SUMMARY: Nearly nine months since the Taliban took over Afghanistan, the economy is in freefall and about half the country is nearing acute food insecurity. But even with this widespread suffering, the Taliban on Sunday ordered all women be completely covered - head to toe - when leaving their homes, requiring them again to don the burqa that was a telltale of their first rule. Jane Ferguson reports.
SUMMARY: The leaked Supreme Court draft opinion shows justices appear poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, which would result in the biggest change to abortion rights since the 1992 case Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which reaffirmed the right to an abortion with restrictions. Former Pennsylvania Attorney General Ernest Preate, who argued that case and asked the court to overturn Roe, joins John Yang to discuss.
SUMMARY:In one of the most aggressive challenges to Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in America, justices will decide the constitutionality of Mississippi's 2018 law banning most abortions after 15 weeks. If the court overturns Roe, abortion bans passed in a dozen states since the 1973 ruling would immediately go into effect. Amna Nawaz reports.
SUMMARY:It has been two months since the nation’s toughest restrictions on abortion took effect in Texas, effectively ending access to abortion in the state. A case against the law has once again reached the highest court in the land. John Yang reports on how the case got to the Supreme Court again and what could lie ahead.
SUMMARY:Gun rights and the Second Amendment were front-and-center at the Supreme Court Wednesday, in the first major test of gun regulations since the court said gun ownership was a right protected by the Constitution. John Yang reports.
Theocracy, Noun (countable and uncountable, plural theocracies)
Government under the control of a state-sponsored religion. Like using State law to force others to follow a religious belief like 'human life begins at conception.'
SUMMARY:The sexual abuse scandal that has engulfed U.S. women's gymnastics took a new shocking turn on Thursday. Former U.S. Olympic Gymnastics coach John Geddert died by suicide just hours after being charged with human trafficking and sexual assault. Christine Brennan, a sports reporter for USA Today who has covered Olympic sports for years, joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.
SUMMARY:Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg became the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court, a position she held for 27 years. Marcia Coyle, Chief Washington Correspondent for The National Law Journal and Amy Howe, Co-Founder of SCOTUSblog joins Hari Sreenivasan to discuss Justice Ginsburg’s long storied career and her fight for equal rights.
SUMMARY:Nina Totenberg, NPR’s correspondent for legal affairs, first met Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg over the phone nearly 50 years ago, beginning a professional relationship, which eventually morphed into a close friendship. In a conversation with Hari Sreenivasan, Totenberg shares anecdotes about their bond and what she learned about life, law and even death from Justice Ginsburg.
SUMMARY: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s legacy began in Flatbush, Brooklyn in New York where she was born and raised. On Saturday, New York Gov. Cuomo announced that a statue honoring her contribution will be built in the NYC borough. NewsHour Weekend Correspondent Ivette Feliciano joins Hari Sreenivasan from outside Ginsburg’s childhood home.
SUMMARY: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who long stood for women’s rights issues and became the court’s second female justice, died Friday at her home in Washington. She died at the age of 87 of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.
SUMMARY:Tuesday marks a full century since the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which says that the right to vote “should not be denied or abridged” on the basis of sex. We look back to the path to that milestone, and Judy Woodruff talks to longtime activist and scholar Gloria Steinem about what challenges remain.
SUMMARY:A panel of appellate judges on Monday considered whether a Trump administration rule on federal funding for clinics that make abortion referrals may remain in place while legal challenges work their way through the courts. More than 900 clinics, many run by Planned Parenthood, have given up funds rather than complying with the new regulations. John Yang talks to Sarah Varney of Kaiser Health News.
The slow march to theocracy, the Bible over the Constitution.
Excerpt
SUMMARY:The legal fight over abortion rights in the U.S. took a turn at the Supreme Court Tuesday. Justices ruled on an Indiana law stipulating how abortion providers dispose of fetal remains and prohibiting abortions performed on the basis of the gender, disability or race of the fetus. Lisa Desjardins talks to the National Law Journal’s Marcia Coyle about what the ruling might mean.
SUMMARY: Missouri is part of a recent wave of state laws that would ban abortion almost entirely, sometimes without exceptions for rape and incest. The state is also making news on abortion for trying to deny its one remaining abortion provider, a Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis, its license on grounds of alleged violations. William Brangham talks to Planned Parenthood’s president, Dr. Leana Wen.
SUMMARY: The national abortion debate is raging with renewed fervor, as a series of states pass restrictive laws banning almost all instances of the procedure. Among those states is Missouri, where officials are also trying to shutter its only remaining abortion provider, a Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis. William Brangham talks to Mallory Quigley of the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List.
Theocracy = Bible over our Constitution, law by fundamentalist religion. Forget your personal religious rights, and if you are a women you do not control your own body.
SUMMARY:President Trump intends to expand rules that allow health care workers to opt out of participating in certain services on religious or moral grounds. While conservatives celebrated what they call “conscience protections,” LGBTQ and women’s advocates warned the change would reduce services and cause patients harm. Amna Nawaz talks to The New York Times' Margot Sanger-Katz for analysis.
SUMMARY:The U.S. women's soccer team hopes to defend its World Cup title this year. But on Friday, International Women’s Day, all 28 team members filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation, arguing they suffered years of institutionalized gender discrimination--and lower pay. Elizabeth Mitchell of the New York Daily News, and soccer star Julie Foudy join Amna Nawaz to discuss.
IMHO: There is a big push by conservative Christians to turn the United States into a theocracy by making their doctrine and beliefs the law-of-the-land over our Constitution. The ONLY persons who should be making the decision on abortion are women; not local, state, or federal government. It is a right of women to make this moral decision.
Doreen Denny is not really concerned about women, they are concerned about their agenda. Some states already have banned abortions in clinics, to there will be no 'other providers' to refer to. (see link to CWA below)
SUMMARY: The Trump administration intends to limit the Title X program that provides birth control and other reproductive health services. Under the new restrictions, any clinic accepting federal funds would be prevented from performing abortions -- or referring women to other providers for the procedure. William Brangham talks to Doreen Denny of Concerned Women for America, who supports the new policy.
REMINDER: The majority of what Planned Parenthood provides is NOT abortion. (see link below)
SUMMARY:Under a new rule proposed by the Trump administration, family-planning clinics that receive federal funds through Title X would be prevented from referring women to other providers for abortions. One organization that would be affected is Planned Parenthood, whose president Dr. Leana Wen talks to William Brangham about why the move would compromise patient health as well as medical ethics.
SUMMARY: Proposed legislation in Virginia that would loosen restrictions on third trimester abortions has sparked outrage among conservatives. Many pro-choice advocates expect the Supreme Court to scale back abortion rights, and states favorable to abortion are preparing. Lisa Desjardins talks to Mary Ziegler, a law professor at Florida State University and author of several books on abortion politics.
40 additional years of male domination in American, SICK.
Excerpt
SUMMARY:Forty years ago, Congress approved the Equal Rights Amendment [ERA], guaranteeing protection from discrimination on the basis of sex -- but it has never been ratified as a constitutional amendment. Now a campaign to ratify the ERA is gathering momentum, in part because of fallout from the #MeToo movement of the past two years. Amna Nawaz talks to Kate Kelly of Equality Now.
SUMMARY:Forty years ago, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act made it illegal for employers to deny a woman a job, a promotion or higher pay because she is pregnant. But a new investigation found cases when workplace conditions put pregnant women at physical risk. William Brangham speaks with Tasha Murrell who suffered a miscarriage in 2014, and Fatima Goss Graves CEO of the National Women's Law Center.
Conservative 1: Having the power or tendency to preserve in a safe and entire state
3: One who adheres to traditional, time-tested, long-standing methods, procedures, or views : a moderate, cautious, or discreet person
Conserve 1: To keep in a safe or sound state (as by deliberate, planned, or intelligent care) : preserve from change or destruction
Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary
The upshot is conservatives do NOT like change. Change frightens them even when change is needed or if there is a better way to do anything. This is an irrational view of the world (in fact the Universe).
SUMMARY: President Trump has a second opportunity to leave a lasting mark on the high court. Judy Woodruff gets context and analysis on the possible nominees from Marcia Coyle of The National Law Journal and former Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal and Christopher Landau, a former clerk to Justices Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia.
SUMMARY: President Trump will announce his Supreme Court nominee during a primetime address on Monday evening. And already, the political storms are brewing as Washington braces for a contentious confirmation battle. Judy Woodruff previews the announcement from both sides of the aisle from John Yang and Lisa Desjardins.
SUMMARY: The fight over President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee began today. Brett Kavanaugh started his climb toward confirmation by meeting with the Senate's top Republican and the chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Democrats are mostly united in opposition, fearing he would overturn key precedents and insulate Trump against the Russia probe. Lisa Desjardins reports.
SUMMARY: How would Judge Brett Kavanaugh change the Supreme Court if confirmed, and what does the Senate need to consider in their confirmation hearings? Judy Woodruff gets reaction from Travis Lenkner, an attorney who clerked for both Justice Kennedy and the new nominee, and Kristen Clarke, president of the National Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.
SUMMARY: Will Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh have an easy time being confirmed by the Senate? Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) says he hopes Democrats will be open to voting for him. Hatch joins Judy Woodruff to discuss whether the court with a Justice Kavanaugh would overturn Roe v. Wade, weaken the Affordable Care Act and the issue of whether Presidents should be subject to indictment.
SUMMARY: Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif) says she is opposed to the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh, and that his appointment could essentially lead to the end of a woman’s ability to have an abortion even if Roe v. Wade isn’t overturned. Harris joins Judy Woodruff to discuss her concerns for issues of reproductive rights, same-sex marriage and other forms of discrimination.
SUMMARY: Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week’s news, including the retirement and legacy of Justice Anthony Kennedy, a shocking Democratic victory in Queens, and the continued fallout over the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy and family separation.
Judy Woodruff (NewsHour): And now to the analysis of Shields and Brooks. That is syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks.
Gentlemen, welcome.
Big news, the equivalent of an earthquake, I guess, in Washington, political earthquake.
Mark, what does it mean that Anthony Kennedy is stepping down from the Supreme Court? What does it mean for the court? What does it mean for the city, for the country?
Mark Shields, syndicated columnist: It’s significant.
(LAUGHTER)
Mark Shields:No, let me just say, God likes Donald Trump, because she has now given him a second appointee to the Supreme Court, something that Barack Obama, in eight years, got two. Bill Clinton in eight years got two. George W. Bush in eight years got two. He’s getting two in 18 months.
Anthony Kennedy is getting encomiums of praise, in large part, Judy, two sources. One, he was a gentleman. He was considerate to those around him. He didn’t — there was no personalizing or polarizing to him. And that is welcome and refreshing in this Washington.
But the second thing is, he was a liberal on individual rights and sort of social issues. He wasn’t on economic issues. He always came down on the side of corporations against consumers and the side of the employer against — the boss.
And he wrote probably the worst opinion, in my judgment, in the history of American politics, the campaign — permitting corporations to make unlimited campaign contributions, and allowing the gushing of water — of money into campaigns.
But he will — he has been a key vote on capital punishment, on a whole host of issues, including gay marriage and ratifying Roe v. Wade. So, in that sense, the nominee will be to the right of him, and it will perhaps energize Republicans who were not energized about 2018.
Judy Woodruff: How do you see his legacy first?
David Brooks, New York Times:Well, first, it struck me that a lot of my progressive friends are reacting like losing Kennedy is like losing, I don’t know, Franklin Roosevelt.
Like, suddenly, they’re all on his side, which is odd to me, because, in most of his decisions, Citizens United and Bush v. Gore, he voted very solidly with the conservatives.
But it shows the prominence of two issues for progressives, which is abortion and gay marriage, and it shows how the social issues really are what motivate people these days.
I would say I would characterize him as a pragmatic libertarian, tended to emphasize individual rights and freedoms. And so sometimes that went a little — a lot of time, it went a little right. Sometimes, it went a little left. But it tended to be an individualistic mind-set, which had some good virtues.
I thought it — in general, it weakened any sense of community, any of sense of, we have a shared nation, because his world view was so individualistic.
Nonetheless, he was just a very cordial man, a very good man to be around in Washington, an exemplar of an old style public servant.
As for the politics, I agree with Mark. It’s just a total gift for Republicans. It will unify the right. It will energize the right. It will energize the left, too, but more — in the coming campaign, it puts pressure on the people in the middle.
And so Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins on the Republican side, it puts some pressure on them, but I don’t think a whole lot. They voted for Gorsuch.
Mark Shields: Gorsuch, that’s right.
David Brooks: But it puts a bunch of pressure on the centrist Democrats who are running in the red states. And I think puts more pressure on the Democrats than it does on the Republicans.
(CROSSTALK)
Mark Shields: Yes, I agree with David.
Joe Manchin in West Virginia, who I think has to be favored for reelection, as a Democrat in a state, Donald Trump’s best state, he won by 42 percent, that is going to be a difficult vote for him, especially if Mitch McConnell, in all likelihood, holds the vote around Halloween to keep attention riveted on the issue.
Heidi Heitkamp in North Dakota, a state that Donald Trump carried by 36 percent, Democratic incumbent. Joe Donnelly in Indiana that he carried by 17 percent. And Claire McCaskill in Missouri that Donald Trump carried by 19 percent. It’s going to be a lot of political pressure for them.
Judy, the key to me is, this is a bigger issue, the Supreme Court has been, for conservatives and Republicans than it has been historically for Democrats.
For example, in the exit polls in 2016, the Clinton-Trump race, 26 percent of the Republican voters said the Supreme Court and who sat on it was an urgent vote matter to them, to the point that it affected and influenced their votes. Only 18 percent of Democrats said it was for them.
So, it’s a built-in emotional advantage at a time when Republican enthusiasm and interest in the 2018 campaign has been sapping and had been draining.
David Brooks: That may — I wonder if that will change now because this pick obviously puts Roe v. Wade right at the center of our politics.
And it will actually open up something very interesting. I don’t think it’s — the nightmare scenario on either side, I don’t think it’s probably going to happen.
Mark Shields: Which is? What is…
David Brooks: Which is that Roe v. Wade will suddenly be overturned.
Judy Woodruff: Yes.
David Brooks: Because there is a precedent which Secretary — Justice Roberts has maintained through most of the terms — and the Obamacare case is a good example — of saying, I may agree, I may not agree, but what is settled law is settled law.
He has tended to be biased in that direction. And as we go through the hearings, whoever the nominee is, that’s what they are going to say. And so they may disagree in principle on Roe v. Wade, but it is — it’s reasonably settled, so they may hedge it or something. But it — I’m not sure we’re looking at some massive overturn of Roe v. Wade either way.
Judy Woodruff: But neither one of you sees any hindrance, anything standing in front of the President getting his choice for the court?
Mark Shields: Sure, the choice himself.
We have had nominees rejected before because of something that was discovered or and their position.
I would just take one exception to David, and that is, over the last generation, Gallup has polled every single year. Americans have more — far more tolerant and far less censorious about having a child out of wedlock, or gay rights, or extramarital relations.
But moral acceptability of abortion remains divided exactly where it was 25 years ago. So it is an organizing and galvanizing issue still to this day, even though I think David’s right that the status quo or precedent works to the advantage of those who would preserve it.
But how about it if it becomes the central issue in the campaign of 2018? Does that help the Democrats or not? Does it turn out Republicans who might not have — who might have sat home?
I am Retired U.S. Navy (22yrs) and a Vietnam Veteran. After my Navy retirement I was in the computer related industry, now retired. In 2000 I was a registered Republican and voted for George W. Bush. Six months of having Bush in the Whitehouse forced me to re-evaluate my political stance. I had always thought of myself as a Moderate Republican, but was a Republican by "default" NOT because of close examination of the GOP. Due to what has happened in America since 2000, I now consider myself a progressive, and registered as a Non-Affiliated voter.
*Anti-First Amendment policies that attempt to turn America into a theocracy by enshrining ANY religious belief as law.
* Any attempt to suppress human or Constitutional rights.
* Any law or policy that supports discrimination based on religion, ethnicity, race/color, gender, sexual orientation, or any law that does NOT support Equal Treatment under the law.
*Any law or policy that attempts to suppress Freedom of the Press or Free Speech.
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