A few weeks ago, FFP state government watchdog reporter Sara Gentzler had a very good idea.
Just after the federal funding pause — remember that Jan. 27 Trump administration memo freezing all federal grant funding? — she did a public records request for all pertinent emails and text messages from top state officials, including the heads of 13 Nebraska state agencies and the office of Gov. Jim Pillen.
The hundreds of messages she got back reveal the hidden story of confusion and fear inside Nebraska’s state government — which receives more than a third of all its funding from D.C. — in the 24 hours after the freeze became public.
That funding is, in turn, pushed out to local governments and Nebraskans in countless ways. Many of those people, scared and confused, were messaging state leaders, too.
And some emails also appear to illustrate something deeper about our current moment. Emails that suggest a struggle between what may be politically popular, and what we may be the right thing to do for Nebraska.
Like when a Pillen policy adviser weighed how hard they should push back on the pause of the single-largest federal grant ever awarded to Nebraska’s Department of Environment and Energy: $307 million meant to incentivize farmers, ranchers and the state’s ag industry to do things, like new ag practices and energy efficiency, meant to aid the environment.
“Internally, I don’t know how much we want to fight to keep it,” policy adviser Cicely Wardyn wrote of the grant. “We can use it to benefit farmers and agriculture in the state, but don’t want to run counter to Trump’s Administration.”
Read Sara’s story, revealing how state leaders reacted when the new administration hit the pause button.
Afghans abandoned: They helped the fight bin Laden and the Taliban. They helped us form a new democratic government in Afghanistan. They did these things under the semi-constant threat of death. And these Afghans expected that, if and when they needed to flee, the country they were helping — our country — would help them back.
So they made their way across the globe. In several cases, they literally walked across one of the most dangerous jungles in the world. They made their way to the border, and claimed asylum — a legal way to enter the United States.
And now? Now they’re terrified they are going to be deported back to Afghanistan. They’re terrified they and their families will die at the hands of the Taliban.
An incredibly important and powerful one from Nasrin Nawa — herself an Afghan living in Nebraska — on the lives of Afghans who fled and ended up in our state.
As the editor of Flatwater Free Press, I’m so proud we could publish this story. As a journalist who spent months in Afghanistan and years covering and befriending Afghans and Afghan-Americans in Nebraska, I’m infuriated that we have mistreated so many of our closest allies for so long. And now, somehow, it’s gotten even worse.
Sexy Steakhouse: OK, time for a palate cleanser. And I prefer to cleanse my palate with steak. (And OK, sometimes with a Negroni.) Sarah Baker Hansen is back with our second installment of her year-long series “Steak Town USA.”
This month she’s focused on the Committee Chophouse, in the basement of the Cottonwood Hotel. I could write you an extended, flowery poem about how much I love this place, how glamorous it is, how you can pretend like you’re Sinatra down there, etc. Instead you should read Sarah’s story, because she captures the vibe — and the food — better than I could.
Oh, oh, and lest I forget: We are continuing to build the Nebraska Steakhouse Map. It’s gotten much better during February, thanks to your help! Check it out, plan your road trip, and tell us if there’s another steakhouse you think we should add.
And finally, one last piece of steak-related news. Sarah did an interview with fellow food writer Jed Portman over at his really quality Midwestern food site called, smartly, The Midwesterner. Check it out.
Let us read our stories to you: A few of you have already noticed, because we can see that you are pressing play on the new audio feature listed right at the top of our stories this week. But for the rest of you: You can now listen to our stories! In your car. On a treadmill. Maybe even as a bedtime story. (OK, that last one may be a bad idea.)
Also, a side question, one that may not be entirely hypothetical: If you could choose a Nebraskan to read FFP stories to you, which (living) Nebraskan would you choose?
Think about it, and email me with an answer.
Little help, please: Have you been impacted by the recent federal government funding cuts, pauses or layoffs? We want to hear from you. To share your experience, please email FFP reporter Jeremy Turley at [email protected] or reach out anonymously on Signal at FlatwaterTurley.18.
Questions wanted: Some of our best story ideas come from readers, and they typically start with a burning question that just cries out for an answer. Have a question that our reporters need to look into? Complete this form or reach our newsroom at [email protected].
Sincerely,
—Matthew Hansen, Executive Editor
Here’s what we’re into this week: News from around Nebraska
Every week we like to share great Nebraska journalism, no matter who made it. Here’s what caught our eye this week:
- Last week I shared a very important (and depressing) new interactive map on where journalists are, and where they are not, in Nebraska.
Here’s a fascinating Nebraska Public Media interview with UNL professor Jessica Walsh, who led this newsroom mapping project, and Daniel Wheaton, the data reporter who helped build it. - The various federal funding freezes and pauses and cuts are affecting Midwestern ag and farmers, reports Midwest Newsroom’s Kavahn Mansouri and Kate Grumke of Harvest Public Media, appearing here in Nebraska Public Media.
- A state senator thought she had figured out a way to get more money to incentivize farmers to reduce nitrogen use (and therefore over time lower the amount of nitrate in our groundwater.) But that plan fell apart, tied to an ongoing fight over how Nebraska Environmental Trust money should be used, reports the Nebraska Examiner’s Paul Hammel.
- Here’s an important story I missed in last week’s newsletter, as well as an update. The Journal Star’s Jenna Ebbers had a fine one on Nebraskans scared, and pissed, that the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office has joined a lawsuit that, if successful, could take away protections for people with disabilities. And point of pride and also transparency: The UNL sophomore Carter Yost featured here is my cousin, and I’m indeed very proud of him. (May need an LJS subscription to read this story.)
Then late last week, the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office said that AG Mike Hilgers would “reevaluate Nebraska’s involvement” in the lawsuit if it threatens federal disability protections. That update is by the Examiner’s Zach Wendling. - Ever wondered how they do those extremely cool drone shows? Nebraska Public Media’s Mike Tobias with a very cool video that explains it on “What If…”
- And finally, a good newsletter wouldn’t be complete without a Steve White story out of central Nebraska. A cottonwood tree in Wheeler County is more than a century old — and it may in fact be the biggest cottonwood in the world.
