Author: Karen Givens

Ohio Rep. Max Miller announced in a live video on X that he will stay in the race for reelection, rejecting abuse allegations from his ex-wife and noting a Wednesday deadline to replace him on the ballot. Ohio Rep. Max Miller went on X Sunday to tell supporters he will not bow out of his reelection campaign despite recent accusations from his ex-wife. He spoke directly to the audience, framing the moment as one where facts and due process need to matter more than headlines. The announcement arrived with a Wednesday deadline looming for parties to name a replacement candidate…

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a dispute over whether local officials can indefinitely delay zoning decisions to block home prayer meetings, a fight that began when an Ohio homeowner faced a cease-and-desist for holding a Sabbath minyan in his living room. What began as a neighbor complaint about a handful of men gathering quietly on the Sabbath turned into a legal battle that climbed all the way toward the highest court. The key question is not whether the prayers themselves are protected, but whether local authorities can use procedural delay to avoid judicial review. That procedural tactic can…

Iraq and Turkey have agreed to boost oil exports through the pipeline to Ceyhan, and Baghdad is pushing to broaden its export options to avoid overdependence on any single route. Iraq and Turkey signed a deal Saturday to increase oil exports through a pipeline to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan. The agreement aims to expand the flow of crude to a key export terminal, creating additional capacity for shipments headed to global markets. Officials in Baghdad framed the move as part of a larger effort to spread export traffic across more routes and facilities. The deal is meant to…

President Trump signaled he might withdraw Todd Blanche’s attorney general nomination temporarily rather than yield to holdout Republican senators, setting up a standoff over a settlement fund and legal protections that has stalled confirmation talks. President Trump floated pulling Todd Blanche’s nomination and resubmitting it after outgoing Sens. John Cornyn and Thom Tillis leave office, saying he has “no objection” to that tactic and insisting Blanche “will remain, in any event, as Acting.” That move would sidestep the two senators rather than meet their demands, and it comes after the Senate Judiciary Committee delayed a planned vote on the nomination.…

Two Arizona men detained in the probe of 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance have filed a notice of claim accusing the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and Sheriff Chris Nanos of wrongful arrest, property damage, and reputational harm, demanding a combined $3.25 million in damages. Lawyers for Carlos Palazuelos and Daniel Maddox say both men were detained on February 10 during a search related to Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance and were released without charges after hours in custody. The claim names Sheriff Chris Nanos, an unnamed detective, and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department, and puts Pima County on notice as a potential subject…

A Houston-based genetic testing lab, its former chief executive and a Florida businessman agreed to pay a combined $36.4 million to resolve allegations they violated the False Claims Act. The agreement involves payment of $36.4 million and settles claims tied to billing practices connected to genetic testing. Those allegations accused the lab and two individuals of submitting improper claims to federal health programs, prompting the negotiated resolution. The settlement resolves a legal dispute without a trial, and it carries financial and compliance consequences for the parties involved. Federal enforcement of billing and coding rules is a major driver behind these…

Anthony Fauci’s Senate appearance and his private diary have reignited debate about the pandemic’s origins and accountability, as he repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment while written entries suggest early doubts about a natural origin and an intense focus on his public profile during the crisis. At a tense Senate hearing, Dr. Anthony Fauci invoked the Fifth Amendment 111 times when pressed about COVID-19’s origins, gain-of-function research, and the federal response. The relentlessness of those refusals, paired with a diary that paints a different picture than his public statements, left many Republicans and observers demanding answers. Senator Rand Paul challenged Fauci’s…

St. Mary’s residents are finally getting relief after years of a recurring rotten fish odor that would drift in on certain winds, following a coordinated cleanup and targeted municipal action to tackle the source. The smell had been a fixture for years, arriving unpredictably and making daily life unpleasant for many people in town. Complaints built up over multiple seasons as residents reported nausea, headaches, and the persistent nuisance of foul air. That steady pressure pushed local officials to investigate and prioritize a permanent fix. Investigators traced the problem to an old, disused processing area near the waterfront where organic…

A witness who saw a federal immigration agent fatally shoot someone in Houston was held for weeks and has now been released from a detention center, raising fresh questions about the case and how witnesses are treated during federal investigations. A witness to a fatal shooting in Houston by a federal immigration agent was released from a detention center Wednesday after spending weeks in custody following the deadly encounter. The release came after sustained attention from community advocates and legal representatives who had pressed for a quicker review of the witness’s status. Officials have not publicly detailed the reasons for…

A new British stage adaptation set in George R.R. Martin’s fantasy universe of “Game of Thrones” finally found its footing this week, earning a standing ovation from its first audience Theatre-goers in Britain gave a warm and unexpected welcome to a fresh stage take on the sprawling world created by George R.R. Martin. Early reactions centered on how the production compressed sprawling politics and large-scale spectacle into human-sized moments. That shift from epic to intimate is the production’s most talked-about move so far. The creative team leaned into practical effects and focused performances rather than trying to reproduce every visual…