Your Thursday night briefing from the staff of Courthouse News
Top CNS stories for today including the Senate Judiciary Committee approved two of President Donald Trump’s nominees to the Ninth Circuit, including one who sparked controversy over articles he wrote as an undergraduate on sexual misconduct, affirmative action and other issues; A group of young leaders and activists called on Congress to take a bipartisan stance against manmade climate change before time runs out; The California judge presiding over a trial on a couple’s claims that Roundup weed killer gave them cancer cited the First Amendment in her refusal to bar Monsanto from sending geo-targeted mobile phone ads to jurors and other members of the public, and more.
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National
1.) The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved two of President Donald Trump’s nominees to the Ninth Circuit, including one who sparked controversy over articles he wrote as an undergraduate on sexual misconduct, affirmative action and other issues.
2.) Ringing in the first meeting of the House Select Committee on Climate Crisis, a group of young leaders and activists called on Congress Thursday to take a bipartisan stance against manmade climate change before time runs out.
3.) For the second time in as many months, the House of Representatives on Thursday voted to withdraw U.S. support from the war in Yemen, setting up a major showdown with the White House over the conflict.
4.) A California judge cited the First Amendment in her refusal to bar Monsanto from sending geo-targeted mobile phone ads to jurors and other members of the public Thursday, the latest wrinkle in a trial on a San Francisco Bay Area couple’s claims that Roundup weed killer gave them cancer.
Regional
5.) As a seven-day deadline comes to a close Thursday, Chicago has not yet received the $130,000 it demanded from “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett to cover the cost to investigate the alleged hate crime against him that city officials say he staged.
6.) El Paso is ground zero for the record numbers of Central American families seeking asylum in the U.S. It’s also home to an immigration court that grants asylum less often than any other in the country, with judges who are making a mockery of due process, immigration attorneys say in an administrative complaint.
Science
7.) The ancient ancestors of whales and dolphins once had four hoof-shod legs, according to a new study published Thursday.
8.) Getting in touch with nature is a great way to balance oneself and while it may sound like a forehead-slapping obvious approach to reducing stress, a new study says people should take a chill pill in nature every once in a while.
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