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California lawmakers pass series of bills that restrict ICE hiring
Assemblymember Bryan joins Spectrum News
Democratic socialist wins primary for mayor of Providence, Rhode Island
David Morales, a state lawmaker backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, defeated incumbent Mayor Brett P. Smiley.
When the call involves a mental health crisis, Bridgeport sends more than police
The fatal police shootings of two Hartford men during separate mental health emergencies earlier this year put a spotlight on how Connecticut law enforcement agencies respond to people in crisis and the role mental health professionals can play in those encounters.
Muramasa: Revenant Blades launches February 4, 2027
Side-scrolling action RPG Muramasa: Revenant Blades will launch for PlayStation 5, Switch 2, Switch, and PC via Steam on February 4, 2027, publisher Marvelous and developer Vanillaware announced.
Mariska Hargitay's 2026 has been busy. Next up is her Emmys host gig
Mariska Hargitay has been a mainstay on television as Capt. Olivia Benson on "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." Now, she's taking on TV's biggest night as host of the 78th Emmy Awards.
Memos expose secret industry push to kill California plastic laws
Leaked internal memos reveal how a packaging alliance drove a widespread lobbying and marketing campaign to dismantle California’s landmark plastic and recycling laws.
Health questions? “Ask Away.” PC Health™ launches new “Built in Canada for Canadians” AI-powered health chat
The only AI-powered chat created expressly for all Canadians, connecting people to trusted, practical information, and appropriate care optionsPersonalized answers to health questions that Canadians can trustBacked by more than 1,000 Canadian clinical sourcesAll health chat conversations are stored in Canada and are protected under Canadian privacy laws BRAMPTON, Ontario, Sept. 10, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, PC Health™ launched PC Chat™, a free AI-powered health tool built in Canada, based
Singapore PM defends political pay hike as 'responsible course to take'
Singapore's prime minister said on Thursday he deliberated "long and hard" over an increase in ministerial and lawmakers' salaries, already among the highest in the world, but felt it was necessary to attract talent into government ranks.
Analysis | Meet the lawmaker who’s worried about Christian nationalism
Rep. Jared Huffman is concerned about religious freedom.
Health officials, auditors at odds over millions in Medicaid payments to inmates
Lawmakers were left frustrated and confused Wednesday after a 2.5-hour discussion with state auditors and health officials turned into a debate over whether millions in Medicaid payments made on behalf of incarcerated individuals were proper.
Pa. Republican lawmakers say proposed Department of Health regulations pose privacy concerns
Pennsylvania’s Department of Health is facing widespread pushback from Republican lawmakers who say the agency’s plan for how it would respond to future infectious disease outbreaks would give health officials
Lafferty, Highway Outlaws like to get the crowd moving
ELOY — Popular local musician Everett D. Lafferty and his Band the Highway Outlaws return to the Eloy Fiestas Patrias stage this year, promising a lineup of dance-worthy, sing-along songs.
Law Enforcement Honors Dr. John Howard and the World Trade Center Health Program Team With ‘Service Above Self’ Award on 9/11
WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, September 8, 2026 / EINPresswire.com / -- The Federal Law Enforcement Officers Foundation , in partnership with the Police Unity Tour and the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, is proud to announce that the World Trade Center Health Program (WTCHP)
Remember the injustice of forced unionism
By Mark Mix This Labor Day we celebrated the men and women whose hard work keeps the country running. But in Colorado, many of those same workers face a real threat: pay union dues or lose their job. That’s because Colorado is one of the minority of states that lacks a Right to Work law. Right […]
Republican Senate Candidates Avoid Tariffs and Iran War at Trump’s Convention
Four battleground Senate nominees who spoke sidestepped a pair of issues that have posed political challenges, focusing instead on Mr. Trump’s tax law and other topics.
Lawsuit settled over former Wake County employee recording women at a health facility
Wake County has settled a lawsuit over a former medical assistant's placement of cameras in a women's restroom.
KCK-area school fired employee for talking politics with state rep, lawsuit claims
The employee allegedly told the rep that “trans rights are human rights” and “diverting taxpayer $ to private schools is not right,” the suit says.
Anthropic researcher's resignation sends warning about the dangers of AI development
Jacob Coxon, who said he spent three years doing research at both Anthropic and OpenAI, said Tuesday on the social platform X that the two AI companies are more focused on beating each other and global competitors in developing the most advanced model possible than they are on safety.
SSM St. Mary's nurses in Madison file federal labor complaint against health system
Nurses at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison say the health system violated federal labor law in its opposition to their unionization effort.
Jacksonville mother files lawsuit over court-ordered C-section, alleges UF Health falsely reported she was suicidal
Cherise Doyley, the Jacksonville mother who was in active labor when a judge appeared on a tablet in her hospital room to consider whether doctors could perform a C-section against her wishes, has officially filed a federal lawsuit against UF Health and several individuals involved in the 2024 case.
Maryland lawmakers press health officials over millions in questionable Medicaid payments
Maryland lawmakers press health officials over millions in questionable Medicaid payments
Maryland lawmakers pressed state health officials Wednesday over millions of dollars in questionable Medicaid payments and other repeat problems flagged by stat
Wayne County Commission removes mental health network board member after misconduct investigation
An outside law firm investigated allegations against Kenya Ruth, a board member for the county's community mental authority accused of "erratic" behavior.
Governance by Consent in Health Policy? - Petrie-Flom Center
Health lawyers are accustomed to thinking about statutes, regulations, and agency action.
The Center for Health and Human Rights submits an input to the United Nations on mobilizing public resources to finance sustainable development
The Center for Health and Human Rights (CHHR) of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown Law submitted an input on August 20 in response to
Gov. Andy Beshear says arrest of former Gov. Matt Bevin shows 'the rule of law still applies'
Supreme Court sets Sept. 30 arguments over validity of K-12, collegiate sports ballot measure
The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a lawsuit seeking to disqualify a ballot measure around sex-separate school sports requirements.
Republican lawmakers criticize Ford business ties to China
WASHINGTON, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Republicans in Congress on Wednesday joined criticism of Ford Motor over its business ties to Chinese firms after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sharply criticized the No. 2 U.S. automaker. Republican Senator R...
Republican lawmakers criticize Ford business ties to China
Republicans in Congress on Wednesday joined criticism of Ford Motor over its business ties to Chinese firms after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sharply criticized the No. 2 U.S. automaker.
Lawmakers question ties between Freedom 250 and Trump campaign
Lawmakers are questioning whether Republican groups used personal information collected at Freedom 250 events to build political contact lists.
Policy vs. Practice: Digitizing Mexico's Healthcare Ecosystem
Mexico's new digital health law mandates EHRs and telemedicine, but market and infrastructure gaps could slow real-world adoption.
Myths and facts about donating blood, and how it could reveal clues about your own health
The Cost of Cutting American Science: How Federal Cuts Diminish Public Health Capacity
Among the federal government’s many responsibilities is the work it does to protect public health. Federal agencies monitor our food supply to ensure safety, conduct research to better understand emerging health threats, provide funding for public health programs in communities and work to detect and respond to disease outbreaks. Americans rely on these efforts every day—in a 2024 online survey, 74% of respondents said that “if the federal government issued safety guidance about food you eat regularly,” they would follow it. Changes to Federal Public Health Capacity The Trump administration’s efforts to reshape the federal government have resulted in significant impacts on our nation’s public health capacity over the past 20 months, affecting the response to health concerns such as measles, Ebola and cyclosporiasis. Agencies with core public health, food safety and disease prevention responsibilities experienced large workforce decreases during the first year of the administration. At the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for instance, the workforce in February 2026 was 26.7% smaller than in September 2024 before the start of the Trump administration. The Food and Drug Administration saw a similarly steep decline of 21.6%. Agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and Food Safety and Inspection Service also experienced large workforce decreases. (function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(`message`,function(e){if(e.data[`datawrapper-height`]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(`iframe`);for(var n in e.data[`datawrapper-height`])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[`datawrapper-height`][n]+`px`;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})(); Changes can also be seen in crucial public health occupations. The number of federal food inspectors, for example, decreased by more than half between September 2024 and February 2026, going from 1,035 to 473. This is the lowest number of food inspectors employed by the federal government since at least 2005. By February 2026, there were also 33.3% fewer federal public health program specialists, whose work includes advising federal funding recipients on public health activities and analyzing the effectiveness of public health programs. Government’s capacity is diminished as employees with specialized knowledge and experience in protecting the public and responding to health risks depart, leaving agencies less prepared to carry out their public health missions. There also have been vacancies in critical high-level leadership positions at public health agencies, most notably at the CDC, which had a permanent Senate-confirmed director for less than a month between January 2025 and early August 2026. Although the CDC has previously been led by acting directors at the start of an administration, the nearly yearlong gap since the departure of the administration’s first permanent director in August 2025 is without precedent. As of August 2026, the FDA is also currently without a Senate-confirmed commissioner following the previous commissioner’s resignation in May 2026. Additionally, public health agencies are experiencing increased politicization of their leadership ranks. In agencies such as the CDC and Food Safety and Inspection Service, the number of individuals in the Senior Executive Service—the most senior career leaders in government—has declined significantly, while at the same time the number of political appointees has reached record levels. (function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(`message`,function(e){if(e.data[`datawrapper-height`]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(`iframe`);for(var n in e.data[`datawrapper-height`])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[`datawrapper-height`][n]+`px`;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})(); (function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(`message`,function(e){if(e.data[`datawrapper-height`]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(`iframe`);for(var n in e.data[`datawrapper-height`])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[`datawrapper-height`][n]+`px`;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})(); At the CDC, for example, the number of career SES decreased 42.9% between December 2024 and February 2026, while the number of non-Senate confirmed political appointees at the agency was six times larger than the agency’s historical average from 2009 and 2024. Knowledgeable career leaders are integral to the ability of public health agencies to carry out their work with scientific integrity and professional judgment, and rapid leadership turnover and increased politicization threaten agencies’ ability to make evidence-based decisions to protect our health. The upheaval and politicization in public health agencies have also negatively affected employee engagement. Strong employee engagement is crucial to the ability of agencies to carry out their mission and successfully provide essential services to the public. In the 2025 Public Service Viewpoint Survey conducted by the Partnership for Public Service, the Department of Health and Human Services—which encompasses major public health agencies such as the CDC and FDA—had an employee engagement and satisfaction score of 20.4 out of 100, one of the lowest among large agencies. Only 2.8% of HHS employees indicated trust in their political leaders and only 8.7% reported confidence that they could report a suspected violation of law or regulation without retaliation. Employees at HHS also reported that the agency’s ability to provide services to the public had suffered. Nearly half of employees at HHS, 47.5%, said their work unit was worse at delivering quality services compared to its performance in 2024. In addition, 57.8% said their work unit was performing worse at fulfilling stakeholder needs. In addition to the work done within federal agencies, the federal government also distributes significant funding for public health and disease prevention work to state and local governments, nonprofits and small businesses—funding which has been significantly disrupted. At the CDC, for example, there was a 71.9% decrease in the amount of project grant funding issued in fiscal year 2025 compared to fiscal year 2024. The FDA also issued far less funding in fiscal year 2025—a 21.3% decrease from its fiscal year 2024 funding. Changes in federal funding include the ending of grants to community organizations that worked on HIV prevention and the cancellation of funding for research into improvements to patient safety and healthcare quality. These changes go beyond federal agencies to impact the broader public health ecosystem, including the state and local health departments responsible for much of the on-the-ground public health work in their communities. About 80% of the CDC’s domestic funding is directed towards state and local partners—meaning that cuts to CDC funding can ultimately result in cuts to state and local public health capacity. Federal agencies also provide expertise and assistance to state and local health agencies as they deal with particular health challenges, but workforce cuts have resulted in fewer federal employees available to help. The Impact of Changes to Public Health Capacity These changes to federal public health capacity are not abstract concerns. Disrupted programs, reduced funding and lost expertise at public health agencies across all levels of government threaten the public’s physical well-being and safety. In some cases, this has already led to harm. The most immediate impacts of federal cuts were seen in interruptions to ongoing public health programs and crisis responses. In one instance, when CDC grants were canceled during the 2025 Texas measles outbreak—the most severe measles outbreak in 25 years—public health officials in Lubbock, Texas were forced to pause parts of their measles response work supported by the frozen funding. Lubbock’s director of public health further said that a lack of available CDC experts to reach out to for advice “definitely” impacted the department’s response to the measles crisis. Cuts to federal funding also forced Dallas County Health and Human Services to cut staff and cancel 50 community vaccination clinics during the outbreak. Public health work outside of major outbreak responses was also disrupted. For example, in April 2025, the Milwaukee Public Health Department was unexpectedly unable to reach experts on lead poisoning due to firings at the CDC when responding to concerns about lead contamination in Milwaukee public schools. Due to federal workforce cuts, several programs at the CDC, including Alzheimer’s and epilepsy programs, have also become trapped in limbo—existing on paper, but without the staff necessary to operate. More recent crises reveal how federal cuts have weakened the public health infrastructure needed to prevent and respond to dangerous new outbreaks. Internationally, cuts at the U.S. Agency for International Development eliminated funding for disease testing and contact tracing abroad, which delayed detection of and responses to the 2026 Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. While international outbreaks may seem far removed, the unchecked spread of disease in any country can quickly pose a danger to economic well-being, security and health around the world. Within the United States, public health cuts inhibited responses to the summer 2026 outbreak of the food-borne parasite cyclospora. At the federal level, cuts to funding for lab equipment and for CDC staff with expertise in parasitic infections—including 9 out of 11 staff members at the lab responsible for identifying parasitic outbreaks in 2025— contributed to the largest reporting delay in outbreak cases at the CDC in 15 years. Conflicting communications from the FDA about the source of the outbreak, which followed cuts to the agency’s communications department, additionally led to confusion among the public about how to best avoid infection. At the same time, cuts to HHS funding and support for local and state public health slowed some health departments’ responses to the crisis. The exact costs of these delays, constraints and confusion in public health responses are difficult to estimate. However, their message is clear: federal cuts have already made containing threats to public health even more of a challenge. Conclusion Protecting public health—from food safety to disease prevention—is one of the federal government’s most important missions. Dramatic and haphazard cuts to federal agencies and funding have already disrupted the public health system, impacting the response to challenges such as measles, lead poisoning and cyclosporiasis. The U.S. public health system needed improvement before these disruptions. Since 2022, federal leadership and coordination in response to public health outbreaks has been on the Government Accountability Office’s High-Risk List of areas in need of attention to improve government effectiveness and efficiency. Recent cuts only compound these concerns. The chaotic dismantling of government and resulting disruptions to crucial functions like public health and disease prevention highlight the need for meaningful reform and concrete policy proposals to reimagine how government can better serve the public and be more effective, responsive and accountable. To learn more about the impact of federal cuts to public health and science more broadly, visit The Cost of Cutting American Science. Learn more For more information on the Partnership for Public Service’s government reform initiative, visit Government for a New Era. View here In line with The Cost of Cutting American Science, federal workforce data in this brief is as of February 2026
The Cost of Cutting American Science: How Federal Cuts Diminish Public Health Capacity
Among the federal government’s many responsibilities is the work it does to protect public health. Federal agencies monitor our food supply to ensure safety, conduct research to better understand emerging health threats, provide funding for public health programs in communities and work to detect and respond to disease outbreaks. Americans rely on these efforts every day—in a 2024 online survey, 74% of respondents said that “if the federal government issued safety guidance about food you eat regularly,” they would follow it. Changes to Federal Public Health Capacity The Trump administration’s efforts to reshape the federal government have resulted in significant impacts on our nation’s public health capacity over the past 20 months, affecting the response to health concerns such as measles, Ebola and cyclosporiasis. Agencies with core public health, food safety and disease prevention responsibilities experienced large workforce decreases during the first year of the administration. At the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for instance, the workforce in February 2026 was 26.7% smaller than in September 2024 before the start of the Trump administration. The Food and Drug Administration saw a similarly steep decline of 21.6%. Agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and Food Safety and Inspection Service also experienced large workforce decreases. (function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(`message`,function(e){if(e.data[`datawrapper-height`]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(`iframe`);for(var n in e.data[`datawrapper-height`])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[`datawrapper-height`][n]+`px`;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})(); Changes can also be seen in crucial public health occupations. The number of federal food inspectors, for example, decreased by more than half between September 2024 and February 2026, going from 1,035 to 473. This is the lowest number of food inspectors employed by the federal government since at least 2005. By February 2026, there were also 33.3% fewer federal public health program specialists, whose work includes advising federal funding recipients on public health activities and analyzing the effectiveness of public health programs. Government’s capacity is diminished as employees with specialized knowledge and experience in protecting the public and responding to health risks depart, leaving agencies less prepared to carry out their public health missions. There also have been vacancies in critical high-level leadership positions at public health agencies, most notably at the CDC, which had a permanent Senate-confirmed director for less than a month between January 2025 and early August 2026. Although the CDC has previously been led by acting directors at the start of an administration, the nearly yearlong gap since the departure of the administration’s first permanent director in August 2025 is without precedent. As of August 2026, the FDA is also currently without a Senate-confirmed commissioner following the previous commissioner’s resignation in May 2026. Additionally, public health agencies are experiencing increased politicization of their leadership ranks. In agencies such as the CDC and Food Safety and Inspection Service, the number of individuals in the Senior Executive Service—the most senior career leaders in government—has declined significantly, while at the same time the number of political appointees has reached record levels. (function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(`message`,function(e){if(e.data[`datawrapper-height`]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(`iframe`);for(var n in e.data[`datawrapper-height`])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[`datawrapper-height`][n]+`px`;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})(); (function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(`message`,function(e){if(e.data[`datawrapper-height`]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(`iframe`);for(var n in e.data[`datawrapper-height`])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[`datawrapper-height`][n]+`px`;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})(); At the CDC, for example, the number of career SES decreased 42.9% between December 2024 and February 2026, while the number of non-Senate confirmed political appointees at the agency was six times larger than the agency’s historical average from 2009 and 2024. Knowledgeable career leaders are integral to the ability of public health agencies to carry out their work with scientific integrity and professional judgment, and rapid leadership turnover and increased politicization threaten agencies’ ability to make evidence-based decisions to protect our health. The upheaval and politicization in public health agencies have also negatively affected employee engagement. Strong employee engagement is crucial to the ability of agencies to carry out their mission and successfully provide essential services to the public. In the 2025 Public Service Viewpoint Survey conducted by the Partnership for Public Service, the Department of Health and Human Services—which encompasses major public health agencies such as the CDC and FDA—had an employee engagement and satisfaction score of 20.4 out of 100, one of the lowest among large agencies. Only 2.8% of HHS employees indicated trust in their political leaders and only 8.7% reported confidence that they could report a suspected violation of law or regulation without retaliation. Employees at HHS also reported that the agency’s ability to provide services to the public had suffered. Nearly half of employees at HHS, 47.5%, said their work unit was worse at delivering quality services compared to its performance in 2024. In addition, 57.8% said their work unit was performing worse at fulfilling stakeholder needs. In addition to the work done within federal agencies, the federal government also distributes significant funding for public health and disease prevention work to state and local governments, nonprofits and small businesses—funding which has been significantly disrupted. At the CDC, for example, there was a 71.9% decrease in the amount of project grant funding issued in fiscal year 2025 compared to fiscal year 2024. The FDA also issued far less funding in fiscal year 2025—a 21.3% decrease from its fiscal year 2024 funding. Changes in federal funding include the ending of grants to community organizations that worked on HIV prevention and the cancellation of funding for research into improvements to patient safety and healthcare quality. These changes go beyond federal agencies to impact the broader public health ecosystem, including the state and local health departments responsible for much of the on-the-ground public health work in their communities. About 80% of the CDC’s domestic funding is directed towards state and local partners—meaning that cuts to CDC funding can ultimately result in cuts to state and local public health capacity. Federal agencies also provide expertise and assistance to state and local health agencies as they deal with particular health challenges, but workforce cuts have resulted in fewer federal employees available to help. The Impact of Changes to Public Health Capacity These changes to federal public health capacity are not abstract concerns. Disrupted programs, reduced funding and lost expertise at public health agencies across all levels of government threaten the public’s physical well-being and safety. In some cases, this has already led to harm. The most immediate impacts of federal cuts were seen in interruptions to ongoing public health programs and crisis responses. In one instance, when CDC grants were canceled during the 2025 Texas measles outbreak—the most severe measles outbreak in 25 years—public health officials in Lubbock, Texas were forced to pause parts of their measles response work supported by the frozen funding. Lubbock’s director of public health further said that a lack of available CDC experts to reach out to for advice “definitely” impacted the department’s response to the measles crisis. Cuts to federal funding also forced Dallas County Health and Human Services to cut staff and cancel 50 community vaccination clinics during the outbreak. Public health work outside of major outbreak responses was also disrupted. For example, in April 2025, the Milwaukee Public Health Department was unexpectedly unable to reach experts on lead poisoning due to firings at the CDC when responding to concerns about lead contamination in Milwaukee public schools. Due to federal workforce cuts, several programs at the CDC, including Alzheimer’s and epilepsy programs, have also become trapped in limbo—existing on paper, but without the staff necessary to operate. More recent crises reveal how federal cuts have weakened the public health infrastructure needed to prevent and respond to dangerous new outbreaks. Internationally, cuts at the U.S. Agency for International Development eliminated funding for disease testing and contact tracing abroad, which delayed detection of and responses to the 2026 Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. While international outbreaks may seem far removed, the unchecked spread of disease in any country can quickly pose a danger to economic well-being, security and health around the world. Within the United States, public health cuts inhibited responses to the summer 2026 outbreak of the food-borne parasite cyclospora. At the federal level, cuts to funding for lab equipment and for CDC staff with expertise in parasitic infections—including 9 out of 11 staff members at the lab responsible for identifying parasitic outbreaks in 2025— contributed to the largest reporting delay in outbreak cases at the CDC in 15 years. Conflicting communications from the FDA about the source of the outbreak, which followed cuts to the agency’s communications department, additionally led to confusion among the public about how to best avoid infection. At the same time, cuts to HHS funding and support for local and state public health slowed some health departments’ responses to the crisis. The exact costs of these delays, constraints and confusion in public health responses are difficult to estimate. However, their message is clear: federal cuts have already made containing threats to public health even more of a challenge. Conclusion Protecting public health—from food safety to disease prevention—is one of the federal government’s most important missions. Dramatic and haphazard cuts to federal agencies and funding have already disrupted the public health system, impacting the response to challenges such as measles, lead poisoning and cyclosporiasis. The U.S. public health system needed improvement before these disruptions. Since 2022, federal leadership and coordination in response to public health outbreaks has been on the Government Accountability Office’s High-Risk List of areas in need of attention to improve government effectiveness and efficiency. Recent cuts only compound these concerns. The chaotic dismantling of government and resulting disruptions to crucial functions like public health and disease prevention highlight the need for meaningful reform and concrete policy proposals to reimagine how government can better serve the public and be more effective, responsive and accountable. To learn more about the impact of federal cuts to public health and science more broadly, visit The Cost of Cutting American Science. Learn more For more information on the Partnership for Public Service’s government reform initiative, visit Government for a New Era. View here In line with The Cost of Cutting American Science, federal workforce data in this brief is as of February 2026
Indigenous Arts Initiative will offer workshops on arts, entertainment industry
The Indigenous Arts Initiative, which includes partners from the University of Kansas, will bring two distinguished Indigenous artists and educators to Lawrence this September for a series of free public workshops exploring art, culture, storytelling and filmmaking.
Brayton Purcell LLP Highlights Business Insurance Coverage of Growing Artificial Stone Silicosis Crisis
/PRNewswire/ -- Brayton Purcell LLP is bringing attention to a recent Business Insurance article examining the growing number of silicosis lawsuits involving...
Singapore PM salary set to rise to $2.85M under political pay overhaul
Singapore updated its executive compensation benchmarks, setting its prime minister pay target at $2.85 million while capping initial actual raises at 9%.
Review | Cavalluna’s Hong Kong debut was a magical, if cliché, equine spectacle
Cavalluna’s Asian debut stunned the city with its spectacular horsemanship, but plain and flawed storytelling was a fly in the ointment.
Curbing pay-to-play in Chicago politics
Close a loophole to limit political donations from city contractors. Also, data centers, ICE, right-to-die law and the Bears.
No Law Looks Like the Deus Ex Successor I’ve Been Waiting For - An Immersive Sim Shooter in a Cyberpunk City
No Law looks like the Deus Ex successor I’ve been waiting for.
Singapore’s Prime Minister Gets a Big Raise
Singapore’s prime minister, Lawrence Wong, got the bump as part of a longstanding policy to pay high salaries to public servants in order to attract top talent and prevent corruption.
Mayoral candidates must improve public engagement; Prop 134’s flawed science (Letters)
Currently, there is little effort by the City of Boulder to bring opposing groups together to seek common ground. Public input is only solicited after a department has made a decision, so that “engagement” feels like a sales pitch. Boa…
Democrats demand Trump administration halt collection of patients’ ER records
A group of Democratic lawmakers is calling for the Trump administration to suspend a new surveillance program it quietly launched to collect the personal and identifiable health data of Americans who visit emergency rooms.
Hiltzik: Resisting Trump turns out to be a winning business strategy
A study finds that businesses that resisted Trump's anti-diversity pressure paid no price. Are the law firms and universities that capitulated listening?
California voters can fix a flaw in the state's recall system
Proposition 5 on the November ballot would prevent a governor's replacement from taking office by winning just marginal support. It's the first step toward a badly needed overhaul.
India's Serious Fraud Office recommends 'detailed' probe into Xiaomi's business in country
India's Serious Fraud Office has recommended Xiaomi be investigated for alleged irregularities in its business model and compliance with foreign investment law, potentially intensifying scrutiny of the smartphone maker, a government document shows.
Epic v. Health Gorilla: “Working as Designed”
We’ve been on a bit of a legal bender since just before Labor Day, so let’s keep a good thing going! As predicted, Epic does not want its case against Health Gorilla consolidated with the data breach cases, so it filed a motion to vacate the conditional transfer. And because they had to explain to the Panel why this case is different, they put a good chunk of previously unseen Epic v. Health Gorilla discovery record on the public docket! Roll the tape! The Case Against Consolidation Before we get to the fun stuff, let’s do the housekeeping. Epic's motion boils down to three arguments (sorted in ascending order of how well they land): A judge has already decided this. Judge Olguin declined to relate the fraud action to another ELU case (Patterson v. UVA Health), holding that the two do not call for determination of substantially similar questions of law or fact. Epic asks the Panel to treat that (a Rule 42 ruling) as law of the case. The overlap is thin. The three common questions Health Gorilla and the Panel identified are neither numerous nor complex (the qualities the Panel looks for before centralizing). Moreover, they are outnumbered by the questions unique to each side: The breach cases turn on security architecture, notification timing, and patient-level access. The fraud action turns on false treatment attestations and breaches of the framework agreements. Consolidation costs more than it saves. 17 of 21 parties in the fraud action do not appear in a breach case. The cases are also at very different stages: Olguin has a scheduling order running through a January 2028 trial while the breach actions are much more nascent. I like the last two more than the first because they attack the basic economics of an MDL: there just may not be enough shared discovery here to justify dragging all the defendants and a relatively mature fraud case all the way to Florida. On the other hand (while I know exceedingly little about MDL and Rule 42), I have a hard time seeing why a district judge's decision about his own docket would control what the Panel does with the separate § 1407 question. I might be reading between the lines too much, but I sorta think Epic's own brief half-concedes this, framing the two provisions as "two sides of the same coin" but then adding "respectfully submit" (which is often lawyer speak for “we know this is a reach”). The Ladder Gets More Rungs Anyway, the arguments are not why you're here (aside from the lawyers, maybe). Back in June, we discussed how Epic was using the smaller defendants to build an evidentiary ladder toward Health Gorilla and Unit 387. Turns out discovery has been adding a few rungs of its own.
Opinion | How Roy Cohn Shaped Trump
A new book reveals how the lawyer’s legacy lives on decades after his death.
Summerville-based clothing store agrees to pay Buc-ee’s $850,000
Born United, a clothing company based out of Summerville, agreed to settle its lawsuit with Buc-ee’s and pay the gas station giant $850,000 for using and selling apparel featuring its iconic beaver logo without permission.
SC clothing store agrees to pay Buc-ee’s $850,000 in trademark lawsuit
Born United, a clothing company based out of Summerville, agreed to settle its lawsuit with Buc-ee’s and pay the gas station giant $850,000 for using and selling apparel featuring its iconic beaver logo without permission.
Twelve Countries Impose Sanctions on Trade With Israeli Settlements
For the record, Israeli settlements and outposts in the occupied West Bank are considered illegal under international law.
The world’s best-paid politician is getting a $1 million pay rise
Singapore’s ministers are already among the world’s highest-paid politicians, with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong earning more than four times US President Donald Trump’s annual government salary.
Sene
As Halloween approaches, this week’s scene spots Michael Myers standing at the grave of his sister Judith on the lawn of a home in Winchester.
Nebraska Senator Tanya Storer: Law requires brand committee members’ principal business ‘raising cattle’
Last week, the gubernatorial appointments to the newly restructured Nebraska Brand Committee were announced by the Governor’s Office. Under LB1187, the committee should be comprised of five district representatives plus one representative who owns or...
America 250 expenses on Inside West Virginia Politics
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WOWK) – On this week’s episode of Inside West Virginia Politics, our guests join Rick Johnson to discuss America 250 costs, a social media lawsuit and political donations. In Seg…
‘South Park’ is now ‘South America’ in move to mock Trump
Beyond parodying President Trump's Great Lakes order, the move jabs at Paramount and Skydance Media for settling a $16-million lawsuit to clear their merger.
Trump gave $45,000 cash gifts to Natalie Harp, two other close aides
Financial disclosures show the sums were equivalent to nearly one-third of each of their salaries. Experts say the gifts are without precedent and may violate the law.
Judge dismisses ORED Rock Creek Entertainment District lawsuit motions, rules in favor of city
In a four and a half hour hearing Tuesday, Cleveland County Judge Michael Tupper ruled against Oklahomans for Responsible Economic Development and in favor of the city of Norman, Norman
Cleveland County judge denies preliminary injunction in Norman Entertainment District lawsuit
On Tuesday, a Cleveland County Judge issued a preliminary injunction, pausing construction on Norman’s $1 billion Rock Creek Entertainment District.
Alaska review finds potential financial disclosure issues involving 91 candidates
A preliminary Alaska Department of Law review found potential financial disclosure discrepancies involving 91 candidates, but did not determine whether any laws were violated.
AMC will pay $120 million to settle 'Walking Dead' profits lawsuit
LOS ANGELES — AMC Global Media, the network behind the storied zombie franchise "The Walking Dead," has settled a yearslong profits lawsuit from the show's creator and producers. The New
Live results: Delaware primary election
See Delaware election results and maps for the 2026 primaries.
Mass. sues Trump admin over efforts to bar trans health care
The lawsuit comes amid growing unease around gender-affirming care for minors in the state
Sports law professor explains the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard’s NBA punishments
Ken Jacobsen, director of Temple Law’s sports law program, discusses the recent Kawhi Leonard scandal and the heavy punishments being administered by the NBA.
Sports law professor explains the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard’s NBA punishments
Ken Jacobsen, director of Temple Law’s sports law program, discusses the recent Kawhi Leonard scandal and the heavy punishments being administered by the NBA.
At rally to save Academy of Natural Sciences museum, protesters urge Drexel to 'act like it's an emergency'
Local lawmakers and scientists outlined several options to preserve the museum, which is due to close Sept. 30.
Microsoft September 2026 Patch Tuesday fixes 966 flaws, 2 zero-days
Today is Microsoft's September 2026 Patch Tuesday, with security updates released for a record-breaking 966 flaws, including two actively exploited zero-day vulnerabilities.
Parents of San Diego mosque gunman say a mental health facility failed to heed FBI warning
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The mother of Caleb Vazquez alleges in her lawsuit that Park Mental Health Treatment of San Diego failed to intervene despite signs that her 18-year-old son posed an imminent threat to himself and others.
After Causing Delays for 9/11 Health Claims, Social Security Pledges to Do Its Job
Lawyers say the Social Security Administration has for months not provided basic data to complete compensation claims for those sick and dying after exposure to debris from the Sept. 11 attacks.
LMH Health, KU and others form Astra Health with goals of reducing costs, expanding access
LMH Health, the KU Health System and three other Kansas health systems have joined forces to form Astra Health, a collaboration aiming to improve care, reduce costs and better serve rural communities.
New law to force tech firms to prevent children from taking nude images
The government said it will legislate "as soon as they can" but may "reassess" its plans if firms make the desired changes sooner.
Lancaster County judge hears challenge to Nebraska K-12, collegiate sports ballot measure
A Lincoln voter refiled a challenge this week to a ballot measure seeking to cement limits on public school sports participation to student-athletes’ sex at birth after the Nebraska Supreme Court declined to hear the lawsuit.
Former Nebraska men’s basketball guard goes pro in Hungary
Former Nebraska men’s basketball guard Jamarques Lawrence has signed with NKA Universitas Pecs, a first-division team in Hungary.
Sanford Health Patient Advances Suit Over Meta Data Disclosures
Sanford Health Corp. failed to convince a federal judge to toss a proposed class action alleging the Minnesota-based health system collected and disclosed patients’ personal information in violation of state and federal laws.
Foster Swift Welcome Hahn and Serra, Strengthens Business Law and General Counsel Services in Southeast Michigan
Attorney Marcy Hahn Attorney Lisa Serra SOUTHFIELD, Mich., Sept. 08, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Foster Swift Collins & Smith, PC is pleased to announce that attorneys Marcy Hahn and Lisa M. Serra have joined the firm's Southfield office, further strengthening its business law, corporate counseling, and general counsel capabilities throughout Southeast Michigan. Marcy and Lisa bring a unique blend of practices including fractional general counsel to business owners along with family law representat
Norman Rock Creek Entertainment District faces lawsuit over tax increment financing
Norman's Rock Creek Entertainment District is a $1 billion project set to open in 2028, including a multipurpose performance venue, restaurants, retail space, office development, a hotel, and multiple housing options.
UC Berkeley Law event targets Trump science policies as ‘censorship’
The University of California, Berkeley School of Law organized an Aug. 25 discussion focused on resisting censorship and protecting academic freedom in scientific research.
Stanley Black & Decker to sell $300M mower business
Stanley says the sale is an effort to focus on growing its biggest brands, and it will continue to make and market lawn-mowing equipment.
Provident Behavioral Health Data Breach Exposes SSNs, Medical Info
Got notice about the Provident Behavioral Health data breach? Learn why lawyers are considering a class action suit and what you could be owed.
Academy Sports + Outdoors Announces Participation in Upcoming Investor Conference
Academy Sports + Outdoors (the "Company") (Nasdaq: ASO), a leading full-line sporting goods and outdoor recreation retailer, today announced its participation in the upcoming Goldman Sachs 33rd Annual Global Retailing Conference to be held Monday, September 14 to Tuesday, September 15, 2026. Chief Executive Officer, Steve Lawrence, and Chief Financial Officer, Carl Ford, will participate in a fireside chat that will be webcast live on September 15th, at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time. The live webcast
Six decades of politics (but little government)
The first aired episode of “Star Trek,” entitled “The Man Trap,” premiered on September 8, 1966 — 60 years ago today. I’m actually editing a political science fiction issue of The Forum right now, and it’s prompted to me think a lot about the ways that Trek deals with politics and government and what it’s offered us as commentary. The @smotus report is a reader-supported publication. To support this work, please become a paid subscriber. Subscribe The original TV series ran from 1966 to 1969. It had a loyal but modest following, but the audience grew substantially with the series in syndication for years after that. The franchise developed its first motion picture in 1979, followed by five sequels, and then a whole other series of films built around the “Next Generation” series that first aired in 1987. In recent decades, several more TV series have built up around it, including the current “Strange New Worlds,” now in its fourth season. Throughout the past six decades, the franchise has offered us a good many insights into US politics and international relations, although often disguised as science fiction yarns. The original series was largely a Cold War fable, with the United Federation of Planets (a stand-in for the US) perpetually at odds with the Klingon Empire (a stand-in for the USSR). The “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield” episode (1969) posited a planet divided into two races, largely indistinguishable to outsiders, but nonetheless constituting a brutal racial hierarchy. “Patterns of Force” (1968) showed a struggling planet where the leader had attempted to construct a benevolent dictatorship — literally Nazism without bigotry — and found that authoritarianism could not exist apart from hierarchy and oppression. (Relatedly, I’d put “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country,” high on a list of dad films about the end of the Cold War, near “The Hunt for Red October.”) Get 20% off for 1 year Indeed, the original series itself was something of a political statement, with a multi-racial crew running the Enterprise, a diverse and largely peaceful Federation mostly free from want and oppression, and protected by Starfleet, an armed force whose scientific mission was at least as important as its military one. Famously, when Nichelle Nichols wanted to walk away from the role of Uhura on the original series, none other than Martin Luther King, Jr. met with her and urged her to remain on the show, discussing the importance of viewers seeing an intelligent Black woman as part of the command team three centuries hence. Later series in the Trek franchise offered a good deal of political commentary on their own, but probably none as explicitly and incisively as “Deep Space Nine,” which ran from 1993 to 1999. The episodes surrounding the Dominion War, especially the “In The Pale Moonlight” (1998), showed the compromises, sacrifices, and moral rot associated with winning even a just war — probably better than any series would until “Andor” (2022-25). In “Far Beyond The Stars” (1998), Captain Benjamin Sisko is somehow transplanted to the role of a science fiction writer in 1950s New York. The writer is frequently sidelined and his ideas stolen because publishers don’t want to credit a Black writer. Several series have depicted the secretive Section 31 — an unacknowledged black ops security force operating within Starfleet. These episodes often end up using Section 31 as a foil to show the dangers of a lawless group within a lawful society, even (especially) when that group posits itself as essential for everyone else’s freedom to continue. The current “Strange New Worlds” has played with a few political themes. I found the first two seasons of this show among the best that the Trek franchise has produced in decades, but this season and the last have really been struggling for ideas. Yet one interesting thread is the idea that the diplomatic and enlightened leadership style of Captain Christopher Pike will not work in all situations. “A Quality of Mercy” (2022), which I wrote about here, puts Pike in the middle of a battle with a Romulan vessel in an alternate timeline, and finds that Pike’s conciliatory style would actually make a lengthy and deadly war more likely, while a quick and more violent approach might have prevented the war. This season’s opener, “Valles Marineris,” shows a pre-lightspeed civilization locked in a war to the death with a neighboring planet. The idea of an alliance or a federation hasn’t even occurred to them — their ship’s commander is curious but doesn’t see it as an option. For a franchise as political as “Star Trek,” one thing we almost never see is the government. We get occasional glimpses of Starfleet’s council — mostly uniformed people at a rectangular table — but almost no sense of how the Federation is governed. Are there elections? Who is in the legislature? How much power does the president have? What kind of factional divisions do they wrestle with and how? The shows and films are pretty silent on this. We’ve seen a few military tribunals within Starfleet, but little about how civilians deal with crime and injustice. With recent years seeing some of the franchise’s more interesting plot lines and casts, it seems clear that Star Trek is still full of energy and ideas. Given the erosion of American democracy and the reshuffling of the international order, there’s no shortage of material for future shows to comment on. I’m not sure we should toast to 60 more years, but cheers to a show that continues to teach us about ourselves. Share
Scientists confirm Newton’s gravity law
Gravity has survived its largest-scale test yet, holding up across distances of up to 230 megaparsecs, or about 750 million light-years. University of Pennsylvania physicists found that the force weakens with distance almost exactly as Newton’s equations predict, a relationship later incorporated into Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Galaxies and galaxy clusters move faster than...
Scientists Reversed a Law of Physics by Scrambling Cause and Effect
Indefinite causal order let physicists reverse a rule of nature, then confirm it with a split light beam.
Many states have legalized marijuana in some form, but under federal law it remains a controlled substance. That conflict creates challenges when cannabis-related businesses seek banking and other financial services from federally regulated institutions. In this video, GAO Director Courtney LaFountain explains: • The federal guidance available to financial institutions serving cannabis-related businesses • Why banks must conduct enhanced due diligence and file additional reports • What financial institutions consider when deciding whether to serve the cannabis industry • Why cannabis businesses may face higher banking fees and limited access to loans • How restrictions on payment processing
Many states have legalized marijuana in some form, but under federal law it remains a controlled substance. That conflict creates challenges when...
BOOK REVIEW: 'Charlie St. Cloud'
In the village of Marblehead, Mass., 28-year-old Charlie St. Cloud has spent his adult years taking care of the lawns and monuments of the cemetery where his younger brother, Sam,
McInnes vision becoming clear amid step in right direction
The past week or so has been faultless results-wise for Derek McInnes. It's a shame for Lawrence Shankland to facing a spell out injured after beginning to find form with three goals in two games. The transfer window overall was okay, but we can't be making bold statements on the back of three wins against teams Rangers should be beating.
Richard Pan running for Congress on decade-old fight with RFK Jr.
The pediatrician and former state senator has long battled with the U.S. Health and Human Services secretary over California’s vaccine laws.
Some employers let workers buy their own health insurance. Who benefits?
Some Indiana businesses reimburse employees to buy their own health insurance. Lawmakers want more to follow suit.
Ubisoft, Square Enix Opt Out of XBOX Disc to Digital Program
Ubisoft and Square Enix are not participating in XBOX's disc to digital program, players have discovered, with rumors of more big absences.
Can William Lawrence, a Progressive, Flip a Key Michigan House Seat?
William Lawrence, a progressive challenging a first-term Republican, is trying to rewrite the playbook for Democrats running in swing districts.
Health experts, lawmakers push for Pa. kratom regulation; proponents warn they'll fight a ban
In Pennsylvania, kratom and more potent, related products remain legal. There are multiple bills moving through the statehouse that would ban or regulate them. But researchers warn there’s still a lot we don’t know.
NC’s Healthy Opportunities Pilot is coming back — but not at full strength
State lawmakers approved $25 million to restart the Medicaid pilot program after a yearlong pause, but some services may not return.
Lawmaker wrongly blamed for name-twin politician's hospital outburst
A Kaohsiung-based legislator spoke out late Monday to quell a wave of internet wrath, after netizens apparently confused him with a Taipei City councilor of the same name who was accused of an angry outburst at a hospital.
Second-Year Wide Receiver Next Man up For Washington Huskies
Chris Lawson will be a fixture with the Huskies due to the injury to sixth-year wideout Christian moss.
How Energy Justice Is Changing Women’s Lives in Blantyre
By Temwanani Banda, Blantyre, Malawi Every day, before I think about my business, my family or even myself, there is one question that has always come first: How will we cook today? For many women in Blantyre District, Malawi, cooking begins long before a pot is placed on the fire. It begins with finding fuel. […]
Kansas prepares for first ‘Border Showdown’ in Lawrence since 2005
LAWRENCE (KSNT) — The ‘Border Showdown’ returns to Lawrence, in its 122nd playing, for the first time in 21 years. The rivalry was renewed last year, for the first time since 2011, when the Missouri Tigers took the 42-31 win. Head coach Lance Leipold was impressed with what he saw from the Tigers in their […]
Paramount Weighs Assets Selloff to Save Deal
Paramount Skydance Corp. is reportedly considering selling off cable and real estate assets as it looks to settle a multistate antitrust lawsuit
Thriston Lawrence rallies from 6 behind and beats Paul Casey in a playoff in Switzerland
Thriston Lawrence is a winner for the third time in five years at the European Masters. This one took a final-round 62 and four playoff holes to beat Paul Casey.
Taylor back on the ballot after Dahlstrom reverses course
Alaska Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom reversed her decision not to certify Treg Taylor for the November ballot. The move came after a Department of Law review raised questions about how
Alaska officials clarify ballot after Lt. Gov. Dahlstrom reversal
Alaska Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom reversed her decision not to certify Treg Taylor and Jose Tagle for the November ballot. A Department of Law review found potential discrepancies in 91