Author: Karen Givens

Federal courts have stepped back after Air Force members who lost jobs and pay for refusing the 2021 COVID vaccine mandate pressed their claims, leaving unresolved questions about religious liberty, back pay, and accountability. The Supreme Court declined to take up petitions from service members removed for refusing the vaccine in Poffenbarger v. Meink and Doster v. Meink, effectively closing the courthouse door on their fight for back pay and vindication of religious liberty. The petitions asked whether the government can avoid review by declaring cases moot after imposing punitive policies. The Court’s quiet refusal leaves those questions unanswered. First…

Democrats have surged in early voting one week into the Texas primary on March 3, even after the state secured a redistricting win that favored Republicans and survived a US Supreme Court challenge, with the Texas Secretary of State reporting early returns as of Feb. 24. One week into early voting for the March 3 Texas primary, Democrats are posting unexpectedly strong numbers compared with Republican turnout. That trend is happening despite a high-stakes redistricting fight that ultimately favored Republicans and reached the US Supreme Court. As of Feb. 24, the Texas Secretary of State reported early voting totals that…

Snow piled two feet deep on a docked 113-foot historic whaling ship demanded careful, hands-on work to protect both the vessel and the people clearing it, and the effort mixed preservation concerns, physical labor, and improvisation by crew and volunteers. Clearing 2 feet of snow from a driveway is backbreaking enough. Clearing it from a 113-foot-long historic whaling ship docked in the river is something else entirely. The ship’s length, exposed timbers, and riverside location turn an ordinary chore into a preservation challenge. Snow load matters for old ships because weight and moisture can stress decks, rigging, and hull fittings…

The FDA’s handling of the mifepristone review has become a political flashpoint, sparking sharp criticism from Republican lawmakers and pro-life state officials who see delays as unacceptable and dangerous. The FDA appears to be slow-walking its mifepristone review, frustrating Trump allies in both Congress and pro-life states. That line has become a rallying cry for Republicans demanding clarity, speed, and accountability from an agency they believe is shirking its responsibilities. The tone is blunt: regulators ought to act like regulators, not like political actors worried about fallout. Republican lawmakers view the pause or perceived delay as a failure of leadership…

I spent the first half of a day riding in a CAT-V, the Cold Weather All-Terrain Vehicle used by Arctic units, and came away impressed by how specialized and capable it is compared with ordinary vehicles for winter operations. I joined a crew for a morning run in a CAT-V, short for Cold Weather All-Terrain Vehicle, and rode through snowy, uneven ground the way cars never could. The machine is purpose-built for Arctic units, designed to handle deep snow, frozen tundra, and the punishing cold that defeats most conventional vehicles. From the moment it moved, the difference in capability was…

Nearly eight months after U.S. B-2 bombers struck Iran’s key nuclear facilities on June 22, questions continue about how much the strikes set back Tehran’s program and what the next steps should be. The June 22 strikes by B-2 bombers were an unmistakable show of capability, aimed at critical points in Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. At the time, Washington portrayed the operation as a decisive blow, but that claim has been met with scrutiny and competing assessments. Eight months on, the picture is still blurred and the public debate has not settled. Those who planned and executed the strikes stress that…

After the Supreme Court limited one legal route for tariffs, the White House moved fast to reassert a broad trade posture using other statutes and investigations. Hours after the Supreme Court issued a 6-3 decision against the president’s use of IEEPA for tariffs, President Trump called a quick White House briefing and announced a new legal tack. He said the administration would sign an order imposing a 10 percent global tariff under Section 122 while keeping other duties intact. The tone was deliberate: the trade agenda would not be halted by one statutory ruling. Breitbart reported that Trump announced he…

Iran has restarted its nuclear program, testing American resolve and forcing a hard look at diplomacy, deterrence, and the consequences of appeasement. Here we are again with Tehran kicking its nuclear program back into gear, and it should not surprise anyone paying attention. The pattern is familiar: threats, promises, stalling, and then a sudden escalation when the world looks the other way. For Republicans this confirms what many have warned for years — weakness invites aggression and empty diplomatic gestures get exploited. Venezuela’s former president Nicolás Maduro learned the hard way that threats ignored can become reality, and Iran’s leadership…

The Supreme Court, in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump on February 20, issued a 6-3 decision rejecting President Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose tariffs, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing that the IEEPA “cannot bear such weight”. The Court’s ruling cuts to the core of executive power over trade and national security. Chief Justice John Roberts delivered the opinion in a 6-3 split, a clear signal that the majority found the statutory basis for those tariffs insufficient. That line, “cannot bear such weight”, will be quoted repeatedly in the legal debates that follow. IEEPA…

Sheriff’s deputies in California arrested a man on a vehicular manslaughter charge after he drove through flooded waters with a passenger who later died, and authorities are investigating the driving decisions and circumstances that led to the fatal outcome. Local law enforcement says deputies took the driver into custody after emergency responders linked the vehicle’s route through rising water to the passenger’s death. The arrest narrows the immediate focus to whether the driver’s choices met the legal threshold for vehicular manslaughter. Officials are collecting facts while the case moves through the criminal justice system. Flooded roadways create sudden hazards that…