Biden called gay marriage ‘inevitable’ and soon it’ll be law
President Joe Biden plans to sign legislation this coming week that will protect gay unions even if the Supreme Court were to revisit its ruling supporting a nationwide right of same-sex couples to marry. It’s the latest part of Biden’s legacy on gay rights, which includes his unexpected endorsement of marriage equality on national television a decade ago when he was vice president. Although gay marriage is no longer as contentious as it once was, Biden will be signing the legislation amid a backlash on the right over issues of gender identity. That’s heightened fears about the durability of the country’s changes on civil rights and other issues, too.
Kari Lake challenges her defeat in Arizona governor’s race
Kari Lake, the Republican defeated in Arizona governor’s race, is formally challenging her loss to Democrat Katie Hobbs. She’s asking a court to throw out certified results from the state’s most populous county and either declare her the winner or rerun the governor’s election in that county. Her lawsuit centers on long lines and other difficulties that people experienced while voting on Election Day in Maricopa County. It alleged hundreds of thousands of ballots were illegally cast, but there’s no evidence that it’s true. Lake has refused to acknowledge that she lost to Hobbs by more than 17,000 votes.
Deputy in California slayings killed self with service gun
Authorities say a Virginia sheriff’s deputy who they believe traveled to California to kill three family members of a 15-year-old girl he tried to sexually extort online killed himself with a government-issued firearm. Police say 28-year-old Austin Lee Edwards drove across the country and on Nov. 25 killed the girl’s mother and grandparents and set fire to their home in Riverside, about 50 miles east of Los Angeles. That same day, Edwards died by suicide during a shootout with San Bernardino sheriff’s deputies. The girl was rescued. Sheriff’s spokeswoman Gloria Huerta says Edward used his service pistol to kill himself. The Riverside Police Department, which is investigating the family members’ deaths, hasn’t said how they were killed.
Attorney: Kidnap plot leader should not get life sentence
The attorney for the leader of a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says his client should not be sentenced to life in prison because prosecutors overstated his role in the plot and have created a “false narrative of a terrifying para-military leader.” Attorney Christopher Gibbons said Friday in Adam Fox’s sentencing memorandum that the government had employed “histrionic descriptions” of Fox to overstate “his actual intentions or his actual capabilities.” The filing came after prosecutors told the court Monday that a life prison sentence would be justified for Fox, who was convicted in August along with co-defendant Barry Croft Jr. of conspiring to kidnap Whitmer.
New Japan law aims at Unification Church fundraising abuses
Japan’s parliament has enacted a law to restrict malicious donation solicitations by religious and other groups, which mainly targets the Unification Church, whose fundraising tactics and cozy ties with the governing party caused public outrage. The South Korean-based religious group’s decades-long ties with Japan’s governing Liberal Democratic Party surfaced after the July assassination of former leader Shinzo Abe. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, whose support ratings tumbled, sought to calm public fury over his handling of the scandal and has replaced three Cabinet ministers. The new law allows believers, donors and their families to seek the return of their money and prohibits religious groups from soliciting funds by coercion or linking donations to spiritual salvation.
By wire sources