Display at Alito’s home renews questions of Supreme Court’s impartiality
News of a “Stop the Steal” symbol that flew at the home of Justice Samuel Alito after the 2020 election has elicited concerns from politicians, legal scholars and others about the Supreme Court’s ethical standards — and, most urgent, whether the public will regard its rulings about Jan. 6, 2021, as fairly decided.
In the aging Senate, 80-somethings seeking reelection draw little criticism
WASHINGTON — While President Joe Biden tries to assuage voter concerns about his age in a presidential race that includes the two oldest men ever to seek the White House, a couple of miles away in the U.S. Senate, the gerontocracy remains alive and well — and little commented upon.
Accustomed to disasters, Houston didn’t see this one coming
HOUSTON — The storm that hurtled through Houston late Thursday surprised a city long accustomed to bouts of serious weather. The Astros kept playing baseball, even as rain and wind whipped into the team’s closed-dome stadium. Many people, following their evening routines, were caught unaware on bikes or at the gym.
Man who attacked Pelosi’s husband with hammer gets 30 years in prison
(Reuters) — The man who broke into former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s home in 2022 and assaulted her husband with a hammer was sentenced on Friday to 30 years in prison, federal prosecutors said.
Rosy U.S. summer travel forecast excludes Hawaii
U.S. Transportation Security Administration officials say they are preparing for the highest passenger volumes ever seen at airport security checkpoints nationwide during the peak summer travel season, which begins Memorial Day weekend and runs through Labor Day.
Struggling on front lines, Ukraine strikes harder at Russian energy
KYIV, Ukraine — Struggling to contain Russian advances on the battlefield, Ukraine is increasingly taking the fight to Russia beyond the front lines in an effort to disrupt its military operations and put pressure on its economy — targeting airfields, logistics hubs and critical energy facilities with missiles and drones.
China says it will start buying apartments as housing slump worsens
HONG KONG — In a housing crisis that shows no end, the Chinese government is stepping in as a buyer of last resort.
Mercedes workers in Alabama reject union
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Workers at two Mercedes-Benz factories near Tuscaloosa, Alabama, voted Friday against allowing the United Auto Workers to represent them, a stunning blow to the union’s campaign to gain ground in the South, where it has traditionally been weak.
Aid starts entering Gaza through US-built pier, but officials say it isn’t enough
Trucks of humanitarian aid began moving ashore into the Gaza Strip early Friday via a temporary pier built by the U.S. military, the first supplies of aid to be sent into the enclave by sea in two months. But the new shipments of food and other supplies fall far short of what humanitarian groups say is needed to meet the staggering levels of hunger and deprivation in Gaza.
Florida just picked the wrong kind of meat to ban
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey recently signed into law bans against cell-cultivated meat in their states. They apparently find meat grown in a lab rather than stripped from a factory-farmed animal so repellent that its production, distribution or sale ought to be a misdemeanor punishable with jail time. Indeed, when DeSantis signed his ban, he said he was “fighting back against the global elite’s plan to force the world to eat meat grown in a petri dish or bugs to achieve their authoritarian goals.”
Obituaries for May 18
Manuel Donald “Fox” Martins III
Letters to the Editor for May 18
Neither side in war deserves support
As I See It: I am terrified
Iwas born during what some English called the recent unpleasantness, the Russians call the Great Patriotic War, some call the Holocaust and the rest of the world calls World War II. World War I, known at the time as The Great War, was just another chapter of internecine war (the monarchs were often cousins) that plagued Europe for 1,000 years. The reparations of that war set the stage for WWII.
Volcano Watch: A fresh look at Kilauea’s 1924 explosive deposits
Last week’s Volcano Watch summarized Kilauea’s explosive eruptions of 1924 and their impacts on communities. This week, we dig a little deeper and share new discoveries we are making by examining the ash deposited during these events.
Tropical Gardening: Invasive insects and disease far worse than most weeds
We tend to freak out when a new invasive plant species arrives in our islands, but most spread relatively slowly. Usually we have some time to either deal with them or learn to live with them. Being plants, they are at least sequestering carbon and supplying oxygen. Some like the Fountain Grass covering the raw lava flows help to break down the rocks and in time create habitat for birds and other wildlife. The downside is that it and other non native grasses also create the opportunity for fires to spread. This requires management practices to avoid fires such as grazing, firebreaks, planting fire resistant vegetation to shade out grasses, etcetera.
Putin and Xi vow to step up fight to counter US ‘containment’
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin pledged to intensify cooperation against U.S. “containment” of their countries, as they warned of growing nuclear tensions between rival powers.
Israel moves into north Gaza Hamas stronghold, pounds Rafah without advancing
CAIRO/JERUSALEM — Israel’s tanks pushed into the heart of Jabalia in northern Gaza on Thursday, facing anti-tank rockets and mortar bombs from militants concentrated there, while in the south, its forces pounded Rafah without advancing, Palestinian residents and militants said.
Supreme Court rejects payday lenders’ challenge to Obama-era consumer protection bureau
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the U.S. consumer protection agency that was created under President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats to protect Americans from financial scams.
US unveils proposal to ease restrictions on marijuana
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday unveiled a historic proposal to ease restrictions on marijuana, a rule that if enacted would also enable more research on its medicinal benefits.
Trump’s lawyer and Cohen match wits in crucial cross-examination
NEW YORK — Donald Trump’s criminal trial entered a critical and combative phase Thursday as his lawyer grilled the prosecution’s star witness, Michael Cohen, about a medley of misrepresentations, manipulations and outright lies.
Nation and world news in brief for Friday, May 17, 2024
Columbia faculty group passes no-confidence resolution against president
US to speed up immigration cases of recent border crossers in new program
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration will speed up the immigration court cases of some single adults caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border under a new program announced on Thursday, part of a broader effort to reduce illegal immigration in the run-up to Nov. 5 elections, senior administration officials said.
Texas governor pardons man convicted of murdering Black Lives Matter protester
Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Thursday granted a full pardon to a former U.S. Army sergeant and Uber driver who was convicted of murder and sentenced to 25 years in prison for fatally shooting a Black Lives Matter protester in 2020.
Speaker Johnson calls Billy Graham a ‘towering figure in my life’ at Capitol statue unveiling
WASHINGTON — Mike Johnson said he doesn’t normally get nervous before public speaking. But Thursday morning, surrounded by members of the North Carolina delegation and governor in Statuary Hall, he described a different feeling.
White House move doesn’t deter House panel on Garland contempt
WASHINGTON — A White House move to withhold audio recordings Thursday did not derail a push from House Republicans to recommend holding Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in contempt of Congress.
