At least 85,000 law enforcement officers across the USA have been investigated or disciplined for misconduct over the past decade, an investigation by USA TODAY Network found.Officers have beaten members of the public, planted evidence and used their badges to harass women. They have lied, stolen, dealt drugs, driven drunk and abused their spouses.Despite their role as public servants, the men and women who swear an oath to keep communities safe can generally avoid public scrutiny for their misdeeds.The records of their misconduct are filed away, rarely seen by anyone outside their...…At least 85,000 law enforcement officers across the USA have been investigated or disciplined for misconduct over the past decade, an investigation by USA TODAY Network found.Officers have beaten members of the public, planted evidence and used their badges to harass women. They have lied, stolen, dealt drugs, driven drunk and abused their spouses.Despite their role as public servants, the men and women who swear an oath to keep communities safe can generally avoid public scrutiny for their misdeeds.The records of their misconduct are filed away, rarely seen by anyone outside their...WW…

Joey Garrison and Dave BoucherThe TennesseanNASHVILLE — Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn's online video announcing her campaign for U.S. Senate has been blocked in any Twitter advertisements after the social media company objected to a line that Blackburn's campaign announced Twitter's decision on Monday after a representative of Twitter informed her campaign that the line "had been deemed an inflammatory statement that is likely to evoke a strong negative reaction." The language violates Twitter's policy for advertisements, the company said. "If this is omitted...…Joey Garrison and Dave BoucherThe TennesseanNASHVILLE — Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn's online video announcing her campaign for U.S. Senate has been blocked in any Twitter advertisements after the social media company objected to a line that Blackburn's campaign announced Twitter's decision on Monday after a representative of Twitter informed her campaign that the line "had been deemed an inflammatory statement that is likely to evoke a strong negative reaction." The language violates Twitter's policy for advertisements, the company said. "If this is omitted...WW…

USA TODAYAn Alabama woman was shot in the stomach last year and lost her pregnancy. Now, the shooter has gone free, and the woman has been indicted for manslaughter in the fetus' death because police say she was at fault for initiating the shooting.Marshae Jones, 27,  and taken into custody on a $50,000 bond, Jefferson County authorities said. Jones was five months pregnant when 23-year-old Ebony Jemison shot her in the stomach during a December 2018 altercation regarding the fetus' father, Alabama news station...…USA TODAYAn Alabama woman was shot in the stomach last year and lost her pregnancy. Now, the shooter has gone free, and the woman has been indicted for manslaughter in the fetus' death because police say she was at fault for initiating the shooting.Marshae Jones, 27,  and taken into custody on a $50,000 bond, Jefferson County authorities said. Jones was five months pregnant when 23-year-old Ebony Jemison shot her in the stomach during a December 2018 altercation regarding the fetus' father, Alabama news station...WW…

USA TODAYWASHINGTON — The Secret Service can no longer pay hundreds of agents it needs to carry out an expanded protective mission – in large part due to the sheer size of President Trump's family and efforts necessary to secure their multiple residences up and down the East Coast.Secret Service Director Randolph "Tex" Alles, in an interview with USA TODAY, said more than 1,000 agents have already hit the federally mandated caps for salary and overtime allowances that were meant to last the entire year. The agency has faced a crushing workload since...…USA TODAYWASHINGTON — The Secret Service can no longer pay hundreds of agents it needs to carry out an expanded protective mission – in large part due to the sheer size of President Trump's family and efforts necessary to secure their multiple residences up and down the East Coast.Secret Service Director Randolph "Tex" Alles, in an interview with USA TODAY, said more than 1,000 agents have already hit the federally mandated caps for salary and overtime allowances that were meant to last the entire year. The agency has faced a crushing workload since...WW…

Pensacola News JournalPENSACOLA, Fla. – Recent high school graduate Cameron Newton, 19, spent a year working at a Pensacola Beach seafood restaurant but wasn't sure about his long-term life plans. Growing up near Naval Air Station Pensacola, . "But I didn't want to be on a boat," Newton said.And the Army?"That just isn't for me," he said.So Newton ended up in the office of Air Force recruiter Sgt. Carlos Morales, where he signed his final paperwork this summer before heading off to basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. Experts say Newton...…Pensacola News JournalPENSACOLA, Fla. – Recent high school graduate Cameron Newton, 19, spent a year working at a Pensacola Beach seafood restaurant but wasn't sure about his long-term life plans. Growing up near Naval Air Station Pensacola, . "But I didn't want to be on a boat," Newton said.And the Army?"That just isn't for me," he said.So Newton ended up in the office of Air Force recruiter Sgt. Carlos Morales, where he signed his final paperwork this summer before heading off to basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. Experts say Newton...WW…

USA TODAYWith just eight days to go before the election, both national poll and swing state surveys make it clear the race is tightening. President Donald Trump gained on his Democratic challenger Joe Biden in national polling averages, and in nine of 12 contested states. But Biden still holds a sizable lead in the national polls and is still ahead of Trump in 10 of the 12 states that could decide the election. Biden's average lead is only 3 percentage points or more in five of the swing states, but those include the crucial states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin that...…USA TODAYWith just eight days to go before the election, both national poll and swing state surveys make it clear the race is tightening. President Donald Trump gained on his Democratic challenger Joe Biden in national polling averages, and in nine of 12 contested states. But Biden still holds a sizable lead in the national polls and is still ahead of Trump in 10 of the 12 states that could decide the election. Biden's average lead is only 3 percentage points or more in five of the swing states, but those include the crucial states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin that...WW…

Paul BrandusOpinion contributorIt was amusing at the start of the great racist tweet controversy to hear the media asking, “Is President Donald Trump a racist?” We are well beyond such questions.  he has said on numerous occasions. If you were living solo on a deserted island and he showed up, that might be true, but for everyone else, it’s just another one of his delusional claims. In fact, I have met the president myself, and he’s off by one word. He is not the least racist person I’ve ever met — he is the most.Trump supporters reading this will probably get upset and melt like...…Paul BrandusOpinion contributorIt was amusing at the start of the great racist tweet controversy to hear the media asking, “Is President Donald Trump a racist?” We are well beyond such questions.  he has said on numerous occasions. If you were living solo on a deserted island and he showed up, that might be true, but for everyone else, it’s just another one of his delusional claims. In fact, I have met the president myself, and he’s off by one word. He is not the least racist person I’ve ever met — he is the most.Trump supporters reading this will probably get upset and melt like...WW…

USA TODAYWASHINGTON – President Donald Trump generated new questions about the fate of his anti-coronavirus policy team by retweeting a post that called for .Trump did not explicitly endorse in his tweet Sunday, but in recirculating it, he defended himself against claims he did not act quickly enough to curb the spread of the virus that has killed thousands and led to a near-shutown of the American economy.DeAnna Lorraine, a pro-Trump congressional candidate who polled less than 2% in an open primary challenge to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., claimed in a...…USA TODAYWASHINGTON – President Donald Trump generated new questions about the fate of his anti-coronavirus policy team by retweeting a post that called for .Trump did not explicitly endorse in his tweet Sunday, but in recirculating it, he defended himself against claims he did not act quickly enough to curb the spread of the virus that has killed thousands and led to a near-shutown of the American economy.DeAnna Lorraine, a pro-Trump congressional candidate who polled less than 2% in an open primary challenge to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., claimed in a...WW…

USA TODAYAfter the nation's top disease response agency posted  last Wednesday night, extending the ban through August, the White House  Task Force stepped in to cut it by 20 days.When the reappeared on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website hours later, its language had been softened: Ships can sail again in July, and an explicit warning that they could be docked even longer had been deleted, according to emails and internal documents obtained by USA TODAY.  “Sorry to do this, but the Office of the Vice...…USA TODAYAfter the nation's top disease response agency posted  last Wednesday night, extending the ban through August, the White House  Task Force stepped in to cut it by 20 days.When the reappeared on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website hours later, its language had been softened: Ships can sail again in July, and an explicit warning that they could be docked even longer had been deleted, according to emails and internal documents obtained by USA TODAY.  “Sorry to do this, but the Office of the Vice...WW…

USA TODAYWASHINGTON – As unemployment numbers continue to rise during the coronavirus pandemic, Americans' perceptions of the economy are worsening and almost a quarter say they've had difficulty paying rent or their mortgage, according to a new survey.Sixty-five percent of Americans say the economy is getting worse – a 40-percentage-point jump from four weeks earlier, when 25% said it was getting worse, according to the  with USA TODAY.In the four weeks between surveys, the economy ground to a near-halt as much of the country was put under stay-at-home orders and nonessential...…USA TODAYWASHINGTON – As unemployment numbers continue to rise during the coronavirus pandemic, Americans' perceptions of the economy are worsening and almost a quarter say they've had difficulty paying rent or their mortgage, according to a new survey.Sixty-five percent of Americans say the economy is getting worse – a 40-percentage-point jump from four weeks earlier, when 25% said it was getting worse, according to the  with USA TODAY.In the four weeks between surveys, the economy ground to a near-halt as much of the country was put under stay-at-home orders and nonessential...WW…