5 Things podcast: Residents stay home as authorities search for suspect in Maine shooting

On today's episode of the 5 Things podcast: Authorities continue to search for a suspect in this week's Maine shooting. USA TODAY Congress, Campaigns and Democracy Reporter Sudiksha Kochi explains the major challenges that new House Speaker Mike Johnson faces. The United Auto Workers have reached a tentative labor agreement with Ford. The Israel-Hamas war has stirred free speech battles at college campuses across the country. USA TODAY Investigative Reporter Chris Quintana looks into a lawsuit over sexual assault at a Christian college, and what it might mean for more federal oversight.

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Hit play on the player above to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript below. This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text.

Taylor Wilson:

Good morning. I'm Taylor Wilson, and this is 5 Things You Need to Know, Friday 27th of October 2023.

Today the search continues for a suspect in this week's Maine shootings. Plus we look at the major challenges the new House speaker faces and the United Auto Workers have reached a tentative deal with Ford. What's that mean for the workers and the strikes going forward?

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Law enforcement continues to search for an armed and dangerous suspect in this week's deadly shootings at a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston, Maine. 18 people were killed and 13 injured in the rampage according to the state's Governor, Janet Mills. School districts canceled classes and authorities warned residents in and around Lewiston to stay inside and lock their doors. Authorities are searching for a man named Robert Card, a 40-year-old army reservist who police identified as the suspect in the case. A vehicle believed to have been driven by Card was found near a boat ramp about eight miles from Lewiston and lockdowns have extended as far as 50 miles away from the shooting sites.

Authorities have not released the names of victims, but loved ones have begun confirming their deaths. A volunteer youth bowling coach and a bar manager whose father said tried to confront the gunmen, were among those killed. Additionally, Steve Vozzella went to play cornhole at the bar Wednesday night where the shooting took place, attending with around 10 other deaf adults. His wife Megan Vozzella said as of yesterday that she had not heard from her husband. She said on Facebook Messenger, "I am so overwhelmed and angry at the shootings."

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The House has a new speaker, Congressman Mike Johnson. But Johnson has some major immediate challenges on the job. I spoke with USA Today Congress Campaigns and Democracy Reporter Sudiksha Kochi for more. Sudiksha, thanks for hopping on.

Sudiksha Kochi:

Thanks for having me.

Taylor Wilson:

So let's start with some basics here at the top. Who is new House speaker Mike Johnson?

Sudiksha Kochi:

Representative Mike Johnson represents Louisiana's fourth congressional district. He was first elected to Congress in 2016 and he served as the Vice Chair of the Republican Conference. One of the most notable things about Johnson is that he is a Trump ally and he voted to overturn the 2020 election. He also has voted against other measures. For example, he has opposed same-sex marriage, and he has also voted against Ukraine aid.

Taylor Wilson:

And Sudiksha, you wrote about three major challenges Johnson will immediately face as speaker. Let's start with the push to avoid a looming Government shutdown. How difficult will this be for Johnson and House lawmakers?

Sudiksha Kochi:

This will probably be one of the biggest challenges, and the reason is because to avert a shutdown, the House and Senate have to pass 12 appropriations bills to keep the Government's doors open. Before the previous October 1st shutdown deadline, both chambers had actually only passed four appropriation bills. So they have a ton of work to do in order to avoid the November 17th shutdown deadline. Now, the reason this is going to be a challenge for Johnson is because he needs to appeal to both hard line conservatives as well as Democrats. For Democrats, the biggest thing that they want is Ukraine aid, and that is something that, as I mentioned before, Johnson has voted against Ukraine aid, and a small faction of House Republicans also don't want Ukraine aid, so he's going to have to compromise, and he is going to have to work with both parties in order to get appropriations bills passed.

Now, former House speaker Kevin McCarthy had difficulty getting Republican votes for an appropriations bill that could pass the house. If Johnson is able to get Republican and Democrat votes for appropriations bills, he also needs to consider that these bills need to pass the Democratic-led Senate and also be acceptable to President Joe Biden. So at the end of the day, he will actually need to work with Democrats in order to avert a shutdown and pass all the spending bills.

Taylor Wilson:

Yeah, and Sudiksha, you mentioned Ukraine aid. When it comes to aid for not just the war in Ukraine, but also the Israel Hamas war, what obstacles are in the way here?

Sudiksha Kochi:

A small faction of Republicans don't want the government to keep on sending money over to Ukraine. Johnson has indicated that he's not in favor of additional Ukraine aid, but Democrats in the house have actually held a hard stance on supporting Ukraine. Passing these aid packages will require compromise on the part of all parties. Now, the other problem with Ukraine aid is the pressure. Pressure to not fund Ukraine will probably come from a segment of House Republicans, but that will also be a fly in the face of a majority of members who want that funding approved. Johnson is a Trump ally, so he might also face pressure from the former President himself who has criticized efforts for Ukraine. Johnson has stood for supporting Israel after Biden's Oval Office address to that nation last week, calling for support for Israel in Ukraine. Johnson actually acknowledged Biden's speech on X and wrote, "We must select a speaker so the House can take all necessary action to end Hamas forever."

Taylor Wilson:

And House speaker Johnson has a big challenge ahead of him when it comes to uniting lawmakers more broadly. Of course, all kinds of divisions have popped up among Republicans in recent weeks as they've tried deciding on a new speaker. What might these divisions mean for Johnson and also what does his relationship look like with Democrats across the aisle?

Sudiksha Kochi:

You raise a good point. Tensions between moderate and hard conservatives in the Republican party actually continue to grow. We've seen that after eight Republicans had basically teamed up with Democrats to oust former house speaker Kevin McCarthy, and the multiple rounds of voting that actually took place after, to get a new nominee elected to the speakership. So what this means for Johnson is he really needs to be able to compromise on both parties in order to keep that speakership. But it might also mean having to appeal to those hard line conservatives who might not be happy with some of the actions that he takes if he does choose to work with Democrats. Some experts have pointed out that the house isn't known for being a bipartisan institution, and he doesn't really expect Johnson to change that. When it comes to Democrats, Johnson's history voting against certifying the 2020 election and opposing same-sex marriage. So there are some challenges that Johnson will be facing as house speaker, and we shall see what he does with his speakership.

Taylor Wilson:

All right, Sudiksha Kochi, great insight for us as always. Thank you Sudiksha.

Sudiksha Kochi:

Thank you Taylor.

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Taylor Wilson:

The United Auto Workers announced a tentative labor agreement with Ford late Wednesday. The tentative deal includes an 11% wage increase the first year and totals 25% over a four-and-a-half year contract. It would also reinstate major benefits that were lost during the great recession, like cost of living allowances. It also includes improved retirement benefits for current retirees, workers with pensions, and those with 401K plans. Any potential deal between the union and the automaker is subject to review by local union leaders nationwide, who were elected by members. They'll travel to Detroit for a meeting on Sunday. There they will vote on whether to send the tentative agreement to members. If that goes as planned, the UAW will then host a special Facebook Live to go through the deal in detail with membership. The tentative agreement comes after a 41-day strike against Ford, General Motors and Stellantis. The strike will continue against GM and Stellantis since those companies and the UAW have yet to reach an agreement on a new contract.

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This month's Israel Hamas war has generated a new level of activism on college campuses over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. According to experts, instead of uniting for cause, students are shouting down their classmates and holding dueling protests. Experts say the tumultuous scenes have been fueled by an increasingly bitter social media landscape along with dynamics that are more nuanced than other controversies that have divided college campuses in the past. The surge in campus activism has left some students and their parents scared while triggering criticism of how university leaders are handling tensions. Some pro-Palestinian activists say they faced Islamophobia, have been harassed and had their personal information published online. Some Jewish students say they feel intimidated by the spread of antisemitic social media posts and protests. And some rich donors have pulled support over accusations of antisemitism. Students are arguing over a number of issues around the war and decades of historical context in the region. They're arguing about whether and how Israel has the right to defend itself from terrorists, how Israel has treated Palestinians, and whether criticisms of Israel and the Israeli government should be interpreted as attacks against Jews, among other issues.

And it's not limited to students, faculty members have also been targets of criticism by their colleges over statements and assignments connected to the war. You can read this full story with a link, in today's show notes.

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Hillsdale College faces a lawsuit over allegations that it failed students who reported sexual violence, and the suit against the Christian college could lead to more federal oversight for religious schools across the country. I spoke with USA today investigative reporter, Chris Quintana, to learn more. Chris, thanks for hopping on.

Chris Quintana:

Thank you so much for having me.

Taylor Wilson:

Chris, what exactly happened here?

Chris Quintana:

Yeah, this is really a story about two young women who've experienced a series of betrayals. They were betrayed by young men who they thought were their friends and who they say raped them. They told me that they were betrayed by their institution. They went looking for answers the aftermath of being raped. They didn't know what to do if they were even raped and if their experiences would qualify as such, and where to seek out resources for their mental health, and just documenting everything altogether. They said that they did not get that from Hillsdale College, and so that's part of why they're filing a suit here. They want to change how the school responds to sexual assault for future students, and they're seeking attorney's fees as well.

Taylor Wilson:

And Chris, how is the school responding to this suit?

Chris Quintana:

So the school at this point, they're not commenting too detailed with the particulars of the accusations made by the students, but they are saying at this point that they are serious mischaracterizations of Hillsdale's college's campus culture and that it's sexual assault policies. So they're pushing back on this at this point, and they say that they have processes in place that protect victims, protect the accused perpetrators as well.

Taylor Wilson:

Hillsdale takes no federal dollars and is therefore exempt from protocols under Title IX. But Chris, the suit argues the school does get federal backing because it's tax-exempt as a religious institution, how significant could this case be for drawing lines on what rules religious schools like Hillsdale must follow?

Chris Quintana:

It could be fairly significant. There are a handful of colleges that don't accept federal funding, so they can have autonomy over what their instruction looks like and how they conduct business on their campuses. In addition to Hillsdale, there's Grove City in Pennsylvania. There's Pensacola Christian College in Florida. And so what schools like this have said before is that we decline to accept federal funding, so we can do things our own way. But the attorneys in this case are saying, well, they may be turning down Title IV funding, but this tax-exempt status is a form of a federal subsidy. And as such, they're subject to the protections that Title IX creates for sexual assault survivors. And so what's interesting at this point is this has not been addressed in the courts widely at the higher education level. In California and Maryland there are two cases where the district court has accepted this argument. One of those is still moving through district court, and we're keeping an eye on the others as well.

Taylor Wilson:

What is next for this conversation going forward?

Chris Quintana:

I think many people are going to be paying attention to this case to see if that tax-exempt status really does open them up to federal regulations. Because Title IX is just one piece of that. There's also a bunch of other federal protections that colleges would have to follow. So for example, FERPA is a federal privacy protection for students about their academic records. There are also, as far as Title IX is concerned, it applies to sexual harassment, but it also applies to men's and women's sports. So this has wide-ranging implications, especially for institutions that have prided themselves on this carve out.

Taylor Wilson:

All right, Chris Quintana, fantastic insight for us here on a difficult story and an interesting series of cases. We'll be keeping our eye out for it. Thank you, Chris.

Chris Quintana:

Thank you.

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Taylor Wilson:

Thanks for listening to 5 Things. We're produced by Shannon Rae Green, and our executive producer is Laura Beatty. If you have any comments, you can reach us at [email protected]. I'm Taylor Wilson, back tomorrow with another episode of 5 Things.