USA – Page 19 – Prologue Journal

Los Angeles Fire Chief Faces Calls for Resignation

New York Times As a disastrous fire continues to burn on the city’s west side, some are calling Chief Kristin Crowley to account: Why wasn’t the city better prepared? https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/los-angeles-fire-chief-kristin-crowley.html

The Terrifying Ride of Copter 17

New York Times A former Army pilot. An aging helicopter. Furious winds. The race to put out the Eaton fire tested Los Angeles County’s night-flying firefighters like never before. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/wildfires-copter-17.html

Biden to Commute Drug Offender Sentences

New York Times The action, aimed at inmates who received harsher sentences based on old disparities in drug laws, will be the broadest commutation of individual sentences ever issued by a U.S. president. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/politics/biden-commute-sentences-drug-offenders.html

Kristi Noem to Face Questions on Immigration as Trump’s Homeland Security Pick

New York Times The department that the South Dakota governor seeks to lead will be critical to fulfilling the incoming administration’s promises to quickly crack down on immigration. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/politics/kristi-noem-homeland-security-confirmation-hearing.html

In a Fire’s Ruins, Signs of a Previous Loss Leave a Family With Seeds of Hope

New York Times The Carrs have made their life’s work honoring the dreams of their precocious son, who died suddenly at 16. They rescued some mementos and others survived when their Altadena home burned to the ground. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/la-fires-altadena-home.html

A Georgia Prosecutor Has Long Regretted Sending a Man Away for Life. Can He Fix It?

New York Times Weakened by cancer and nagged by his conscience, a former Georgia prosecutor wants the courts to reverse the sentence he demanded for a man who didn’t physically harm anyone in his crimes. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/georgia-prosecutor-sentence-regret.html

Why Trump’s Second-Term Agenda Could Hinge on the Court He Hates the Most

New York Times Once again, an incoming Trump White House is likely to clash with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. But the court in San Francisco has changed since 2017. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/trump-court-appeals-ninth-circuit.html

‘I’m Urging You Not to Run’: How Schumer Pushed Biden to Drop Out

New York Times The New York senator, who swallowed concerns for months and then dragged his feet on sharing them with President Biden, ultimately told him he risked going down as one of the “darkest figures.” https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/politics/schumer-biden-2024-election.html

Biden commutes nearly 2,500 more sentences in final days of presidency

Fox News President Biden announced Friday morning he is commuting the sentences of nearly 2,500 inmates as the end of his presidency draws near. The commutations are for people convicted of non-violent drug offenses “who are serving disproportionately long sentences” compared to what they would receive if sentenced under today’s law. “Today’s clemency action provides…

How Trump’s Border Czar Thomas Homan Found MAGA

New York Times Thomas Homan once defended Obama-era policies and health care for transgender immigrants. Now he’s eyeing hotlines to report undocumented neighbors and arrests of local officials who get in the way. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/us/politics/trump-border-czar-thomas-homan.html