If you enjoy my posts here on Bench Memos and my other writings and appreciate the impact that I’ve had over the years, then I invite you to support the Ethics...
Susie Wiles, President Donald Trump's understated but influential chief of staff, criticized Attorney General Pam Bondi's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case and broadly defended the president's aggressive second administration in a series of interviews published Tuesday in Vanity Fair.
Diana Santillana Galeano, a day care teacher arrested by ICE in Chicago, has been released from custody. Her legal team will continue to pursue her immigration claims to stay in the US.
A federal judge on Thursday sharply scrutinized the installation of President Trump’s handpicked prosecutor to bring charges against two of his political adversaries, casting uncertainty on the future of the cases. U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie seemed skeptical that the appointment of Lindsey Halligan, interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, was legal. ...
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on Thursday said Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits will be restored in full by Monday. “We, immediately last night, began moving out, making sure that the program continues unabated, starting once the government reopened, and hopefully by the end of this week, most will receive it at the very latest...
U.S. Catholic bishops voted to officially ban Catholic hospitals from performing gender-affirming care for any transgender patients. Wednesday’s vote to update the “Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services” will have significant impacts on patients across the country, though most Catholic institutions don’t currently offer gender-affirming care. More than 1 in 7 patients...
Jim Avila, a veteran reporter for ABC News, died this week after a long illness, the network reported Thursday. Avila, 69, reported for marquee ABC News programs like "20/20" and "World News Tonight" during his decades-long career with the broadcast network. He covered some of the biggest national stories during his time in front of...
Longtime cable news host Chris Matthews said Democrats’ “snobbery” had compelled working-class voters to support President Trump and Republican-leaning candidates. Matthews joined MSNBC’s “Katy Tur Reports” to promote his new book, “Lessons from Bobby: Ten Reasons Robert F. Kennedy Still Matters,” and he was asked about the enduring lessons Democrats can take from the man...
America says it wants to be tough on crime. But instead of solving murders, we’re funding deportations. Instead of clearing rape cases, we’re building detention centers.
A top White House economic adviser said Thursday that the government will be unable to determine what the unemployment rate was in October due to the shutdown. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told reporters that the government was not able to complete the household surveys that are used to determine unemployment data. “The October...
Democrats are more energized to vote in next year’s midterm elections, according to a new survey. A Reuters/Ipsos survey released Wednesday found that 44 percent of registered voters who identify as Democrats say they are "very enthusiastic" about voting in the next election cycle, compared with 26 percent of Republican voters. Respondents were also asked...
Congress has shown "benign ambivalence" towards President Trump's bombing of alleged drug-running boats in the Caribbean, with questions being raised about the legality of the strikes under the War Powers Resolution and the potential for escalation into a land war.
