The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments in two cases on Monday, marking the beginning of its 2018 term. At issue in Weyerhaeuser Company v. United States Fish and Wildlife Service is whether the Endangered Species Act forbids an agency to designate private property as an “unoccupied critical habitat” if the land is not essential to species conservation. There is [...]
The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 11-10 Friday to advance Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh for a full vote on the Senate floor. The vote was along party lines, with the 11 committee Republicans voting in favor of Kavanaugh’s advancement and the 10 committee Democrats voting against his advancement. However, Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ) said that he would only vote [...]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a statement on Wednesday calling for the US Senate to halt its confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the US Supreme Court after a third accuser came forward, alleging Kavanaugh was present when she was sexually assaulted in 1982. “With so much uncertainty about these allegations, the Senate should not be scheduling even [...]
The Senate Judiciary Committee announced on Monday that it will postpone the vote on President Donald Trump’s nominee to the US Supreme Court, Brett Kavanaugh , and allow Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused Kavanaugh of attempted sexual assault, to speak at a public hearing next Monday. Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley said that the Committee will give “these recent allegations [...]
The number of migrant children in federal detention centers has increased from 2,400 children in May 2017 to 12,800 children in September, according to data from the Department of Health and Human Services that Congress released to the New York Times. According to the data, the increase in detained children is due to fewer children being released to [...]
Paul Manafort, the former campaign manager for US President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty on Friday to conspiracy against the US and conspiracy to obstruct justice through witness tampering. Prosecutors originally brought seven charges against Manafort in the US District Court for the District of Columbia , but they reduced the charges to only two. The charges allege that Manafort acted [...]
A judge for the US District Court for the District of Columbia sentenced former Trump campaign aid George Papadopoulos to 14 days in prison on Friday. Judge Randolph Moss also sentenced Papadopoulos to a year probation, community service and a $9,500 fine. Papadopoulos pleaded guilty last October to lying to FBI officials during the course of the Mueller [...]
A spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights expressed concern Friday over the “violent suppression of peaceful protests” by opposing political parties and the police in anticipation of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s upcoming election. The spokesperson, Ravina Shamdasani, cited two incidents within the past week of the police arresting political [...]
American lobbyist Samuel Patten pleaded guilty on Friday of violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act , which requires foreign agents to register with the US government. Patten formed a political consulting company with an unidentified Russian agent. The company advised a Ukrainian political party, the Opposition Bloc, making Patten an agent for a foreign principal. Patten met with members of the [...]
A judge for the US District Court for the District of Columbia , ruled Saturday that portions of President Donald Trump’s May 25 executive orders making it easier to fire federal employees overstepped his authority as president. The first amended collective bargaining procedures in federal employment. The second limited the amount of time federal employees can engage in union activities at [...]