News From Around the Web
#10 Hackers Behind UnitedHealth Group Cyberattack Reportedly Identified - Daniella Genovese for Fox Business
Hackers that allegedly caused the UnitedHealth Group cyberattack reportedly posted on the dark web that they stole personal data and the records of "millions" of patients. In a now-deleted post, the Blackcat ransomware group – also known as ALPHV or Noberus – said it stole several terabytes of data from UnitedHealth, which includes medical insurance and health data, Reuters reported, citing screenshots of the post. The group has been behind several other ransomware attacks...
#9 Congress Passes Short-Term Funding Extension to Avert Government Shutdown - Caitlin Yilek for CBS News
The Senate followed the House in passing a temporary extension of government funding on Thursday, sending the measure to President Biden's desk after a bipartisan vote that once again averts a government shutdown. The Senate voted 77 to 13 to approve the short-term extension that funds some government agencies for another week, through March 8, and others until March 22. The House passed the bill earlier in the day by a vote of 320 to 99. The president has said he will sign the legislation. "I'm happy to inform the American people there will be no government shutdown on Friday," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said. "Now let us finish the job of funding the government so we don't have to do this again."
#8 DARPA’s Meals from Microbes: The Future of Food and the Scheme to Get There - Tracy Beanz and Michelle Edwards for The HighWire
At the beginning of Episode 56 of the “Voices from DARPA” Podcast, an unnamed man declares, “A DARPA program manager quite literally invents tomorrow.” Another eager mouthpiece adds, “DARPA is not one person or one place; it’s a collection of people that are excited about moving technology forward.” The podcast is titled “The Future of Foods: Meals from...
#7 Former Education Dept Staffers Indicted For Defrauding the School Voucher Program - Gloria Rebecca Gomez for AZ Mirror
Three former employees of the state’s education department were indicted this week for defrauding Arizona’s private school voucher program for more than $600,000. The trio faces a litany of charges, including conspiracy, forgery, money laundering, and fraud for falsifying the enrollment documents and special education evaluations of 17 students — five of whom don’t even exist — to receive voucher funds via Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Accounts program...
#6 Rep. Mark Green Reverses Course, Announces He Will Run For Re-election - Alex Nitzberg for Blaze Media
Republican Rep. Mark Green of Tennessee, who announced earlier this month that he would not seek re-election, has now reversed course and declared that he will run for another term. "While my strong desire was to leave Congress at the end of this year, since my announcement, I have received countless calls from constituents, colleagues, and President Trump urging me to reconsider," the lawmaker said in a statement, according to reports. "I was reminded of the words of General MacArthur on a statue at West Point: 'Duty, honor, country.' I realized, once again, I had a duty to my country to fulfill. I will be running for re-election so I can be here on Day 1 next year to help President Trump end this border crisis once and for all."
#5 ‘Blood Money’: Times Square Billboard Hits ‘AO-CCP’ for Pro-TikTok Stance - Alana Mastrangelo for Breitbart
“The Chinese military is weaponizing TikTok to target American children. AOC argued against a TikTok ban… on TikTok!” the billboard reads next to a photo of Rep. Ocasio-Cortez that is labeled “AO-CCP,” in reference to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The billboard was also an advertisement for Peter Schweizer’s new book, Blood Money: Why the Powerful Turn a Blind Eye While China Kills Americans, which was the result of a two-year investigation by Schweizer, the president of the Government Accountability Institute and a senior contributor to Breitbart News, as well as his team of forensic investigators, into China’s “Disintegration Warfare” strategy against America...
#4 Massive Study Identifies 32 Harmful Health Conditions Directly Linked to the Consumption of Ultra-Processed Food - Joseph Mackinnon for Blaze Media
A troubling new peer-reviewed study, the largest of its kind, has revealed that ultra-processed food is linked to 32 harmful health conditions and can significantly increase the risk of cancer, diabetes, and an early grave. The study, a systematic meta-analysis published Wednesday in the BMJ, the British Medical Association's esteemed journal, found evidence pointing to "direct associations between greater exposure to ultra-processed foods and higher risks of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease-related mortality, common mental disorder outcomes, overweight and obesity, and type 2 diabetes."
#3 'Three Johns' Could Replace Mitch McConnell's Senate Leadership Spot as Race Begins to Heat Up - Jack Davis for The Western Journal
There is a lot of agreement that a guy named John is the frontrunner to replace Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. But after that, not so much. A report in The Hill sums up the race to lead the Republican conference as a contest of “three Johns” — Sens. John Thune of South Dakota, John Cornyn of Texas, and John Barrasso of Wyoming. “I am asking my Republican colleagues to give me the opportunity to succeed Leader McConnell,” Cornyn said in a statement. “Throughout my time, I’ve built a track record of listening to colleagues and seeking consensus while leading the fight to stop bad policies that are harmful to our nation and the conservative cause,” he said...
#2 DeSantis Signs Legislation Authorizing Release Of Jeffrey Epstein Documents - Ryan Saavedra for The Daily Wire
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law this week that authorizes the release of grand jury documents from the state’s 2006 criminal investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. The Palm Beach Police Department asked the state attorney in the case to charge Epstein with multiple felonies, including unlawful sexual activity with a minor and lewd or lascivious molestation, the governor’s office said in a statement. “Rather than charge Epstein directly, the State Attorney at the time chose to present evidence to a grand jury — ensuring the names of those involved and the details of the accusations were kept sealed.” Multinational beer maker Anheuser-Busch InBev — brewers of Budweiser, Bud Light, Stella Artois, and Corona — celebrated a 7% increase in operating profit on Thursday. This is despite the company admitting to a decline in sales in America, especially in Bud Light. US revenue declined 9.5% for the year and 17.3% in the fourth quarter, “primarily due to the volume decline of Bud Light,” the company said in an earnings news release. The beer, the company’s best-selling brand, faced a conservative backlash last year over a partnership with a transgender influencer. Operating earnings, which exclude financial factors such as interest and taxes, rose 7% to $19.98 billion in 2023. That's the figure the company uses to demonstrate its underlying performance. In botany, it’s well-established that plants and fungi have multiple symbiotic relationships under the dirt of the forest floor, but a new species of plant identified in Japan has been found actually consuming fungi—a behavior never observed before. Scientists also say it’s the first time a new plant has been identified in Japan—a country renowned for its extensive flora research—in almost 100 years. The new species of fairy lantern, a group of tiny glass-like plants, is white and doesn’t engage in photosynthesis but rather feeds on fungal mycelia in the ground.
#1 Bud Light Reveals Cost of Sales Hit After Trans Influencer Backlash - David McHugh for The Independent
And Now for Something Special
Bizarre New Plant Species Feeds on Fungi: First New Flora Species in 100 Years to Be Discovered in Japan - Andy Corbley for Good News Network
