese imports to 30% from its current 145%, while China would lower its import duty on American goods to 10% from 125%, the Times reports. "China said it would suspend or revoke countermeasures adopted in retaliation for escalating tariffs."

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested "the two countries might discuss deals for China to purchase more American goods. Such a deal could help narrow the American trade deficit with China," the Times reports. "The agreement breaks an impasse that had brought much trade between China and the United States to a halt."

Despite some room for celebration by businesses from both countries, the past weeks of tariffs have taken a toll. The Times reports, "Businesses are likely to encounter pent-up demand, leading to higher transport prices, as companies race to schedule shipments during the 90-day negotiating window. . . . Global stock markets jumped with the announcement."

The reduced tariffs were an especially welcome change for U.S. soybean farmers. "Soybean futures surged in overnight trading . . . ," reports Tony Driebus of Successful Farming.

When a local business that served as a community hub closes, residents may need to create a new meeting space

Dairy Queens served as a gathering spot for many rural
Texas residents. (Photo by Jaime Adame, Daily Yonder)

 

As Dairy Queens shutter in rural communities across Texas, locals see their social spaces disappear. The ice cream franchise shops have long served as places of connection for small-town residents.

"In rural areas, sites where people choose to gather are 'neither work nor home, but they anchor everything in between,' as a former rural school superintendent, Melissa Sadorf put it in a recent essay on the importance of what are sometimes called 'third places,'" reports Jaime Adame of The Daily Yonder.

Dairy Queen closures in Texas surged this year over legal disputes within the company, and smaller communities felt the loss. "Out of some 30 locations to shut down statewide, twelve were in towns with fewer than 3,000 people," Adame writes. "Civic leaders and townspeople must now grapple with literal empty spaces and rips in the fabric of community life."

When the Dairy Queen in Canadian, Texas, closed, the small town of roughly 2,300 people in northern Texas dearly missed the connection spot the restaurant once provided. The community is still working to recover from fierce wildfires that burned down parts of the town last year.

Remelle Farrar, interim director for the local economic development corporation in Canadian, told Adame, "It’s an impact to our culture, absolutely. . . . [It was] a place to go for many members of our population after the event of the day, to go sit and talk… and relax."

While Dairy Queen is still considered a "Texas icon. . . . The view of Dairy Queen as a community’s social hub doesn’t ring true as much as it did decades ago, even in rural Texas," Adame reports. "Rural areas are more likely to struggle at providing such third places, according to Danielle Rhubart, a researcher at Penn State University who studies rural health and well-being."

To fill holes the closure of a Dairy Queen or similar spot can leave behind, residents of smaller communities need to look around their town and see what alternatives are available. Adame explains, "Creating a third place can involve adapting unused buildings, even a former church. Rhubart said it’s important for small communities to support local businesses and make use of what’s already in place, such as libraries or outdoor spaces like parks, to ensure that welcoming places exist for people to gather."

Opinion: The ongoing measles outbreak was 'avoidable.' Now what?

Map by Sarah Milotte, The Rural Index via The Daily Yonder

As measles cases in the U.S. top more than 1,000 diagnosed infections, medical experts Richard Hughes and Anna Larson call the ongoing outbreak "an avoidable public health failure," in their opinion for MedPage Today.

Measles was declared "eliminated" in the United States in 2000, but its status is evolving. The most recent eruption of the highly contagious disease began in rural Texas and "continues to unfold with additional deaths in Texas and New Mexico, an exposure at a major U.S. airport following an identified case in Maryland, and expanding to over half of U.S. states," Hughes and Larson write.

The newly appointed Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has added to the confusion about the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine by endorsing "unproven treatments for measles and emphasizing vaccination as a personal choice rather than a public good," they write. When "he finally recommended measles vaccination to address the snowballing case count, he then ordered the search for new measles treatments instead of promoting vaccination."

Searching for a new measles "cure" won't stop the continuing spread of the disease, but beefing up MMR vaccine rates could. Instead, the administration "has canceled research related to vaccine hesitancy and misinformation," Hughes and Larson add, "and announced a requirement that all new vaccine products undergo placebo-controlled clinical trials prior to licensure."

What is likely to happen? "We can expect vaccination challenges to compound, immunization rates to decline, and vaccine-preventable diseases to rise," Hughes and Larson write. "A comprehensive U.S. approach to shore up our measles defenses and preserve elimination status is imperative, but unlikely."

What can be done to slow the current measles outbreak down? "Consistent application of proven public health measures -- expanded vaccine access, particularly in underserved populations, and improved disease and vaccine surveillance systems," according to Hughes and Larson. "The need to combat misinformation and instill public trust in vaccines is obvious, but bears repeating. . . . Now is not the time for complacency; it's time for action."

The bird flu helped this egg company's profits soar, and now its pricing practices are under investigation

Egg prices remain high as one producer sees its profits
and stock prices surge. (Adobe Stock photo)

U.S. top egg supplier Cal-Maine attributes its soaring profits and doubled stock price to hen shortages caused by bird flu, combined with savvy business practices. Lawmakers and regulators aren't buying that response as the full story. Patrick Thomas of The Wall Street Journal reports, "The Justice Department kicked off an investigation into the nationwide increase in the cost of eggs and is probing Cal-Maine’s and other companies’ pricing practices."

Cal-Maine explains its surging profits -- $508 million just in the first quarter of 2025 -- as the natural outcome of national egg shortages brought about by the severe avian flu outbreak, combined with its savvy production and investment strategy. The company's first-quarter profit was more than three times higher than the profit in its first quarter of 2024 -- $148 million. The company's chief executive, Sherman Miller, says, "He can’t ignore the rising animosity, and he’s ready to set the record straight," Thomas writes.

Miller told Thomas, “Someone has to get blamed for everything. They’re looking for a villain. . . . We’ve done absolutely everything we could do to supply every egg we could under circumstances we can’t control."

But what Cal-Maine can control matters because eggs aren't like other commodities. "The egg industry relies on contracts between a customer, like Walmart or Kroger, that wants to buy a certain amount of eggs from a supplier like Cal-Maine," Thomas explains. "Instead of producing all the eggs it sells in a year, Cal-Maine has historically handled spikes in demand by purchasing 10% to 25% from other suppliers on private exchanges such as the online Egg Clearinghouse."

Skeptics question Cal-Maine's private online exchange purchases. "Critics like Farm Action say that by buying eggs from rival producers on the Egg Clearinghouse, Cal-Maine contributes to limiting supply," Thomas reports. "This also can inflate prices because those purchases factor into the calculation for the industry benchmark prices, critics say."

Others wonder why Cal-Maine didn’t just "produce more eggs or decide to lower its prices during the avian-flu outbreak," Thomas writes. But company planners see the spike as temporary. "Historically, eggs tend to retail for $1 to $2 a dozen, and Cal-Maine executives say the sky-high prices probably won’t last."

Questioning Cal-Maine's pricing practices isn't new. "In 2023, a federal jury in Chicago decided that Cal-Maine and other big egg producers restricted supply in the early 2000s to raise prices, which inflated costs for companies that buy lots of eggs to make food products," Thomas adds. Several food companies were awarded $53 million in damages. Cal-Maine contested any claims of wrongdoing.

Rural residents seeking higher degrees often have to move; lawmakers think community colleges may have a solution

Jaylea Perez attends community college but will have to move if she
 wants a 4-year degree. (Photo by Mike Rundle, The Hechinger Report)

Rural communities across the United States face the same problem: There aren't enough higher education opportunities within driving distance. To fill ‘education deserts,’ more state lawmakers want community colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees," reports Jon Marcus for The Hechinger Report, which covers education.

The U.S. has roughly 13 million adults who "live beyond a reasonable commute from the nearest four-year university," Marcus explains. For now, the lack of educational options is predicted to increase "as private colleges in rural places close, public university campuses merge or shut down and rural universities cut majors and programs."

Although half of the states in the country already allow community colleges to offer some type of bachelor's degree, several of those that don't are considering adding this option. Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky and Texas are all states with large swaths of rural populations that have legislatures considering plans to allow community colleges to expand.

The proposal Illinois is considering is "backed by that state’s governor, J.B. Pritzker, who has said the move would make it easier and more affordable for residents to get degrees — 'particularly working adults in rural communities,'" Marcus adds. "Three-quarters of community college students in Illinois said they would pursue bachelor’s degrees if they could do it on the same campus, according to a survey released by Pritzker’s office."

The shift to allowing community colleges to confer higher degrees might also help smaller communities address population loss and "brain drain." Marcus reports, "Fewer than 25% of rural Americans hold bachelor’s degrees or higher, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, compared to the national average of 33%," and that gap is widening.

Some states looking to make the change are contending with push-back from their larger colleges. The Illinois proposal "is stalled in committee after several public and private university presidents issued a statement opposing it," Marcus reports. "Negotiations are continuing."

To find out which states have active proposals and which 'deserts' they are trying to address, read the entire story here. 

Rural housing support is on the chopping block. Proposal would cut billions from programs rural residents use.

The proposed budget would cut many USDA housing
programs that help rural Americans. (Adobe photo)

 

President Trump's newly released federal budget proposal cuts billions from rural housing support programs. "If adopted by Congress, key Department of Agriculture rural development and housing programs would be completely eliminated," reports Joe Belden for The Daily Yonder. "Major Housing and Urban Development programs that are important in rural areas also would get zero dollars next year, and many social safety net programs would be cut."

Similar cuts were suggested and rejected during Trump's first term, but this Congress may think differently.

The new budget ends funding for the 502 loan program, which has existed since the 1950s, and has helped "2.2 million low-income rural families to become homeowners," Belden writes.

Trump's 2026 budget cuts billions in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development disbursements by ending financial support for Community Development Block Grants and the HOME program, which "were used extensively in rural areas and small cities," Belden reports. "One of the federal government’s most important and largest social safety net programs, tenant-based rental assistance, would be cut by $26.7 billion."

Other proposed cuts that could impact rural communities include the end of the Low-income Home Energy Assistance Program, zero funding for the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund’s discretionary grants and the elimination of the Community Services Block Grant program.

Along with cuts, the proposed budget has a silver lining, which "says that it furthers investment in rural communities by creating a new $100 million award program that would provide access to affordable financing and spur economic development in rural America," Belden explains. "This new program would require 60% of Community Development Financial Institutions’ loans and investments to go to rural areas."

Congress will decide during its budgetary process how to act on the president's budget proposal. 

PBS and NPR executives pledge to push back 'very hard' against White House efforts to end taxpayer support

PBS’s Paula Kerger

PBS and NPR leaders say they are exploring legal options to protect their services from President Trump's executive order barring them from receiving taxpayer dollars through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

PBS’s chief executive, Paula Kerger, "told CBS News’s Face the Nation that Republican-led threats to withdraw federal funding from public broadcasters had been around for decades but are 'different this time,' reports Edward Helmore of The Guardian. NPR’s CEO Katherine Maher agreed and said that both services will be "'pushing back very hard, because what’s at risk are our stations, our public television, our public radio stations across the country.'"

The White House maintains that taxpayer dollars should not support biased broadcasting. Helmore writes, "The order added: 'Which viewpoints NPR and PBS promote does not matter. What does matter is that neither entity presents a fair, accurate, or unbiased portrayal of current events to taxpaying citizens.'"

NPR’s Katherine Maher

As the battle ensues, services to many rural Americans would be the first affected. Helmore reports, "Maher said in an April interview with NPR that rural stations would see the biggest impact. 'You could see some of those stations really having to cut back services or potentially going away altogether.'" NPR radio has historically been one place rural Americans turned to for emergency alerts and safety directions.

PBS stations in rural areas could also face shortfalls and possible cuts. Helmore adds, "A fact sheet from PBS says on average federal funds make up 15% of their revenue, but a funding cut would be especially acute for smaller and rural stations."

It's uncertain how Trump's executive order will be implemented. "The CPB’s budget is already approved by Congress through 2027, and in a statement to The New York Times, CPB’s president, Patricia Harrison, said the agency was not subject to the president’s authority," Helmore reports. “'Congress directly authorized and funded CPB to be a private non-profit corporation wholly independent of the federal government,' she said."

On the whole, the CPB spends "more money on less populated states," reports Alex Curley of Current. "We can also say that, despite a few blue-leaning outliers like the District of Columbia and Vermont, public media stations in states that voted Republican in the last Presidential election tended to get more Community Service Grants, or CSG money, per person than in states that voted Democrat."

The CPB awards money through its Community Service Grants, or CSGs.
(Graphic by Alex Curley, Current, from CPB data)

Real ID deadline is here for real. Not everyone has one, and not everyone needs one. Here's an update.

A Real ID or A passport is required to board U.S.
commercial aircraft. (Adobe Stock photo)

After years of extensions and missed deadlines, the Transportation Security Administration's Real ID requirements for U.S. domestic airport travelers and individuals looking to enter military or federal buildings went into effect this week.

"Congress passed the Real ID Act back in 2005 to beef up aviation security post-9/11," Alex Fitzpatrick of Axios reports. "But the deadline for actually requiring compliant ID cards has been repeatedly delayed."

Leading up to its May 7 start date, TSA said that 81% of people going through their checkpoints had Real IDs or another form of accepted identification, such as a passport. Gaby Del Valle of The Verge reports, U.S. citizens that don't fly or need to access TSA checkpoint buildings may opt to stick with standard state-issued ID for now.

Real ID compliance has varied by state, which is unsurprising since some states have larger numbers of residents with passports. Fitzpatrick reports, "Nearly 47% of Americans lack a valid passport as of fiscal 2024. . . . West Virginia (79.3%), Mississippi (77.9%), and Alabama (72.3%) have the greatest shares of citizens lacking a passport."

USA Today journalists headed out to various airports across the country to see how the Real ID rollout was going in real time. According to their reports, airport lines were no longer than usual and most travelers reported no delays. 

TSA Regional Spokesperson Mark J. Howell "warned traffic would pick up heading into holidays like Memorial Day and the Fourth of July," reports USA Today. Howell told reporters, "Here in Nashville, specifically, with CMA Fest and Bonnaroo, you're going to have a lot of people coming from everywhere. So if you haven't gotten (a Real ID), now is the time to do it if you plan to travel later, because the volume from here is only going to go up.”

View TSA ID guidelines here. 

Skilled labor started recruiting from high school shop classes; high school graduates can make over $60,000

Skilled trades can offer training during high school
and a good-paying job upon graduation. (Adobe Stock photo)

Skilled labor training is helping some high schoolers land jobs with big pay before they even graduate. "Companies with shortages of skilled workers look to shop class to recruit future hires," reports Te-Ping Chen of The Wall Street Journal. "Elijah Rios won’t graduate from high school until next year, but he already has a job offer — one that pays $68,000 a year."

While the U.S. shortage of skilled labor has been building over time, baby boomer retirements have pushed trade-based companies that need a pipeline of trained professionals to "turn to creative recruiting strategies," Te-Ping explains. "More businesses are teaming up with high schools to enable students to work part-time, earning money as well as academic credit. More employers are showing up at high school career days." The renewed interest in hiring from the trades has helped revive high school shop programming.

Younger workers generally are more at ease with incorporating technology into their work, which is another reason trade recruiters are stepping up their "shop class" connections. According to the WSJ article, "Employers say that as the skilled trades become more tech-infused, they anticipate doing even more recruitment at an early age, because they need workers who are comfortable programming and running computer diagnostics."

One of the best things employers can do to "get a foot into high schools early on is by offering internships, says Roxanne Amiot, an automotive instructor at Bullard-Havens Technical School in Bridgeport, Conn.," Te-Ping writes. She told the Journal, “I tell them, don’t call me for students when they graduate, grab them now when they’re 16 or 17, or I have nobody to work for you.”

The recruitment opportunities and wages that trade professions offer signal a dramatic shift away from the "college-for-all mindset," according to the article. "[But] it’s important to make sure students are made aware of all their options, says Steve Klein, a researcher who focuses on vocational education. . . . At the same time, as interest in vocational education rises, he worries that sentiment runs the risk of swinging too much in the other direction."

Ag updates: Celebrate Beef Month; handling farm stressors; 'regenerative' farming limits; what is 'acequia' irrigation?

"Round-up scenes in Belle Fouche" by John C. H. Grabill. (Library of Congress photo via Ag Clips)

May is National Beef Month, and possibly the best time to look back at the country's short but impactful cattle drive history, which began around 1866 and ended in the 1890s. "The biggest legacy of the cattle drives exists in popular culture. The cattle drives occurred in a time when the United States was shifting from an agrarian-based society to a more industrial and urban society," reports Morning Ag Clips. "Because of this shift, the cowboys and ranch life were looked on with nostalgia as 'simpler times,' and they became a popular subject for stories and songs."

With tariffs, weather, bird flu and hi-input costs, U.S. farmers are unsurprisingly stressed. Burnout and depression can easily follow emotions run ragged by an ever-changing commodities landscape. "This sort of chronic stress complicates decision-making and other aspects of managing a farm or ranch," reports Raylene Nickel for Successful Farming. "If you recognize signs of stress and burnout, do these six things to help yourself cope or recover: Take care of your physical self, surround yourself with good people, take charge of your thoughts, build spiritual capital, find ways to reduce stress, seek help. 

In a letter to Ford President and CEO Jim Farley, a coalition of U.S. corn growers asked Farley to reconsider the company's move away from flex fuel vehicle production and to "reengage in advancing renewable fuel technologies that support rural America," reports Jesse Allen for American Ag Network. "The letter highlights the critical role American-grown ethanol plays in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening energy independence, and supporting local economies."

Regenerative farming may not be as
"green" as it sounds. (New Lede photo)

"Regenerative" agriculture may be healthy farming's new buzzword, but food producers and buyers should be aware of the label's limitations. "Proponents of regenerative farming say the practice can mitigate harmful climate change, reduce water pollution, and make foods more nutritious as farmers focus on improving the health of soil, water, and ecosystems," reports Carey Gillam for The New Lede. "That momentum comes with a dirty dark side, according to a new report [that] asserts regenerative programs, which generally allow for the use of weedkillers and other chemicals, are being used to 'greenwash' routine use of several dangerous pesticides on farm fields. . . .Corporations that sell such pesticides are entwined with the movement. . ."

An illustration of how acequias work.
(Drawing by Jerold Widdison via Civil Eats)

Southwestern farmers grappling with arid conditions brought on by climate change revived the ancient 'acequia' irrigation system to address water shortage problems. "Time-tested solutions like this one could hold the key to mitigating the worst impacts of climate change, especially in rural communities," reports Samuel Gilbert for Civil Eats. "In the San Luis Valley, in south-central Colorado, 130 gravity-flow ditches irrigated 30,000 acres of farmland and 10,000 acres of wetlands." Devon Peña, founder of The Acequia Institute, told Gilbert, "This is an incredibly productive, resilient, and sustainable system."

Can the U.S. thrive without China? Ag economists weigh in on the good, the bad and the uncertain.

Graph by Lindsey Pound, Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor

As the ongoing tariff rivalry continues between the U.S. and China, a question nags in the background: Can the U.S. economy, including American agribusiness, decrease its dependency on China? Tyne Morgan of Farm Journal reports, "While the risks of losing more market share into China are a concern, the upside potential of a trade deal with China could be monumental."

Ag Economists’ Monthly Monitor asked economists if the U.S. could "reduce its reliance on China -- to which 83% responded -- 'Yes, it can,'" Morgan writes. The Monitor also asked if "U.S. agriculture could function without imports from China," to which "76% responded, 'yes, the U.S. can function without imports from China.'"

The steep agricultural tariffs are tough on both countries, and there are signs that "China is already hurting from the trade war and 'quietly' exempting nearly 25% of all U.S. imports from tariffs. . . . 72% of economists believe U.S. agriculture is in the middle of a recession," Morgan writes. "Sixty-one percent of ag economists think China and the U.S. will reach an agreement to revisit the Phase One trade agreement."

The Phase One agreement from the Trump administration's first term "committed China to purchase an additional $200 billion in U.S. ag products over the next two years," Morgan explains. "China didn’t complete the promised purchases after Trump lost the election, but made massive corn buys in 2020, including the biggest single-day U.S. corn purchase on record in July 2020."

The U.S. has already lost ground to Brazil, which is now the world's top corn exporter. Still, some economists see trade war 2.0 as an opportunity for U.S. agribusiness to gain ground in key areas, including biofuels, cotton, livestock production for sales in Europe, and overall exports to China. 

When asked "how long it would take to restore American manufacturing, 47% responded never, 29% said 10 years and 24% said at least five years," Morgan adds. "The risks are high. Unless the U.S. invests in domestic manufacturing over an extended period, the loss from exports could be a big hit to ag commodities. But if the Trump administration can gain more trade access to key countries, the rewards could be even bigger."

Opinion: A rural hospital administrator considers what will become of his center if Congress cuts Medicaid

When a rural hospital closes, many residents drive hours to
see a provider or receive specialized care. (Adobe photo)

Over the past 15 years, rural hospitals have struggled to stay afloat, but their already precarious financial state could become a full-blown crisis should Congress slash Medicaid spending. Kevin Stansbury, the chief executive of Lincoln Health in tiny Hugo, Colorado, writes in his opinion for The New York Times, "Congress is considering cuts to Medicaid that could wreak havoc on rural America’s fragile health care system. I worry about our future."

Cuts to federal Medicaid support will be hard on most medical centers, but "rural hospitals will be particularly affected," Stansbury explains. "This is because rural patients are more likely to have health coverage from the government than from commercial insurers. (Nearly three-quarters of our revenue, for example, is from Medicaid and Medicare.)"

In Colorado, almost half of all rural hospitals operate in the red and many have closed services such as labor and delivery units because they are too expensive to run. Stansbury writes, "We also serve fewer patients than big city hospitals but still have fixed costs to stay operational. The result is that we run on minimal or negative operating margins."

When a rural hospital closes, the health of its immediate and surrounding communities suffers. If a severe auto accident happens, victims have to wait longer for emergency services to arrive, or brave traveling to the closest medical center. Residents with chronic conditions are more likely to skip regular care because they must drive hours for a checkup or specialty treatment.

"I know the financial peril my hospital will face if our Medicaid lifeline is severed. But the real damage — the kind that keeps me up at night — will be done to the hardworking people in my rural community," Stansbury adds. "I worry about the residents of our nursing home who just want to grow old here. I worry about the people in Hugo who might forgo care entirely because they can’t get the time off work to visit a Denver hospital. . . .The list goes on."

Cutting Medicaid waste and fraud is one thing "but the cuts on the table go far beyond that," Stansbury writes. "I don’t see waste in Hugo. Rather, Medicaid ensures that primary and emergency care is still accessible here, and that drivers along I-70 will see the blue H on the highway sign and know that help is nearby."

Honeybee hives are collapsing; here's how everyone can help pollinators thrive again

Unlike yellow jackets and hornets, honeybees' faces are often described as "fuzzy" or "hairy."
In general, they are more interested in flowers than stinging people. (Adobe Stock photo)

Honeybee colonies are collapsing due to a multitude of natural and human-made threats: "Parasites, loss of habitat, climate change and pesticides threaten to wipe out as much as 70% or more of the nation’s honeybee colonies this year, potentially the most devastating loss that the nation has ever seen," reports Ivan Penn of The New York Times. "Though most people fear the winged, golden insects with their fierce stingers, honeybees play a pivotal role in [crop] production." The items below offer some ideas of what farmers, gardeners and average Americans can do to help honey bees thrive once again.

Few animals are more dear to farmers and gardeners than bees. They bumble about humming in the key of C, ensuring crops grow. To help them get their work done, producers can create pollination-friendly pastures. "A buffet of native flowers and vegetables will attract bees, but they’ll also appreciate a place for shelter and nesting," reports Jodi Henke of Successful Farming. "Seventy percent of bees nest in the ground, and others burrow into twigs and old beetle tunnels. You can also provide shelter by building a bee box."

One of the most beneficial things people can do for bees is plant trees. "A tree provides much more forage than any patch of flowers ever could," reports Hilary Kearney of Keeping Backyard Bees. "Honeybees need millions of flowers to feed their colony. Individual foragers prefer to collect from a single type of flower and so, they favor plants that can provide large amounts of blooms or gardens where single varieties are planted in groupings. Now, imagine what a mature tree can offer compared to what a 10′ X 10′ pollinator garden offers. . ."

Farming includes crops and herds, but how about adding some hives? "More than 100 U.S. crops depend on assistance from pollinators. A free program is available and offers a chance to help," reports Alex Gray of Successful Farming. "The Seed a Legacy program was started to bring life back to pollinator habitats. This program enables landowners to make use out of the unproductive parts of their land, turning ditches and field corners into habitats for pollinators."

Protecting bees from chemicals is a key way to support their populations. "Synthetic pesticides, herbicides, and other agrochemicals can harm bees. By minimizing their use, we help maintain healthy bee and other pollinator populations, contribute to biodiversity, balance ecosystems, and mitigate downstream impacts on wildlife and human health," The Bee Conservancy reports. For farmers who use insecticide, reading all of an application's directions and spraying in the early morning or late evening when bees are less active can help minimize bee exposure.

Enjoying bees and supporting efforts to keep their hives thriving can be as simple as purchasing honey from a local beekeeper or donating funds to apiary science research. Once local honey is in your cupboard, a plethora of sweet or savory recipes can be explored, including honey-infused foods, barbecue sauces, whipped butters, biscuits, and simple syrups for cocktails and mocktails. Honey can also be a soothing addition to apple cider, tea and hot toddies.

When humans look out for bees, it's more than looking out for our food supply, science is still exploring the uniquely beneficial properties of honey. For example, honey can be used to protect and heal minor burns. "Studies in animal models have demonstrated that honey leads to faster healing and reduced inflammation than controls in infection-free superficial burns and full-thickness wounds and in wounds experimentally infected with Staphylococcus aureus," researcher M. Subrahmanyam writes in the Annals of Burns and Fire Disasters. "Honey is cheap, non-toxic, and non-allergenic, it does not stick to the wound, and it provides a moist environment conducive to rapid burn healing."

Rural jails lack mental health resources. Inmates can linger for weeks in tiny cells awaiting psychiatric care.

Local jails weren't build to house mentally
ill populations. (KFF Health photo)

Many rural jails lack resources to manage inmates who need mental health treatment. In Polson, a small town in northwestern Montana, "when someone accused of a crime needs mental health care, chances are they’ll be locked in a basement jail cell the size of a walk-in closet," reports Katheryn Houghton of KFF Health News. Jails across the U.S. have problems similar to Polson, where demand for inmate mental health treatment exceeds any state's capacity to provide it.

Polson's basement jail cell was intended to be a short-term solution to keep mentally altered inmates away from the rest of the jail population until a psychiatric bed opened up. Houghton writes, "Last year, a man sentenced for stealing a rifle stayed in that cell 129 days. He was waiting for a spot to open at Montana’s only state-run psychiatric hospital after a mental health evaluator deemed he needed care."

Some jailed individuals haven't been found guilty of crimes because a judge ordered mental health care completed before allowing the case to move forward. At the Grays Harbor County Jail, located in the small town of Montesano, Washington, "approximately 20-30% of the jail population is made up of inmates who are supposed to be receiving [mental health] care," reports Susannah Frame of KING-TV in Seattle. The facility's medical ward is "the size of a closet. There are no mental health professionals on staff. There is not enough staff to safely deal with a crisis."

Wyoming, Nevada and Oregon jail systems have similar struggles. "More than half of Wyoming’s 23 sheriffs told lawmakers there that they were housing people in crisis awaiting mental health care for months," Houghton reports. "Nevada has struggled despite a $500 daily fine for each jailed patient whose treatment is delayed. Disability Rights Oregon has said delays in that state continue after two people died in jail while on the state’s psychiatric waitlist."

In Polson, Vincent River has been the jail's only mental health provider for 25 years. "He said he’s not always available because he’s the only psychologist in four northwestern Montana counties evaluating whether a person in jail needs psychiatric care," Houghton writes. "River said he can’t get people into any psychiatric bed in Montana because there are too few. Instead, he tries to stabilize people while they’re jailed. . . . Some are released without care if they linger too long on the state hospital’s waitlist."

With FEMA grants canceled, local governments search for new funds -- and rural communities have few options

Graph by Connie Hanzhang Jin, from FEMA data compiled by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Sewage back-ups, wildfire threats or repeated flooding in residential areas are just a few of the complicated problems rural towns planned to fix with Federal Emergency Management Agency funds, but that was before the Trump administration withdrew the support.

"Rural communities were awarded FEMA grants to fix long-standing infrastructure problems, and they expected funding to be delivered this year," report Lauren Sommer and Rebecca Hersher of NPR. "But last month, the Trump administration canceled their grants and hundreds of others, including ones that had already been promised but not yet paid out.

FEMA began the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities, or BRIC program, in 2020, during President Trump's first term. Since then, it has expanded to award about "$4.6 billion to communities across the U.S.," Sommer and Hersher explain. "The goal was to help local, state and tribal governments protect residents from future disasters. . . . Research shows that improving buildings and infrastructure before disasters happen can reduce the overall damage and cost when they hit."

The Trump administration said it cut BRIC to address wasteful, fraudulent spending, but rural towns that were relying on FEMA dollars don't see their grant money as unwise spending. Daniel Hoffert, village president for DePue, Illinois, which lost a grant to stop chronic flooding problems, told NPR, "I don't think they know what waste is. I don't think they know what fraud is. None of this, to me, is waste and fraud."

For many rural places, federal money is the "only source large enough to update the aging infrastructure that's vulnerable to increasingly intense disasters," Sommer and Hersher write. 

"In Kamiah, Idaho, deputy city clerk Mike Tornatore says he'd already told residents that the grant was on its way. With Kamiah having seen destructive wildfires in the past, its BRIC grant focused on fire protection," NPR reports. "He's also hoping to get a meeting with Trump about the impact of what the administration has canceled."