TAKE TWO: A coalition of roughly two dozen Democratic-led states and Washington, D.C., filed a new lawsuit Wednesday again challenging the legality of Trump’s executive order on mail-in ballots after the Supreme Court turned away the group’s earlier case.
The court ruled Monday, over the dissents of its three liberal justices, that the states didn’t have a right to sue against Trump’s order he signed in the spring because the U.S. Postal Service hadn’t finalized the rule to execute the order.
The rule was published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, making it official and leading to the states’ renewed effort to block it, arguing it’s a federal overreach on states’ authority to carry out their own elections.
Trump’s order, which he issued in March, and the rule require state and local election officials to submit a list of eligible voters to the federal government before the Postal Service will them send mail-in ballots. The rule also requires states’ mail-in ballots to meet certain design requirements, including unique barcodes and an official logo.
If the ballot doesn’t meet the design requirements or someone’s name isn’t on the submitted list, or if a state refuses to provide one, the Postal Service would refuse to deliver the ballot.
The states’ lawsuit was filed Wednesday just as a federal judge in Boston lifted an earlier nationwide block on the restrictions given the Supreme Court’s earlier ruling. But the new case could mean the legal challenge ends up right back at the Supreme Court.
Timing is critical, as the first mail-in ballots are set to be sent out in certain states within days for the midterm elections.
▪ The Hill: Trump petitions Supreme Court to review Mexico border asylum ban.
▪ The Hill: Trump’s approval ratings endure a cruel summer.
BIG DEAL: Meta has reached a settlement with a group of state attorneys general from across the country to address claims that its platforms are designed to be addictive to young users.
The proposed settlement needs to be approved by a judge but would conclude the high-profile trial that started earlier this month. Under the terms of the deal, made with 52 state, D.C. and territorial attorneys general, Meta will pay up to $17 billion to the plaintiffs over the course of 10 years.
Meta will also need to make a wide variety of changes to its apps, Facebook and Instagram, including default daily time limits for users under 18 years old and restrictions on use and notifications during the school day and at night. Only a parent could lift the default daily two-hour time limit.
A nighttime block will be in place for minors from midnight to 6 a.m., also only removable by a parent. Notifications will be blocked for these users from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. and during the school day.
A display on the number of likes and reactions will be banned for children, as will plastic surgery image filters. Meta will also be required to roll out an “enhanced” way for teenagers to report potentially harmful content.
Under a separate agreement with Texas, Meta will pay an additional $1 billion and need to make similar changes to its apps.
Attorneys general across the country and political aisle celebrated the settlement as a victory for children’s safety online. The agreement comes after Meta lost in two other child safety trials in California and New Mexico recently.
▪ The Hill: Takeaways on Meta’s deal.
▪ The Hill: Pennsylvania attorney general accuses Snapchat of failing to protect kids.
NUCLEAR REVIEW: The Trump administration has sent the nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia to Congress, starting the federally mandated congressional review process.
The 30-year deal would allow Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium and allow U.S. companies to develop Saudi Arabia’s civil nuclear infrastructure.
The submission by the White House starts the review period as laid out by Section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act, which covers nuclear cooperation agreements. The deal doesn’t need a two-thirds approval by the Senate, but the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Senate Foreign Relations Committee will have a chance to contest it during a 90-day window.
If Congress does not pass a joint resolution to reject the deal during that period, it can go into effect.
Still, questions remain as to whether it will take effect even if Congress doesn’t reject it. An administration official told The Hill on Wednesday that Trump’s retroactive condition for the deal, that Saudi Arabia join the Abraham Accords and recognize Israel, remains in place.
▪ Reuters: Bangladesh could consider joining Mecca pact.
▪ The Hill: NASA, Fed, Senate targeted by Chinese hackers, Justice Department says.
LIFE-EXTENDING TREATMENT: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer, providing a new lifeline for patients dealing with one of the disease’s most aggressive forms.
The once-a-day pill is manufactured by Revolution Medicines and will be sold under the brand name Rasonque. The FDA approved it for patients who already tried one line of therapy or who are not candidates for initial chemotherapy.
The Hill’s Nathaniel Weixel reports that the drug is not a cure but is the first real option for extending the life of patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
“For the first time, patients have an approved targeted medicine designed to directly inhibit the main cause of pancreatic cancer, RAS, which has been one of the most intractable disease targets since its discovery decades ago,” Mark Goldsmith, the chief executive officer and chair of Revolution Medicines, said in a statement.
Pancreatic cancer accounts for only about 3 percent of all cancer diagnoses but a disproportionately high amount of cancer deaths. It’s typically been detected late, and treatment options to extend a patient’s life have been limited.
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▪ The Hill: Florida moves to end some school vaccine requirements.
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