US civil liberties groups have sued Louisiana for what they called its “blatantly unconstitutional” new law requiring all state-funded schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms.
The state’s rightwing Republican governor, Jeff Landry, who succeeded the former Democratic governor John Bel Edwards in January, provocatively declared after signing the statute on Wednesday: “I can’t wait to be sued.”
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) joined with its Louisiana affiliate and two other bodies – Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Freedom of Religion Foundation – to immediately take him up on his challenge by announcing they were doing precisely that.
BREAKING: We’re suing Louisiana for requiring all public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom.
— ACLU (@ACLU) June 19, 2024
Public schools are not Sunday schools.
In a joint statement, the ACLU and its allies said the law, HB 71, amounted to religious coercion. They also said it violated Louisiana state law, longstanding precedent established by the US supreme court and the first amendment of the US constitution, which guarantees separation of church and state.
The White House has hit back again against accusations by Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, that the US is holding back weapons and ammunition from Israel in its war in Gaza.
The Israeli leader made the claims of a supposedly deliberate weapons delay in a video posted on social media in which he implied that Israel’s ability to prevail in the nine-month war with Hamas was being hampered as a result. Netanyahu said:
I said it’s inconceivable that in the past few months the administration has been withholding weapons and ammunitions to Israel – Israel, America’s closest ally, fighting for its life, fighting against Iran and our other common enemies.
The White House’s spokesperson John Kirby, speaking to reporters today, said he had “no idea” what Netanyahu’s motivation was in making the statement.
We didn’t know that video was coming. It was perplexing to say the least.
Kirby described Netanyahu’s comments as “deeply disappointing and vexing”, adding:
[There’s] no other country that’s done more or will continue to do more than the United States to help Israel defend itself.
The day so far
The supreme court put out a batch of new opinions this morning, none of which dealt with hotly anticipated cases on emergency abortions, Donald Trump’s immunity petition, or federal regulations that the conservative-dominated body has pending before it, though the justices did allow a Trump-era tax provision on foreign investments to stand. However, we’re not done hearing from the court this week: the justices will release more opinions on Friday. Meanwhile, the contours of next Thursday’s presidential debate are shaping up, with Trump opting to get the last word, and Biden the podium of his choosing. Robert F Kennedy Jr won’t be on the debate stage, and is not happy about it.
Here’s what else has happened today so far:
Trump has the edge over Biden in several swing states, and is tied with him in Democratic stronghold Minnesota, a new poll found. However, the results are in the margin of error, and the survey also found support slipping for the former president among crucial independents.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, will make a joint address to Congress on 24 July at 2pm, Republican House speaker Mike Johnson announced.
Jeff Landry, the Republican governor of Louisiana, signed legislation mandating that the Ten Commandments be displayed in public classrooms.
Independent presidential candidate Kennedy blames Trump, Biden for failure to qualify for debate
Robert F Kennedy Jr has hit out at both Donald Trump and Joe Biden, after the independent presidential candidate failed to qualify for the first presidential debate, to be hosted by CNN next Thursday.
The network said only Trump and Biden met their criteria for the debate. But in a statement, Kennedy blamed the two leading presidential contenders for keeping him off the debate stage:
Presidents Biden and Trump do not want me on the debate stage and CNN illegally agreed to their demand. My exclusion by Presidents Biden and Trump from the debate is undemocratic, un-American, and cowardly. Americans want an independent leader who will break apart the two-party duopoly. They want a President who will heal the divide, restore the middle class, unwind the war machine, and end the chronic disease epidemic.
Here’s what CNN said about their qualifications to make the debate:
In order to qualify for participation, candidates had to satisfy the requirements outlined in Article II, Section 1 of the US Constitution to serve as president, as well as file a formal statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission.
According to parameters set by CNN in May, all participating debaters had to appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote threshold to win the presidency and receive at least 15% in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters that meet CNN’s standards for reporting.
Polls that meet those standards are those sponsored by CNN, ABC News, CBS News, Fox News, Marquette University Law School, Monmouth University, NBC News, The New York Times/Siena College, NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist College, Quinnipiac University, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post.
Biden and Trump were the only candidates to meet those requirements.
New poll shows Trump with edge in swing states, tied with Biden in Democratic stronghold Minnesota
A new poll of swing states shows Donald Trump with the edge over Joe Biden, and tied with the president in Minnesota, which has not supported a Republican presidential candidate in 52 years.
The poll was conducted by Emerson College, and lines up with other surveys that have indicated Biden faces uphill battle for re-election in November:
JUNE STATE POLLS with @thehill
— Emerson College Polling (@EmersonPolling) June 20, 2024
AZ: 47% Trump, 43% Biden
GA: 45% Trump, 41% Biden
MI: 46% Trump, 45% Biden
MN: 45% Trump, 45% Biden
NV: 46% Trump, 43% Biden
PA: 47% Trump, 45% Biden
WI: 47% Trump, 44% Bidenhttps://t.co/JvHu3EZT4M pic.twitter.com/P6MuS7JNvT
Spencer Kimball, the executive director of Emerson College Polling, said the data indicates little movement in overall support for the two candidates since Trump was convicted of felony business fraud last month.
However, Kimball noted that “results fall within the poll’s margin of error,” and that there have been signs of Trump’s support declining with independent voters, who may play the deciding role in this election:
In Arizona, Trump’s support among independents dropped five points, from 48% to 43%. In Michigan, Trump’s support dropped three, from 44% to 41%, and in Pennsylvania, Trump dropped eight points, from 49% to 41%. Biden lost support among independents in Georgia, by six points, 42% to 36% and Nevada, by five, 37% to 32%.
Trump gets last word, Biden preferred podium placement at next week's CNN debate
The Trump and Biden campaigns flipped a coin to sort out some of the lingering issues ahead of next Thursday’s first presidential debate, and CNN has announced the results.
Joe Biden won the coin flip, and opted to choose a specific podium. That left Donald Trump to specify if he would have the last word of the debate, or leave that to Biden.
Here’s what the two candidates chose, from CNN:
The coin landed on the Biden campaign’s pick – tails – which meant his campaign got to choose whether it wanted to select the president’s podium position or the order of closing statements.
Biden’s campaign chose to select the right podium position, which means the Democratic president will be on the right side of television viewers’ screens and his Republican rival will be on viewers’ left.
Trump’s campaign then chose for the former president to deliver the last closing statement, which means Biden will go first at the conclusion of the debate.
Israeli prime minister Netanyahu to address Congress on 24 July
Republican speaker of the House Mike Johnson has announced that Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address a joint session of Congress on 24 July.
Netanyahu’s 2pm address will take place in the House chamber, and comes amid tensions with the Biden administration and some Democrats over the Israeli leader’s handling of the invasion of Gaza. Earlier this year, Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate majority leader, called for Israel to hold new elections, and said Netanyahu “has lost his way”.
Here’s more on Netanyahu’s planned speech:
Louisiana’s governor Jeff Landry just signed legislation to require public classrooms display the Ten Commandments – setting up a clash over the separation of church and state that seems destined for the courts.
The Republican governor invoked Moses yesterday, as he signed the bill:
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry (R) invokes biblical figures as he signs a law requiring public school classrooms in the state to display the Ten Commandments:
— The Recount (@therecount) June 20, 2024
“If you want to respect the rule of law, you’ve got to start from the original lawgiver, which was Moses." pic.twitter.com/3BywlBDmno
The supreme court has struck down previous attempts by states to mandate the Ten Commandments be displayed in classrooms, but they last ruled on the issue four decades ago:
The supreme court weighed in today on a case regarding a provision of Donald Trump’s 2017 tax code overhaul dealing with foreign investments. But, as the Guardian’s Lauren Aratani reports, the case was part of a larger battle over proposals to tax billionaires, and the court’s decisions signaled that future skirmishes are to come:
The US supreme court on Thursday ruled against a Washington couple who argued they were unconstitutionally taxed $15,000 for their investment in a foreign company – in a case some have argued was a backdoor attempt to ban future wealth taxes.
The case, Moore v US, put into question what assets are considered taxable income. Some experts say the case was used as a vehicle to give the supreme court an opportunity to weigh in on a hypothetical billionaire’s tax, which would raise similar questions on what assets can be taxed.
As the court was hearing the case in December, experts were worried that it put into question the long-established tax code, threatening to wreak havoc on what Americans may be taxed for.
The vote was 7-2 with Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Neil Gorsuch dissenting. In his opinion, Justice Brett Kavanaugh described the ruling as “narrow”, leaving an opening for future challenges.
Supreme court expected to release more decisions on Friday
The supreme court this morning issued four decisions dealing with less well-known criminal justices matters, as well as an aspect of Donald Trump’s 2017 tax code overhaul that covers shares in foreign companies.
The justices are expected to tomorrow release more opinions, and the chances that they will weigh in on the high-profile abortion, federal regulation or Trump-related cases are high.
Among the cases they have left to decide is Trump’s petition for immunity from the federal charges brought against him for trying to overturn the 2020 election:
As well as whether the Biden administration can force federally funded hospitals in Idaho to carry out emergency abortions, despite the state’s strict ban:
And a case that could upend a swath of federal regulations:
The court may release their opinions on one, some, all, or perhaps even none of these cases tomorrow, starting at 10am ET. We’ll be watching out for them on this blog.
The supreme court issued two more opinions, both on comparatively obscure matters, and is now done releasing decisions for today.
One was Diaz v United States, which centered on a drug trafficking prosecution, and dealt with expert witness testimony. You can read their opinion here.
The second was Gonzalez v Trevino, a fairly convoluted case dealing with the evidence a plaintiff requires to prove that they were wrongfully arrested in Texas. That opinion can be found here.
The second supreme court decision of today is Chiaverini v City of Napoleon, Ohio, which deals with situations in which someone who believes they have been wrongfully charged may bring a malicious-prosecution claim.
This is one of the lower-profile cases the court dealt with, and you can read how they ruled here.
Supreme court upholds Trump-era tax rule on foreign income
The first case is Moore v United States, which deals with whether a one-time tax on Americans who hold shares in foreign corporations is legal.
The tax was created under the 2017 tax code overhaul enacted under Donald Trump. In a 7-2 vote, the court held that it is legal.
Updated
Supreme court to release latest opinions
It’s almost 10am here in Washington DC, which means the supreme court will soon release opinions.
As always, we do not know in advance how many opinions will be released, or on which cases. While the court, which is current composed of six conservative justices and three liberals, has cases pending that touch on abortion rights, federal regulations, social media and Donald Trump’s prosecution for election meddling, it also has to decide matters dealing with lower-profile aspects of federal law.
Either way, we’ll let you know what the decisions are as they come out.
The supreme court is the highest court in the United States, but their rulings are not always the final word on contentious legal topics. Case in point: mifepristone, the abortion medication that the justices unanimously ruled last week could remain on the market. The Guardian’s Carter Sherman reports that, despite their failure at the court this time, conservatives are pursuing other legal challenges to the drug:
The US supreme court has rejected an effort by anti-abortion activists to roll back access to a common abortion pill – but the battle over the pill is far from over, both in the courts and in legislatures.
In a 9-0 unanimous decision on Thursday, the US supreme court ruled that anti-abortion activists did not have standing, or the legal right to sue, over the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) regulation of mifepristone, one of two drugs typically used in a US medication abortion. But because the case turns on an interpretation of legal doctrine, the justices left open the possibility that someone else may challenge mifepristone in the future.
Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a federal judge in Texas who first heard arguments in the case, has allowed Missouri, Idaho and Kansas to join the case as plaintiffs. Although the supreme court declined to let those states join the case once it was before Scotus, the states may continue litigating it at a lower-court level and evade the standing defects that doomed the case’s original plaintiffs.
The powerful anti-abortion group, SBA Pro-Life America, already emphasized that possibility in the organization’s statement on the Thursday ruling.
“The pro-life states of Idaho, Kansas and Missouri are seeking to take up the challenge based on harms suffered by women in their states,” the group said.
Independent Robert F Kennedy fails to qualify for first presidential debate
The window to qualify for the first presidential debate closed today at midnight, and CNN says that only Joe Biden and Donald Trump will appear on the debate stage next Thursday at their studios in Atlanta.
That is bad news for Robert F Kennedy, the independent who has campaigned as an alternative to both Democrats and Republicans, while facing controversy for his doubts over the efficacy of vaccines, and belief in other conspiracy theories.
In an article about the debate, CNN does not mention Kennedy or any other third-party candidate, but notes that only the current and former president met their criteria to qualify:
In order to qualify for participation, candidates had to satisfy the requirements outlined in Article II, Section 1 of the US Constitution to serve as president, as well as file a formal statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission.
According to parameters set by CNN in May, all participating debaters had to appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote threshold to win the presidency and receive at least 15% in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters that meet CNN’s standards for reporting.
Polls that meet those standards are those sponsored by CNN, ABC News, CBS News, Fox News, Marquette University Law School, Monmouth University, NBC News, The New York Times/Siena College, NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist College, Quinnipiac University, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post.
Biden and Trump were the only candidates to meet those requirements.
Major abortion and Trump cases remain undecided as supreme court set to issue latest batch opinions
Good morning, US politics blog readers. The big event for today comes first thing in the morning, when the supreme court releases another batch of opinions at 10am ET. While there’s no telling which cases they will decide, the matters pending before the court give its conservative supermajority opportunities to upend abortion access, federal regulations and the prosecution of Donald Trump for his alleged plot to overturn the 2020 election. The court has decided several cases so far this term, including unanimously allowing abortion pill mifepristone to remain on the market, and doing the same for “bump stocks”, the modification that allows firearms to fire rapidly and was banned under the Trump administration.
The latest batch of decisions comes amid questions over the justices’ ethics, particularly conservatives Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito. The former has been caught up in a furor over his habit of traveling with a conservative billionaire, which he has only partially acknowledged, and the latter flew flags sympathetic to rightwing causes at his properties. But neither justice has heeded Democrats’ calls to recuse from deciding cases, and are expected to have their names on the opinions released today.
Here’s what else is happening:
Joe Biden has a light schedule today, with little other than a trip to Camp David in the evening on his schedule. Perhaps he’s busy preparing for his debate with Trump, set to take place in Atlanta on 27 June.
Mike Turner, the Republican chair of the House intelligence committee, will at 11am give a speech where he will call on Biden to declassify information about Russia’s nuclear anti-satellite weaponry, warning it presents a grave threat to national security, Politico reports.
Fox News released a poll showing Biden overtaking Trump in the support of national registered voters for the first time since last October. However, the president’s support remains within its margin of error.
