Justice Department files emergency order to block Texas abortion law
CBSN
The Department of Justice filed an emergency order late Tuesday, asking for a temporary halt to the new Texas law that bans abortions past six weeks. The department said in its filing that the new law, also known as S.B. 8, prevents "women from exercising their constitutional rights."
"The United States seeks a temporary restraining order or a preliminary injunction enjoining the enforcement of S.B. 8," the department said. "This relief is necessary to protect the constitutional rights of women in Texas and the sovereign interest of the United States in ensuring that its States respect the terms of the national compact. It is also necessary to protect federal agencies, employees, and contractors whose lawful actions S.B. 8 purports to prohibit."
The department claims the law, which went into effect two weeks ago, violates the 14th Amendment.
President Joe Biden said France was America's "first friend" at its founding and is one of its closest allies more than two centuries later as he was honored with a state visit Saturday by French President Emmanuel Macron aimed at showing off their partnership on global security issues and easing past trade tensions.
The Consumer Federal Protection Bureau last week launched an inquiry into what the agency is calling "junk fees in mortgage closing costs." These additional fees, involving home appraisal, title insurance and other services, have spiked in recent years and can add thousands of dollars to the final cost of buying a home.
Retired Maj. Gen. William Anders, the former Apollo 8 astronaut who took the iconic "Earthrise" photo showing the planet as a shadowed blue marble from space in 1968, was killed Friday when the plane he was piloting alone plummeted into the waters off the San Juan Islands in Washington state. He was 90.