Federal Government

SCOTUS blocks EPA’s ‘downwind’ air-quality initiative

The Supreme Court dealt a blow to the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulation of air quality on Thursday, putting on hold a major initiative to improve public health by reducing smog-forming pollution from power plants and factories that blows across state lines.

Jun 27, 2024 11:40 AM CDT

‘Storm clouds loom ahead’ after Supreme Court dismisses abortion dispute, Justice Jackson says

Updated: The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday turned aside an Idaho abortion dispute, which had the effect of blocking Idaho from enforcing its abortion ban in emergency situations.

Jun 27, 2024 11:04 AM CDT

How did Scalia Law respond to seduction complaints against law prof? Lawmaker wants answers

A lawmaker who chairs the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce wants George Mason University to disclose steps that it took to investigate allegations that one of its law professors used his influence “to seduce young female law students.”

Jun 27, 2024 9:25 AM CDT

5th Circuit ‘glossed over complexities,’ Supreme Court says in refusing to curb US social media contacts

Two states and five social media users don’t have standing to sue U.S. officials for allegedly pressuring social media companies to curb protected speech, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.

Jun 26, 2024 9:49 AM CDT

Courts grant injunctions against Biden’s student loan repayment plan

The future of President Biden’s new student loan repayment plan is in doubt after a pair of federal judges issued separate injunctions Monday preventing the government from fully implementing and forgiving any more loans through the program while they consider lawsuits to end the policy.

Jun 25, 2024 12:55 PM CDT

Judge hears challenge to appointment, funding of special counsel in Trump documents case

A federal judge overseeing the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump heard arguments Friday on whether U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland had constitutional authority to appoint special counsel Jack Smith.

Jun 24, 2024 3:19 PM CDT

Ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors will be reviewed by Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to review the constitutionality of a Tennessee law that bans gender-affirming surgeries, puberty blockers and hormones for transgender minors.

Jun 24, 2024 12:23 PM CDT

Supreme Court upholds Trump tax provision on offshore earnings

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a challenge to an obscure provision of President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax package, ending a lawsuit that many experts feared could destabilize the nation’s tax system.

Jun 20, 2024 9:30 AM CDT

Justice Department rejects contempt case against attorney general

Justice Department officials said Friday that the agency will not pursue contempt of Congress charges against Attorney General Merrick Garland that the Republican-run House had voted for this week.

Jun 14, 2024 3:30 PM CDT

GOP-run House votes to hold AG Merrick Garland in contempt

The Republican-controlled House voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress. The vote, which passed with an initial tally of 216-207, marks the third time in a dozen years that a sitting attorney general was found in contempt by a majority of House members.

Jun 12, 2024 4:14 PM CDT

Prosecution of Democrats will repair rule of law, says law prof who wrote ‘torture memos’

Republicans will have to prosecute Democrats “to enforce a political version of mutual assured destruction” that will discourage liberals from charging future GOP presidents, according to a professor at the University of California at Berkeley School of Law.

Jun 11, 2024 3:29 PM CDT

Federal judge halts disaster aid program for minority farmers

A federal judge in Texas has blocked an Agriculture Department disaster relief program from giving preferences to minority and female farmers, siding with a group of plaintiffs who allege that the program illegally discriminates against White male farmers.

Jun 11, 2024 12:25 PM CDT

Hunter Biden convicted of lying during gun purchase

President Biden’s son Hunter was convicted Tuesday of lying on gun-purchasing paperwork and unlawfully possessing a gun.

Jun 11, 2024 10:35 AM CDT

On secret recording, Justice Alito agrees on need to return US to ‘place of godliness’

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito agreed with a woman who approached him during a June 3 meeting of the Supreme Court Historical Society and commented that people who believe in God have to keep fighting “to return our country to a place of godliness.”

Jun 11, 2024 9:01 AM CDT

Judge Aileen Cannon tosses another curveball in the Trump cases

A fleeting question Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas posed to Donald Trump’s lawyer during oral arguments in the Trump immunity case in late April may have been a harbinger. “Did you, in this litigation, challenge the appointment of special counsel?” Thomas asked.

Jun 10, 2024 11:15 AM CDT