Morning Headlines - Tuesday, May 27, 2025

Start your day informed with today’s must-read headlines from around Wisconsin and the world. And don’t forget to check out our Meme of the Day at the end for a little humor to go with your news!

U.S. and World Headlines

Jake Tapper Claims Biden Health Scandal Coverup Is 'Worse Than Watergate'

CNN's Jake Tapper admitted that the cover-up of Joe Biden's cognitive decline in the White House may have been 'worse than Watergate.'

Tapper compared Biden's White House deception to President Richard Nixon and one of the greatest scandals in political history during an interview with Piers Morgan about his campaign tell-all Original Sin.

'This is an entirely separate scandal. Maybe even worse … maybe even worse,' Tapper ultimately admitted.

'It is without question – and maybe even worse than Watergate in some ways because Richard Nixon was in control of his faculties when he was not drinking.'

Tapper's new book delves into the elaborate and painstaking efforts taken by Biden's inner circle to hide the true extent of his health problems.

Obama World Loses Its Shine In A Changing, Hurting Democratic Party

After Kamala Harris entered the presidential race last year, she reached out to Barack Obama campaign alum Jim Messina to help lead her White House bid.

But when Messina shared news of the vice president’s offer with a friend, he received a stern warning.

“I said ‘Jim, if you get involved in this, it’ll be political suicide,’” Democratic megadonor John Morgan, a longtime Harris critic, recalled of his conversation with Messina, who had served in Obama’s White House and managed his successful 2012 re-election campaign. “You’re going to be a loser. And your whole shine is you’re undefeated.”

Memorial Day Mass Shooting Leaves 2 Dead, 9 Injured In Philadelphia Park

Two people are dead, and nine others have been injured in a Memorial Day mass shooting in Philadelphia, authorities said.

The shooting took place at Fairmount Park in Philadelphia on Monday evening, the final day of the long Memorial Day weekend, when gunfire erupted at approximately 10:27 p.m. on Lemon Hill Drive at Poplar Drive, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.

North Korea Says US 'Golden Dome' Risks 'Space Nuclear War'

North Korea has criticised the US's plan for a futuristic "Golden Dome" missile shield, saying it could "turn outer space into a potential nuclear war field".

The defence system, which President Donald Trump plans to unveil by the end of his term, is aimed at countering "next-generation" aerial threats to the US, including ballistic and cruise missiles.

Pyongyang's foreign ministry slammed the plan as "the height of self-righteousness [and] arrogance", state media reported.

GOP Fears Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Is ‘Debt Bomb’

The fiscal impact of President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” which one prominent budget hawk called a “debt bomb,” is becoming a significant political concern among Republican lawmakers who have made little progress toward offsetting the $3 trillion projected cost of the legislation.

Some GOP senators fear that the bill’s failure to rein in federal spending in a substantial way over the next decade is fueling jitters in the bond market, where soft demand for U.S. debt has caused yields to climb in recent weeks.

And they worry that if Republicans pass Trump’s bill on party-line votes in both chambers, they will get blamed for heaping trillions of dollars onto the debt and the economic consequences that may follow in the future.

Wisconsin Headlines

A Western Wisconsin City Lost Its Entire Police Force, Highlighting Staffing Challenges For Smaller Departments

In late April, the Trempealeau County Times posted a sobering headline: “Last Arcadia Police Officer Resigns.”

The article recounted how the Arcadia Police Department’s former chief of 10 years left in January, with the remaining four officers following suit months later.

Law enforcement veterans say what happened in Arcadia highlights unique staffing challenges small departments face in an increasingly tight and competitive job market.

‘UpFront’: Tiffany To Decide By August Whether To Run For Governor

GOP Rep. Tom Tiffany says he’ll likely decide by the August recess whether he’ll launch a bid for governor in 2026.

“Where can I do the most good for the people in the state of Wisconsin, and am I the best candidate? Those are the questions,” Tiffany said on WISN 12’s “UpFront,” which is produced in partnership with WisPolitics. “But what comes first is what’s going on in Washington, D.C. The people of the 7th Congressional District in northwestern Wisconsin hired me to do this job for the next two years. That is what I’m focused on at this point. In a few months, when we get to the August break, we’re going to be able to deal with that question of whether I should run for governor.”

Tiffany pointed to the massive tax and spending plan that Republicans just passed through the U.S. House that now heads to the U.S. Senate where some like Sen. Ron Johnson have called for even deeper cuts.

Ron Johnson Not Satisfied With GOP Megabill’s Spending Reductions

Sen. Ron Johnson is gearing up to push for far deeper spending cuts as the Senate takes up President Donald Trump’s sweeping domestic policy package, which the House narrowly passed Thursday.

The spending cuts in the GOP’s megabill, $1.5 trillion over the course of 10 years, amount to little more than “a rounding error,” Johnson (R-Wis.) told CNN’s Jake Tapper Sunday on “State of the Union.”

“This is the weekend we honor the service and sacrifice of the finest among us. You know, more than a million that died defending this nation,” Johnson said. “I don’t think they served and sacrificed to leave our children completely mortgaged, their future and their prospects diminished because of it. So we need to be responsible. The first goal of our budget reconciliation process should be to reduce the deficit. This actually increases it.”

DNR Seeking Public Input On Great Lakes Beach Listings

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is asking the public to help update Wisconsin's Beach List to keep people safe on Great Lakes beaches this summer.

Each year, the DNR's beach program contacts residents, local beach managers and public health departments along Wisconsin's Great Lakes coasts to determine any changes needed to the Wisconsin Beach List and program information.

A beach is defined as any place where the public has recreational access to the water, regardless of whether the location is used for swimming. Boat launches, some natural areas and private beaches available to the public are included.

How AI Data Centers Are Tapping Into Wisconsin's Fresh Water

Wisconsin is rich in one of the most important natural resources — water.

“We are projected to be relatively water rich in the coming decades,” said Amy Barrilleaux, communications director for Clean Wisconsin.

But a new technological frontier could test these waters, as more data centers pop up around the state. These facilities host artificial intelligence computing and store vast amounts of data. Barrilleaux cautioned that the long-term environmental impacts of these operations remain uncharted territory.