Jill Nolin, Georgia Recorder A federal court judge has struck down Georgia’s political maps and blocked the state from using the maps for future elections. District Court Judge Steve C. Jones issued his ruling Thursday after holding a nearly two-week trial last month. Jones concluded that the GOP-drawn maps violate …
Read More »House Speaker Mike Johnson Has Long Opposed Abortion And LGBTQ+ Rights
Amanda Becker Originally published by The 19th Before the newly elected U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson was in public office, the Louisiana Republican’s restrictive stances on gender identity, abortion and sexuality were honed at the conservative Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, where he served as a senior spokesperson and …
Read More »A Case Of Magnitude: DeSantis’ Frontal Assault On Voting Rights Act And Fate Of Black District
Michael Moline, Florida Phoenix As fitting for a case of this magnitude, Florida’s First District Court of Appeal will put on a rare show during oral arguments in voting-rights groups’ challenge to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ congressional districting map — specifically, its elimination of a Black-opportunity district in North Florida. All …
Read More »Donald Trump Called To Witness Stand, Fined $10,000 For Violating Gag Order
Former President Donald Trump faced a $10,000 fine on Wednesday and was summoned to the witness stand in his civil fraud trial after being accused of violating a gag order. This marks the second time within a week that Trump has been penalized for his out-of-court comments. The judge, …
Read More »Who is Mike Johnson? New House Speaker Belongs To GOP’s Religious Conservative Wing
Jacob Fischler, Louisiana Illuminator Before a relatively short time in elected office, new U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana was a constitutional lawyer deeply involved in religious causes. Prior to a short stint in the Louisiana Legislature, Johnson spent two decades as a public interest lawyer mainly representing clients …
Read More »Mike Johnson of Louisiana Elected Speaker Of The House After Three Weeks Of Stalemate
House Republicans on Wednesday voted for Louisiana’s Mike Johnson as speaker in a chamber that has been frozen for more than three weeks after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted. In a 220-209 party-line vote, all Republicans present backed Johnson, 51, a strongly conservative lawyer who represents northwest Louisiana’s 4th …
Read More »Georgia Supreme Court Upholds State’s Six-Week Abortion Ban, Returns Challenge To Lower Court
Jill Nolin, Georgia Recorder Attention has shifted back to the Fulton County courthouse after the Georgia Supreme Court rejected an argument that state lawmakers should have to pass abortion restrictions in the post-Roe world. A group of health care providers and abortion rights advocates had argued that parts of the …
Read More »Meta Faces Federal and State Lawsuits Over Child Safety Concerns
More than 30 states have joined together to file a federal lawsuit against Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram. The legal action alleges that Meta’s social media platforms are intentionally designed to be addictive and that they harm children’s mental health. The lawsuit, signed by 33 state …
Read More »Emmer Nominated For House Speaker But Drops Out After Trump Opposition
Ariana Figueroa, Indiana Capital Chronicle U.S. House Republicans Tuesday voted to tap Minnesota’s Tom Emmer as speaker following five rounds of ballots — but Emmer quit the race just four hours later, after he was attacked by the GOP’s most powerful figure, former President Donald Trump. After beating six candidates, …
Read More »Ex-Trump Attorney Jenna Ellis Pleads Guilty To Felony In Fulton 2020 Election Case
Stanley Dunlap, Georgia Recorder Jenna Ellis, a former attorney for the Trump campaign in the 2020 presidential election, expressed regret on Tuesday in Fulton County Superior Court after pleading guilty to making false statements about widespread voting fraud at a Georgia legislative hearing held several weeks after the 2020 election. …
Read More »Senator Menendez Pleads Not Guilty In Second Arraignment On Corruption Charges
Dana DiFilippo, New Jersey Monitor Sen. Bob Menendez pleaded not guilty — for the second time — when he appeared in court Monday to respond to new federal corruption charges in a superseding indictment federal authorities filed two weeks ago. Investigators say Menendez, a Democrat, acted as a foreign agent for the Egyptian government …
Read More »Judge In Florida Academic-Freedom Case Promises Speedy Ruling; Could Block Higher Ed Law
Michael Moline, Florida Phoenix A legal challenge to a Florida law forbidding university classes that “distort” history or programs that foster diversity may turn on whether it has actually harmed the group of professors, students, and others behind their lawsuit. That’s the inference from about two hours of oral arguments …
Read More »Georgia Supreme Court To Issue Ruling On State’s Six-Week Abortion Ban
Jill Nolin, Georgia Recorder October 23, 2023 Will the Georgia Supreme Court agree with a lower court’s ruling that said the state’s six-week abortion ban should be tossed out since it was passed in 2019 when Roe v. Wade was still the reigning five-decade-old court precedent? The answer is set …
Read More »Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu Vow Continued Humanitarian Aid to Gaza
President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a phone call on Sunday to reaffirm their commitment to providing humanitarian assistance to Gaza. This announcement comes as a positive development following the escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas. The leaders welcomed the delivery of the first two …
Read More »Majority of House GOP Speakership Candidates Sign “Unity” Pledge
A majority of the House Republicans running for the speakership have embraced a pledge designed to ensure the next speaker can secure the necessary 217 votes on the floor. This strategy aims to prevent the vote-counting turmoil that derailed previous contenders, such as Reps. Steve Scalise and Jim Jordan. Seven …
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