Top 8 today

Top eight stories for today including a lawyer for Donald Trump appeared in front of a grand jury for one of multiple criminal investigations the former president faces; California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an order to rollback some water restrictions the state put in place during the height of a drought two years ago; Paris descended into chaos as protesters lit hundreds of fires, and more.

National

Trump attorney testifies in classified document probe

As a lawyer for former President Donald Trump appeared in front of a grand jury Friday for one of multiple criminal investigations he faces — this one into Trump's handling of classified documents now that he is no longer in office — legal experts watching the sealed process remarked on the speed of the proceedings.

Attorney M. Evan Corcoran arrives at federal court in Washington on July 22, 2022. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

Press rights in crosshairs as justices tackle those who aid illegal immigration

The Biden administration will head to the Supreme Court next week to defend a federal law that criminalizes certain speech. While the law is aimed at those who would encourage people crossing the border to skirt law enforcement, it has also been used by the government to surveil journalists.

A caravan of migrants hoping to reach the U.S. border wait in line to board buses in La Concha, Mexico, on Nov. 14, 2018. Buses and trucks are carrying some migrants into the state of Sinaloa along the Gulf of California and further north into the border state of Sonora. The bulk of the main caravan appeared to be about 1,100 miles from the border but was moving hundreds of miles per day. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Critics of funding for Ukraine push bill through House

Democrats bemoaned division in the name of transparency Friday as the lower chamber’s foreign affairs committee cleared a piece of legislation that holds a magnifying glass up to federal funds Ukraine has received to support its fight against Russia.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene sits in a courtroom in Atlanta on April 22, 2022. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool, File)

Wall Street rises, then falls, after rates face quarter-point hike

Conflicting testimony by federal officials made for choppy sessions on Wall Street this week, muddying what might otherwise have been a prime opportunity for investors to claw back losses.

People pass the front of the New York Stock Exchange in New York on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan

Regional

California wrings out months of rain to ease drought restrictions

Coming out from one of California's wettest winters on record, Governor Gavin Newsom signed an order Friday to rollback some water restrictions that the state put in place during the height of a drought two years ago.

Governor Gavin Newsom walks the Deer Creek area to survey flood conditions in California on Jan. 8, 2023. (Office of the Governor via Courthouse News Service )

Oregon reaches deal with conservationists over coho salmon habitat

After five years of litigation, conservation groups and the Oregon Department of Forestry reached an agreement to expand stream buffers within the Tillamook and Clatsop state forests to improve habitats for Oregon’s threatened coho salmon species.

Coho salmon. (Oregon Department of Forestry via Courthouse News)

Texas university president hit with First Amendment lawsuit for canceling drag show

A West Texas A&M University student group sued the school’s Christian president on Friday for forbidding their charity drag show because he believes it would discriminate against women.

(Image by Nhat Nguyen from Pixabay via Courthouse News)

International

France burns as anger erupts over Macron pension reforms

Paris descended into chaos as protesters lit hundreds of overnight fires and violent clashes erupted between police and protesters. French President Emmanuel Macron faces mounting anger after he pushed through unpopular pension reforms.