Idaho judge temporarily blocks ban on gender transition care for minors
A federal judge in Idaho temporarily blocked the enforcement of a state law on Tuesday that bans gender transition care for minors and threatens medical professionals with a felony conviction if they provide such care, just six days before it was set to take effect. The law, House Bill 71, specifically bans gender transition surgeries, puberty blockers and hormone therapy for those under 18 with gender dysphoria. Two Idaho families filed a lawsuit to block the ban from taking effect, claiming that it was unconstitutional and harmful to the well-being of transgender minors.
Prosecutors seek to block political claims by Trump in trial
Federal prosecutors asked a judge on Wednesday to keep former President Donald Trump and his lawyers from claiming to the jury in his upcoming election interference trial that the case had been brought against him as a partisan attack by the Biden administration. The move by the prosecutors was designed to keep Trump from overtly politicizing his trial and from distracting the jury with unfounded political arguments. Molly Gaston, one of special counsel Jack Smith’s senior assistants, asked Judge Tanya Chutkan, of U.S. District Court in Washington, to keep Trump’s “irrelevant disinformation” as far away from the jury as possible.
Biden begins vacation in Caribbean for new year
President Joe Biden left the drizzly skies of Washington behind Wednesday and flew to tropical St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where he and Jill Biden, the first lady, intend to ring in the new year. The Bidens, along with their 19-year-old granddaughter, Natalie, stepped off Air Force One and headed to a waiting SUV to start their weeklong vacation. The temperature hovered around 84 degrees. The first family is staying at Two Palms Villa, a beachfront home owned by friends and Democratic donors, Bill and Connie Neville.
True-crime podcasts about Trump are everywhere
True crime is among the most popular genres in podcasting. One of the biggest stories in the coming months is the wave of criminal charges facing former President Donald Trump. The result: a boomlet of podcasts dedicated to the cases against him. MSNBC, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, NPR, Vox Media and The First TV, an upstart conservative media company, have all introduced or are about to start shows examining Trump’s courtroom travails as he campaigns to win back the White House. Chris Balfe, founder of The First TV, called podcasts an ideal format to explain the cases to the public, because they give journalists time and space to examine complicated issues at length.
Tesla strike is a culture clash: Swedish labor vs. American management
Tesla technicians who walked off their jobs in Sweden say they support the mission of the American company but also want Tesla to accept the Swedish way of doing business: cooperation between employers and employees to ensure that both sides benefit from a company’s profit. The union representing the Tesla workers, IF Metall, won’t say how many of the company’s 130 technicians have walked out. The company’s 10 service centers remain open. But as the strike moves into its third month, it is having an outsize impact on the Nordic region. At least 15 other unions have taken action to try to force Tesla to negotiate a collective bargaining agreement.
Indian envoy meets with Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday met with the Indian foreign minister at the Kremlin, highlighting Russia’s attempts to break through its isolation from the West by pivoting to an increasingly powerful Asian nation. From the start of Russia’s war with Ukraine, India has taken a neutral stance, citing its longtime ties with Moscow. Putin said he invited India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, to visit Russia. The Indian foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, said he had brought a written letter to Putin from Modi in which the Indian leader conveyed his thoughts on the state of Russia-India relations.
Death by doctor may soon be available for the mentally ill in Canada
Canada already has one of the most liberal assisted death laws in the world, offering the practice to terminally and chronically ill Canadians. But under a law scheduled to take effect in March, assisted dying would also become accessible to people whose only medical condition is mental illness. There is still uncertainty and debate over whether assisted death will become available to the mentally ill early next year as scheduled. Amid concerns over how to implement it, Parliament has delayed putting it into place for the past three years and could delay it again.
Israel warns that time for diplomacy with Lebanon is ‘running out’
As Israel pounded targets in the Gaza Strip from the air and sea Wednesday, a member of the country’s war Cabinet threatened action on a second front, along the border with Lebanon, where Iranian-backed militia Hezbollah has fired rocket barrages into Israel. “I say to our friends around the world: The situation in the northern border necessitates change,” Benny Gantz told reporters. “The time for a diplomatic solution is running out.” The Israeli military said Wednesday that its northern command, along the border with Lebanon, was in a “state of very high readiness.”
Eiffel Tower closes for labor action on creator’s anniversary
History lovers visiting Paris might have made a plan to check out the Eiffel Tower on Wednesday. After all, it was the 100th anniversary of the death of Gustave Eiffel, the eponymous civil engineer whose company designed and built it. But the sign they discovered by the landmark bore grim tidings: “La Tour Eiffel est actuellement fermée.” The tower was closed. The reason will be familiar to anyone who has spent significant time in France: a labor action. The Eiffel Tower was also closed in March as a result of sweeping labor protests over a law raising the retirement age to 64 from 62.
A statue’s hips don’t lie: Shakira is honored in her hometown
The Colombian coastal city of Barranquilla this week revealed a 21-foot-tall tribute to one of the country’s most famous cultural exports: Shakira. “A heart that composes, hips that don’t lie, an unmatched talent, a voice that moves the masses and bare feet that march for the good of children and humanity,” reads the plaque below the statue. The statue’s sculptor, Yino Márquez, said he was delighted by the way the sculpture had been received by the public and by Shakira and her family after it was unveiled Tuesday. The singer’s mother, he said, told him that God would bless his hands for being such a good sculptor.
By wire sources