Author: DispatchTimes News Desk

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has asked the US Justice Department to investigate whether ballot-marking devices provide a trustworthy paper record of votes, in the latest move by the Trump administration to question electronic voting systems. In a letter sent on Wednesday, September 2, to Attorney General Todd Blanche, Mr Mullin also urged an inquiry into the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a multistate system used to help detect duplicate registrations and identify people who have died. Mr Mullin asked the Justice Department to establish whether machines that record votes through bar codes or QR codes produce a “reliable record…

Portugal has approved a €2.3 billion (£1.9 billion; $2.67 billion) waste management plan through to 2030 as the country faces shrinking landfill capacity and an urgent need to improve recycling. The TERRA+ strategy was approved by the Portuguese Government on Friday and will fund expanded separate collection, new and upgraded treatment facilities, bio-waste processing and measures to reduce the amount of rubbish sent to landfill. António Leitão Amaro, Portugal’s Minister of the Presidency, said the country was running out of space for waste, with 13 of its 32 landfill sites nearing capacity. About €1.6 billion of the investment is expected…

Jennifer Lopez appeared to dismiss concerns over mounting burnout fears as she shared a defiant new video with followers on Instagram Stories early on Friday, September 4. The singer and actress, known for hits including I’m Gonna Be Alright, used the brief post to project confidence despite speculation about the pressures surrounding her demanding workload. The video was posted in the early hours of Friday morning and offered no indication that Lopez intends to step back, instead presenting the star in a determined mood as she continues her busy professional schedule.

An FBI cellphone analyst presented location data in the trial of Kewon White, who is accused of killing Dallas rapper MO3 in an alleged murder-for-hire plot. Prosecutors called the analyst as one of their final witnesses in the capital murder case in Dallas. The evidence centred on cellphone data linked to White and its relevance to the timeline surrounding MO3’s death. White’s defence questioned the expert about the timing and interpretation of the location information, challenging how precisely it could place the defendant during key moments in the investigation. MO3, whose real name was Melvin Noble, was shot dead in…

Melbourne’s build-to-rent boom is producing thousands of new homes, but many are being offered at prices well above local market rates, raising doubts about whether the sector can ease the city’s housing affordability crisis. The model has expanded rapidly across inner Melbourne, with high-rise developments offering residents gyms, pools, cinemas, wellness rooms and communal entertaining spaces in return for premium rents. For tenants with money to spare, the arrangement can provide a level of amenity that would be expensive to replicate. For lower and middle-income renters, however, the developments risk creating another costly tier of housing rather than a solution…

Donald Trump has dismissed the six-month conflict with Iran as “small potatoes”, despite deaths among US service members and renewed strikes across the Middle East. The US president described the fighting as a “military conflict” rather than a full-scale war, arguing that it was limited in scope for America. “A lot of people don’t call it a war. I call it a military conflict because it’s small potatoes for us,” Mr Trump said. “It’s not a big thing.” His remarks came after the latest exchange of attacks between Washington and Tehran, following a brief lull in military action. US Central…

The US Department of Justice has widened its investigation into rising beef prices to include eight of the country’s biggest grocery retailers, including Walmart, Amazon and Costco. The Antitrust Division said letters sent in July sought information about the companies’ retail beef sales, wholesale purchases, costs, profit margins and pricing strategies. The department described beef affordability as a priority in a post on X on September 1. Kroger, Publix, Albertsons, Aldi and Ahold Delhaize USA are also under scrutiny alongside Walmart, Costco and Amazon. The inquiry does not amount to an accusation of wrongdoing, and the retailers have not been…

Rick Harrison, the 61-year-old star of the History Channel series Pawn Stars, is recovering in hospital after doctors carried out emergency bypass surgery. A spokesperson for the Harrison family told TMZ that the Las Vegas television personality had initially been admitted for what was expected to be a routine stent procedure. Doctors discovered a more serious medical problem during the treatment, however, and decided that bypass surgery was necessary instead. Harrison is now resting comfortably and is expected to make a full recovery, according to the family representative. The spokesperson added that the reality star was grateful for the care…

A mistrial has been declared in Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial after a Massachusetts jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict over the deaths of her three children. The decision followed seven days of deliberations in Plymouth County Superior Court. The jury had told Judge William Sullivan on three occasions that it could not agree on whether Clancy was criminally responsible for the killings. Clancy’s defence made an emergency appeal to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in an attempt to prevent the mistrial. Her lawyers argued that a juror who had reportedly acknowledged having doubts was refusing to apply the law…

Calls for the Australian government to rein in social media algorithms have intensified after ministers, educators and victim-survivors met to discuss rising sexual violence and misogyny affecting young people in New South Wales. Chanel Contos, founder of the Teach Us Consent campaign, said technology companies should be required to make algorithmic feeds an opt-in service rather than exposing users to personalised recommendations by default. Her intervention followed an urgent roundtable convened by NSW Acting Premier Prue Car and facilitated by the state’s Women’s Safety Commissioner, Dr Hannah Tonkin. The meeting examined the influence of online environments on attitudes towards gender,…