Free Republic

Parents ask Supreme Court to hold Indiana reponsible for removing transgender child from their home ... In 2019, Mary and Jeremy's son told them that he identified as a girl, but in line with their Catholic religious beliefs that God created human beings with an immutable sex, male or female, they did not believe in referring to him using pronouns and a name inconsistent with his biology. ACLU SUES CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL FOR HALTING ADULT TRANSGENDER SURGERIES In addition, the Coxes believed their son was struggling with underlying mental health conditions, including an eating disorder, so they sought therapeutic care for...

A federal appeals court ruled Monday that the Trump administration cannot withhold federal grants from California sanctuary cities, affirming previous rulings in the state. The U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco said its ruling that the Justice Department cannot block police funds from cities not enforcing immigration laws does not extend nationally, Bloomberg News reported. The decision follows rulings from three other regional federal appeals courts against the administration. But a New York court unanimously ruled in February that the department had the authority to withhold funds from the cities that do not comply with federal authorities' enforcement of...

Another of President Trump's nominees to the San Francisco-based 9th Circuit Court of Appeals cleared a key procedural hurdle in the Senate on Monday, as the White House continues its push to transform the key left-leaning appellate court that the president repeatedly has derided as hopelessly biased and "disgraceful." By a 77-20 vote, the Senate invoked cloture to end debate on Trump's nomination of Arizona-based Magistrate Judge Bridget Bade, a former clerk to conservative 5th Circuit Judge Edith Jones. Bade is slated to replace Bill Clinton-nominated Judge Barry Silverman, who has been on senior status since late 2016 -- effectively...

The Senate is set to escalate a long simmering fight over President Trump's judicial nominees. Republicans are poised to confirm a pick for the influential circuit courts next week without the support of either of the nominee's home-state senators—a first for the Trump era. Eric Miller is the first appeals judge to get a vote on the Senate floor this year, and the 31st of Trump’s presidency. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) set up an initial vote on his Ninth Circuit nomination for Monday evening. “The judicial train is running in the committee and it will soon hit the floor,”...

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) on Tuesday said that she will not return her "blue slip" on a judicial pick from President Trump and urged the Judiciary Committee to delay a hearing on the nomination. Murray said in a statement that Republicans "have been trampling" on Senate precedent in order to place "extreme conservatives" on the courts, adding that she cannot be "complicit." "This needs to end. So I am not going to be complicit in this latest rushed process to load the courts with Trump nominees in the lame duck session and I will not be returning the blue slip...

National politics could impact state races By ROBERT TANNER AP National Writer Presidential politics and economic turmoil will have a major impact on the 11 gubernatorial races this fall, with the interplay between national and state politics most critical in four states where the 2000 race was dramatically close Missouri, New Hampshire, Washington and West Virginia. Tuesday’s primary, the first this year for a gubernatorial race, puts President Bush’s former budget director into the running in Indiana. Mitch Daniels is relying on the president’s term of affection “My Man Mitch” as his slogan for the GOP nomination. He’s up against...

The U.S. Army's newest armored vehicle, the Stryker, is plagued with problems and fraught with dangers for crewmen, say military watchdogs and other organizations who have examined the wheeled vehicle's performance record. Also, critics and analysts have questioned the Defense Department's procurement of the vehicle as well as the Pentagon's decision to build it, adding the military has ignored warnings about the Stryker's perceived vulnerability and overall survivability in combat. According to an analysis by the Project On Government Oversight, or POGO, one of the Pentagon's own testing officials sent the defense agency a letter warning the $3 million-per-copy Stryker...

<p>INDIANAPOLIS — Gov. Joe Kernan said last night that he will run for a full term as governor next year, strengthening Democrats' chances of retaining the office they've held since 1989.</p> <p>Kernan, 57, reversed a decision he made last December, well before he was thrust into the office when Gov. Frank O'Bannon died eight weeks ago.</p>