Would you pay for a blue check?

Apparently I’m not the only one who feels this way. Author Stephen King said he’d quit if he had to pay such a fee. (Or to be specific, King wrote, “They should pay me,” and Musk later replied, “We need to pay the bills” and suggested $8 as an alternative.) So would you pay for a blue check? Why? Let us know at insidertoday@insider.com. And now, let’s get started.

• The first prosecution witness in the Trump Org trial is still paid $450K a year — by the Trump Org. Follow our live updates from the trial.

• The Supreme Court’s conservative majority seems open to eliminating affirmative action: “Why do you have these boxes?” More here.

• New infrared photos of the “Pillars of Creation” reveal star-creating cosmic dust and massive galaxy clusters. See the images here.

During the pandemic, newly remote workers helped accelerate migration to the Sun Belt. Southern cities like Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina; San Antonio, Austin, and Houston, Texas; and Orlando, Florida, were among the fastest-growing metro areas in 2020. That shift continued last year, with six of the 10 fastest-growing US states located in the South.

But the recent political upheaval has shed a new light on the South for many of these transplants.

Some told us they “love” their new hometowns, but the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the proliferation of the Confederate flag in certain areas has them thinking of packing up. One Northern transplant said that if the midterms swing the region’s politics further right “that might actually push me really, seriously to plan to move.”

Meet the Northerners ready to ditch the South.

• Wild, far-right theories about the attack on Paul Pelosi were amplified by Elon Musk and Ted Cruz. Prosecutors now allege the assault was carried out with the intent to break Nancy Pelosi’s kneecaps, and a new federal affidavit has debunked the baseless conspiracy theories making the rounds online.

• The Fed’s next move to address inflation will likely push the US even closer to recession. The central bank has already raised rates five times so far this year — and it’s expected to do so again on Wednesday. This has experts and lawmakers concerned about acting too aggressively on inflation. Read more here.

• Scientists and adventurers found a camera abandoned in 1937. The camera, left by American explorer Brad Washburn 85 years ago, was discovered in a Canadian glacier. Now, experts are trying to develop the decades-old film loaded inside.

• A 30-year-old chose a public-service career in hopes of loan forgiveness — but it backfired. With $110,000 in student debt, Kjerstin Laine chose to work for a non-profit because it could set her up for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. But with interest, she’s barely paid it off, and Biden’s forgiveness is just a drop in the bucket. More on that here.

• A woman’s identical twins were diagnosed with cancer as newborns. Five years later, the twins still experience relapses, and their parents work to “treat them like birthday girls every day.” Read their story. 

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