Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) announced Monday that he won't be seeking re-election in 2022, meaning yet another Senate seat will be without an incumbent defender during next year's mid-terms.

The early sense among political analysts is that a candidate backed by former President Donald Trump will have the inside track to replace Blunt, given Trump's popularity in Missouri, a state he won by a commanding 15 percent in the 2020 presidential election. That was the highest share of the vote a Republican candidate had won in Missouri since former President Ronald Reagan in 1984. Old guard Republican senators are also stepping down in North Carolina, Ohio, Alabama, and Pennsylvania, which means the GOP could run as many as five Senate candidates from the so-called "Trump wing" of the party next year.

Democrats aren't hopeless in some of those states, but it seems likely Blunt's seat will stay within the GOP. In previous years, an open Missouri Senate seat might have suggested a more competitive inter-party contest was on the horizon, but that's probably not the case in a post-Trump world, The Appeal's Daniel Nichanian tweeted Monday. Indeed, it may be telling that Jason Kander, who gave Blunt a surprising run for his money in 2016, quickly announced he isn't looking to launch another campaign.

So, all things considered, it appears Blunt's retirement is another sign the GOP will continue to push itself closer to Trump. Tim O'Donnell

Indianapolis police said early Friday that eight people have been confirmed dead after a shooting at a FedEx facility on the grounds of the Indianapolis International Airport late Thursday. Along with the eight people killed, at least four people have been hospitalized, one of them with critical injuries, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department spokeswoman Genae Cook told reporters. Two other people were treated at the scene. Police said the gunman shot and killed himself after officers arrived at the FedEx facility just after 11 p.m. Thursday night.

"We are aware of the tragic shooting at our FedEx Ground facility near the Indianapolis airport," FedEx said in a statement early Friday. "Safety is our top priority, and our thoughts are with all those who are affected. We are working to gather more information and are cooperating with investigating authorities." Peter Weber

President Biden halted construction of his predecessor's U.S.-Mexico border wall right after taking office, giving his administration time to study the contracts the Trump administration had signed and exploring ways to dispatch them. But the federal review was supposed to end March 20, and while border wall construction is still on ice, the legal cases to seize land for the wall are continuing, Politico reports. That's fueling concerns that wall construction could resume, despite Biden's pledge to stop the project.

The Justice Department still has about 140 eminent domain cases active along the Texas border, the Texas Civil Rights Project says. And at least 114 of those cases have progressed since Biden's 60-day study period ended on March 21, according to the group, which represents a handful of families fighting to keep their land, including the Cavazos family. Earlier this week, the U.S. government won the title to six acres of the Cavazos family's 77-acre ranch, Politico reports. The family said Biden broke his promise to end land seizures and they are asking the government to return the title to their land.

Customs and Border Protection and the Army Corps of Engineers "have suspended surveys, negotiations with landowners, and similar real estate acquisition activities, in accordance with the president's proclamation," a CBP spokesperson told Politico. But CBP and the White House referred questions about the eminent domain cases to the Justice Department, which said it has sought to delay the cases rather than end them, pending completion of Biden's review. The White House did not explain why the review has blown past its deadline.

"They can have all the excuses they want but it's real dicey to look at what they're doing right now," a person who consults with the White House on immigration policy and has grown frustrated tells Politico. "It's a lot of stuff Trump was doing." Peter Weber

Several people were shot late Thursday night at a FedEx facility near the Indianapolis International Airport.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson Genae Cook said when officers responded to a report of shots fired at the facility, they discovered an "active shooter incident." Cook said police believe the shooter fatally shot himself and there is no active threat to the community. Law enforcement has not said how many people were injured in the shooting or if there are any deaths, only revealing that multiple victims have been taken to area hospitals.

The Indianapolis FedEx hub is the second largest in the company's global network, IndyStar reports, with more than 4,500 employees. Catherine Garcia

To take his mom on the vacation of her dreams, Dustin Vitale needed to raise $10,000 in order to fly all 14 of his immediate family members to Egypt, and the Philadelphia middle school teacher came up with an idea that would make his hometown proud.

Last year, Dustin's mother, Gloria, was diagnosed with terminal bladder cancer. Dustin knew how much she wanted to see the pyramids, and figured if he could make cheesesteaks and sell them to friends and family, he'd raise enough money to get his mother and their family to Egypt. His mom provided her tried and true recipe, and Dustin got to work whipping up cheesesteaks and fries.

It wasn't long before word spread about Dustin's delicious cheesesteaks and the reason behind his new venture, and people soon lined up outside his house to pick up an order. When a food truck operator learned that Dustin was doing all of this from his home kitchen, he offered his services. After six weeks, Dustin raised $18,000.

Their trip is planned for later this year, and Gloria told CBS News that the love being shown to her is "overwhelming." For Dustin, it didn't matter where his mother wanted to go — he would take her anywhere. "If she would have asked to go to the moon, I would have made that happen as well," he said. Catherine Garcia

O.G. televangelist Pat Robertson isn't about to take to the streets to protest the police shooting of Daunte Wright at the hands of former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter, arrested Wednesday and charged with second-degree manslaughter. But like many people, Robertson is baffled that Potter evidently meant to use her Taser on Wright, not her gun.

"If you can't tell the difference in the feel of those things, it's crazy," and Potter "deserves" the consequences, Robertson said on Thursday's 700 Club, holding both a handgun and a Taser. "You know, I am pro-police, folks. I think we need the police, we need their service, and they do a good job, but if they don't stop this onslaught, they cannot do this," he said, pivoting to the other prominent police killing in the Minneapolis area. "And the thing that's going on in Minnesota about that Derek Chauvin — I mean, they ought to put him under the jail, he has caused so much trouble by kneeling on the death of George Floyd, I mean on his neck — it's just terrible what's happening."

"We don't have the finest in the police department," Robertson said. "They're low-paid people, Terri," and we need to hire "a more superior workforce." (The average annual wage for a police officer in the U.S. in 2019, not including overtime, was $67,600, or $71,840 in Minnesota, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.) "We need police! We need them and we need to honor them and I'm all for," Robertson said. "But at the same time, we cannot have a bunch of clowns running around who are underpaid and who really are not the best and brightest." Peter Weber

Arkansas is one step closer to celebrating Arkansas Day instead of Confederate Flag Day.

On Thursday, the Arkansas House voted 80-7 in favor of legislation that would abolish Confederate Flag Day, established in response to the 1957 desegregation of Little Rock Central High School, The Associated Press reports. Confederate Flag Day is the Saturday before Easter.

The bill's authors wrote that Arkansas Day will honor the state's "rich history, national treasures, diverse cultures, unmatched hospitality, shared spirit spirit, and human resilience." The measure now heads to the state Senate, and if it passes, Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) said he will sign it. Catherine Garcia