The Smoothie King Center will host Lafayette native Dustin Poirier’s final UFC fight tomorrow night. Kace Kieschnick reports.
Cut 1 (32) “…I’m Kace Kieschnick.”
___________________________________________________
In a long-threatened move, Republicans have withdrawn all federal funding from PBS and NPR stations. Andrew Greenstein reports.
Cut 2 (34) “…I’m Andrew Greenstein.”
___________________________________________________
Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser is in Lake Tahoe for the annual meeting of the National Lieutenant Governors Association.
Cut 3 (06) “…and share ideas.”
Lieutenant Governor Nungesser says the lieutenant governors are discussing a wide range of topics affecting their respective states.
Nungesser says they started the new State Strategies Committee on Aerospace, which will advance aerospace, aviation and defense policy in the states and territories.
Cut 5 (10) “…advantage of that.”
________________________________________________
Lafayette native and former UFC Interim Lightweight Champion Dustin Poirier is returning to Louisiana to call it a career tomorrow night versus Max Holloway. It has been ten years since Poirier fought in his home state, but he says now is not the time for reminiscing.
Cut 6 (12) “…love Louisiana (cheers).”
Poirier has defeated Holloway twice before.
Poirier has taken the opportunity at many of his fights to raise money for his The Good Fight Foundation, a nonprofit benefiting the Lafayette community. Poirier says he’ll be auctioning off everything he wears in his final fight to support the foundation
After 39 UFC fights and a 16-year professional career, Poirier says he’s content with where the journey has brought him. He says, “Titles are great, but this experience is worth more than that.”
The main event in the Smoothie King Center is scheduled for 9 p.m.
________________________________________________
Republicans had been screaming for it for years; and finally, they got it – they have cut off all federal funding for PBS and NPR. Stripping more than one-billion dollars from public TV and radio is now awaiting President Trump’s signature. Jay Curtis, the general manager at Monroe NPR station KEDM, says this is devastating to all NPR stations, especially his.
Cut 9 (10) “…145-thousand dollars.”
Curtis says all public radio and TV stations play an important role in their respective local communities.
Cut 10 (07) “…every single day.”
Louisiana Senator John Kennedy was among the Republicans who led the push to cut off federal funding to public broadcasting. In several floor speeches, including Wednesday, Kennedy said the broadcasting landscape has changed dramatically since the Corporation for Public Broadcasting was founded more than 50 years ago.
Kennedy especially argued for cutting off federal funding for public broadcasting because of what he says is a liberal slant in PBS and NPR’s news coverage.
Cut 12 (12) “…the taxpayers’ dime.”
________________________________________________
The SEC preseason poll released today has LSU finishing in fourth, close behind Alabama in third. Texas and Georgia took the top two spots, and there’s a clear cutoff between he top four teams and the rest of the field. Tiger Rag Executive Editor Todd Horne says the Tigers need to finish better than predicted.
The Tigers reshaped the roster this offseason with the nation’s top incoming transfer class, and they rank in the top 40 in returning production across college football. Horne thinks LSU has enough to prove voters wrong.
South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers was voted preseason first team All-SEC over LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier, another shocking decision for Horne.
Sellers threw for over 25-hundred yards and 18 touchdowns and added almost 700 yards and 7 touchdowns on the ground.
Nussmeier was joined by running back Caden Durham, wide receiver Aaron Anderson, linebacker Harold Perkins, return specialist Barion Brown and all purpose player Zavion Thomas on the preseason All-SEC second team. Linebacker Whit Weeks earned the lone first-team nod.