US judge's school privacy ruling allows transgender bathroom use based on gender identity
A U.S. District Court judge Thursday blocked implementation of a new Idaho law that would prevent transgender students from using restrooms, locker rooms and showers that do not align with their biological sex at birth in public schools.According to court documents, U.S. Judge David Nye said in his temporary restraining order that “preserving the status quo pending a more complete review is the most fitting approach at the current juncture.””This is not a full adjudication of any argument on the merits. The Court is simply holding S.B. 1100 in abeyance and preserving the situation as it existed prior to the parties’ disagreement,” Nye noted.”School districts may choose how to organize their bathrooms, changing facilities, and overnight accommodations — whether that is sex-separate or transgender-inclusive; whether it is consistent with what it did last year or not. But the State of Idaho will not be mandating that decision at this time.”FLORIDA DISTRICT SENDS MEMO ABOUT ENFORCING STATE LAWS ON TRANSGENDER BATHROOMS AND PREFERRED PRONOUNS Senate Bill 1100 bars anyone of the opposite sex from using restrooms and changing facilities that do not correspond with their assigned gender at birth in Idaho’s public schools. (Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images)The restraining order prevents Idaho public schools, which are scheduled to reopen for the school year Aug. 16, from enforcing gender-separation rules in its bathrooms.In July, the Idaho state legislature enacted Senate Bill 1100, which forbids individuals from using public school restrooms and changing facilities that do not align with their sex as recorded at birth. Additionally, students have the right to sue their peers for up to $5,000 if they witness them using restrooms that do not correspond to their birth-assigned sex.CNN FACT-CHECKED BY COMMUNITY NOTES FOR REPORT THAT TRANSGENDER PATIENTS ‘HAVE NO REGRETS’ ABOUT ‘TOP SURGERY’The injunction comes as a seventh-grade student, who identifies as transgender, joined by the school group Boise High School’s Sexuality and Gender Alliance, sued the state last month arguing SB 1100 violates the student’s privacy and discriminates against gender. Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Arkansas are among states that have passed laws in some capacity requiring public school students to use restrooms matching their biological sex. (Rick Bowmer)The lawyer for the plaintiffs said in a statement to Reuters, “The court’s ruling will be a relief for transgender students in Idaho, who are entitled to basic dignity, safety, and respect at school.”But Idaho’s Education Committee, which authored the bill, wrote in the bill’s legislative findings section that “requiring students to share restrooms and changing facilities with members of the opposite biological sex generates potential embarrassment, shame, and psychological injury to students, as well as increasing the likelihood of sexual assault, molestation, rape, voyeurism, and exhibitionism.”A TRANS MAN ASKED THIS SIMPLE QUESTION ABOUT KIDS AT A TRANS CONFERENCE. HE WAS KICKED OUT A U.S. District Court is temporarily blocking a law that would safeguard children’s privacy and prevent transgender students from using restrooms, locker rooms and showers that do not align with their biological sex in Idaho public schools. (Getty)”A statewide policy ensuring separate school restrooms and changing facilities on the basis of biological sex is substantially related to the important governmental interest in protecting the privacy and safety of all students,” the committee added in another legislative finding clause.Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Arkansas are among the states that have passed laws in some capacity requiring public school students to use restrooms matching their biological sex.
Republicans blast 'coverup' of Hunter Biden special counsel appointment: 'Something’s not right'
Republican lawmakers sounded off after Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday appointed a special counsel for the probe into first son Hunter Biden.High-ranking GOP lawmakers torched Garland’s appointment of U.S. Attorney David Weiss, who led the prosecution in Hunter Biden’s tax and gun charges, to head up the special counsel probe.House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., called Garland’s announcement “part of the Justice Department’s efforts to attempt a Biden family coverup in light of [House Oversight Republicans’] mounting evidence of President Biden’s role in his family’s schemes selling ‘the brand’ for millions of dollars to foreign nationals.”Weiss is the federal prosecutor who has investigated the first son’s business dealings and brought charges against him in Delaware. His appointment as special counsel could indicate that, contrary to Hunter’s defense lawyers’ claims, the Justice Department investigation into President Biden’s son is not over.AG GARLAND APPOINTS HUNTER BIDEN INVESTIGATOR DAVID WEISS SPECIAL COUNSEL GOP lawmakers torched Attorney General Merrick Garland’s appointment of U.S. Attorney David Weiss to head the investigation into the president’s son. (Fox News screenshot)”The Justice Department’s misconduct and politicization in the Biden criminal investigation already allowed the statute of limitations to run with respect to egregious felonies committed by Hunter Biden,” Comer continued. “Justice Department officials refused to follow evidence that could have led to Joe Biden, tipped off the Biden transition team and Hunter Biden’s lawyers about planned interviews and searches and attempted to sneakily place Hunter Biden on the path to a sweetheart plea deal.”Comer said Garland’s “move is really about” the DOJ “trying to stonewall congressional oversight as we have presented evidence to the American people about the Biden family’s corruption.””The House Oversight Committee will continue to follow the Biden family’s money trail and interview witnesses to determine whether foreign actors targeted the Bidens. President Biden is compromised and corrupt, and our national security is threatened. We will also continue to work with the House Committees on Judiciary and Ways and Means to root out misconduct at the Justice Department and hold bad actors accountable for weaponizing law enforcement powers,” he said.”This action by Biden’s DOJ cannot be used to obstruct congressional investigations or whitewash the Biden family corruption,” House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., tweeted Friday.”If Weiss negotiated the sweetheart deal that couldn’t get approved, how can he be trusted as a Special Counsel?” McCarthy added. “House Republicans will continue to pursue the facts for the American people.”House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, tweeted: “First, David Weiss said he didn’t have the power he needed and wanted special counsel status.”Then, he said he had all the power he needs. Now, he gets special counsel status because he didn’t really have the power he needs? Something’s not right.”Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., said in a post, “This is the same US Attorney who just tried to give Hunter a sweetheart deal. Given how Hunter has been treated this far, pardon me if I’m not extremely excited that anything will actually come of this.”On Friday, Garland appointed Weiss as special counsel in the Hunter Biden probe.”I’m here today to announce the appointment of David Weiss as a special counsel consistent with the Department of Justice regulations governing such matters. In keeping with those regulations, I have today notified the designated members of each House of Congress of the appointment,” Garland said at a press conference in Washington, D.C.Weiss is the federal prosecutor who has investigated the business dealings of Hunter Biden and brought charges against him in Delaware.Garland said Tuesday that Weiss had told him that “in his judgment, his investigation has reached a stage at which he should continue his work as a special counsel, and he asked to be appointed.” Attorney General Merrick Garland. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)”Upon considering his request, as well as the extraordinary circumstances relating to this matter, I have concluded it is in the public interest to appoint him as special counsel,” Garland said.In July, Weiss announced a probation-only plea agreement for Biden in which he would plead guilty to tax evasion charges. However, U.S. District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika, a Trump appointee, rejected the agreement after expressing several concerns over its provisions. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPRepublicans criticized the agreement as a “sweetheart” deal and have pursued their own investigation into the Biden family’s business dealings with an eye toward impeaching the president. Talks between federal prosecutors and Hunter’s defense team subsequently broke down after the government acknowledged he was still under federal investigation.Fox News Digital’s Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
Ohio Republican demands Biden 'explicitly' say what US is 'trying to achieve' in Ukraine after funding request
An Ohio Republican is demanding President Biden “explicitly” say what the U.S. is “trying to achieve” in Ukraine after the White House’s latest funding request.Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, led a letter with 11 of his colleagues to Biden calling on the president to be transparent on what the $13 billion appropriations request in Ukraine will be going toward.”We are writing to express our strong opposition to your most recent supplemental appropriations request of $40 billion, including $24 billion for Ukraine,” Davidson and the Republicans wrote. “This request exacerbates your administration’s out-of-control deficit spending and circumvents the bipartisan debt ceiling agreement.”WHITE HOUSE WANTS CONGRESS TO SPEND SIX TIMES MORE ON UKRAINE THAN BORDER, FENTANYL CRISIS IN NEW REQUEST Representative Warren Davidson, a Republican from Ohio, listens at a House Financial Services Committee hearing.
Blue-collar political anthem 'Rich Men North of Richmond' takes internet by storm
A new blue-collar political anthem is taking the Internet by storm just days after hitting the web.Virginia native Oliver Anthony’s song, “Rich Men North of Richmond,” is a twangy, soulful bluegrass song detailing the frustration of a blue-collar man fed up with the leadership in Washington.The song torches high taxes and lawmakers for turning their attention away from the working men and women of America to “minors on an island somewhere” — an apparent reference to the offshore retreat where the late convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein hosted some influential persons.‘WE NEED TO GET BACK TO SMALL TOWN’: JASON ALDEAN CONTROVERSY CAUSED BY ‘BIG VICTIMHOOD’ BUSINESS, EXPERTS SAY Virginia native Oliver Anthony’s song, “Rich Men North of Richmond,” is a twangy, soulful bluegrass song detailing the frustration of a blue-collar man fed up with the leadership in Washington. (YouTube screenshot/RadioWV) (RadioWV/Fox News Digital)”Rich Men North of Richmond” also contrasts starving “people in the street” to “obese” Americans “milking welfare” and the epidemic of suicides in young men.”Well God, if you’re 5 foot 3 and you’re 300 pounds, taxes ought not to pay for your bags of fudge rounds,” Anthony sings. “Young men are putting themselves six feet in the ground, ’cause all this damn country does is keep on kicking them down.”Anthony’s emotional song has resonated with millions of viewers, with the Tuesday video recording by RadioWV’s Draven Riffe already sporting 1.2 million views on YouTube.”I’m a 39 year old Iraq vet and Construction worker, struggling like a dog to take care of two kids and keep a farm going when I’m not working 11 hour days,” one user wrote. “This hit so hard today I had to stop my old peterbilt and tear up.””Preach brother,” he added.”[Thank you] for writing this song. So many of us feel the exact same,” another user wrote. “God bless you.””This man is saying what needs to be said in this horrific modern-day world!” a user commented. “Great voice and message to the normal working man and woman. KEEP AT IT BROTHER!” The song torches high taxes and for lawmakers turning their attention away from the working men and women of America to “minors on an island somewhere.” (Roy Rochlin/Getty Images)Anthony posted a video on August 7 to his YouTube channel ahead of the video’s drop, commenting that “Lord willing” the song would “get some traffic” and a few listeners would find their way to his page.He noted that the song will be his first one recorded with a professional microphone and not on his cell phone and said that he started writing his own songs back in 2021.”Things were obviously not good for a lot of people, and in some respects, I was one of those people,” Anthony said. “And I had wasted a lot of nights getting high and getting drunk, and I had sort of gotten to a point in my life where even things I did care about didn’t mean anything to me anymore.””I mean, this is certainly no Dr. Phil episode,” he joked. “But I’ve found an outlet in this music.”Anthony said the music made him feel like he had a “purpose” and like he wasn’t “just wasting his time” after getting positive feedback from listeners.”Kinda in the last rollercoaster of the last year, I have decided that this is going to be what I do. At all costs, no matter what, I’m going to write, create, and produce as much original, authentic music as I can in the hopes that it will at least help somebody out there that needs it.” The Virginia musician said he knows “this is really just the beginning of what’s to come” and recounted how he meets “people from all across the country” on job sites who continue to struggle to get ahead in America. ((Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune-Herald via AP))The Virginia musician said he knows “this is really just the beginning of what’s to come” and recounted how he meets “people from all across the country” on job sites who continue to struggle to get ahead in America.”The universal thing I see is that, it’s like no matter how hard they push and how much effort they put into whatever it is they’re doing, they just quite can’t get ahead,” Anthony said.”Because the dollar’s not worth enough, it’s being overtaxed,” he continued. “People are just sick and tired of being sick and tired.”CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP”So yeah, I want to be a voice for those people,” Anthony added. “And not just them, just humans in general, and some of the struggles and battles that they go through.”The Old Dominion songster writes his music in his free time and lives on 90 acres in Farmville, Virginia, with his three dogs.
DOJ moves to drop Hunter Biden case in Delaware ahead of possible trial in different district
The Justice Department submitted a filing Friday to dismiss the Hunter Biden plea deal case in Delaware.On July 26, Hunter Biden’s plea deal fell apart during his first court appearance, and he pleaded “not guilty” as federal prosecutors confirmed the president’s son is still under federal investigation.Hunter Biden was expected to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax counts of willful failure to pay federal income tax as part of a plea deal to avoid jail time on a felony gun charge.”At the hearing on July 26, 2023, the Defendant did not plead guilty and therefore did not waive venue,” the Justice Department filing says.ATTORNEY GENERAL GARLAND APPOINTS HUNTER BIDEN INVESTIGATOR DAVID WEISS SPECIAL COUNSEL Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, right, exits federal court in Wilmington, Delaware, US, on Wednesday, July 26. (Hannah Beier/Bloomberg via Getty Images)”After the hearing, the parties continued negotiating but reached an impasse,” it continues. “A trial is therefore in order. And that trial cannot take place in this District because, as explained, venue does not lie here.”Hunter Biden’s legal team has until Monday to respond.”On June 20, 2023, the United States filed a criminal information charging the Defendant with two counts of failure to pay taxes, in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7203. ECF 2. Venue for these offenses does not lie in Delaware. Rather, venue for these offenses and any other related tax offenses lies either in the Central District of California or in the District of Columbia,” the filing says.”The information was filed in this District because the parties had previously agreed that the Defendant would waive any challenge to venue and plead guilty in this District. However, during the July 26, 2023, hearing that the Court set on this matter, the Defendant pled not guilty,” it adds. “Since that time, the parties have engaged in further plea negotiations but are at an impasse. The Government now believes that the case will not resolve short of a trial.”As Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty in July, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre delivered a statement at the beginning of her daily briefing. Hunter Biden arrives to a Federal Courthouse at the Caleb Boggs Federal Building in Wilmington, Delaware, Wednesday, July 26, 2023. (The Image Direct for Fox News Digital)CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “Hunter Biden is a private citizen, and this was a personal matter for him. As we have said, the president, the first lady — they love their son and they support him as he continues to rebuild his life,” Jean-Pierre said. “This case was handled independently, as all of you know, by the Justice Department under the leadership of a prosecutor appointed by the former president, President Trump.” Fox News’ Brooke Singman, David Spunt and Jake Gibson contributed to this report.
White House wants Congress to spend six times more on Ukraine than border, fentanyl crisis in new request
The Biden administration is requesting Congress spend six times more on supporting Ukraine in its war against Russia than on the border and fentanyl crisis plaguing the nation, according to a new emergency spending request submitted Thursday.In the request sent to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Biden specifically called for $24 billion in aide to Ukraine, split between $13 billion for defense related spending, and $11 billion in economic and humanitarian assistance.But Biden only requested $4 billion in spending on the border and immigration, as well as combating fentanyl flowing into the United States from foreign origins. The total combined amount of the request reached roughly $40 billion.BIDEN ADMITS INFLATION REDUCTION ACT HAD ‘LESS TO DO WITH REDUCING INFLATION’ THAN HE ORIGINALLY SAIDFox News Digital reached out to the White House and the Department of Homeland Security for comment.The additional spending request comes after Congress approved $48 billion in funding for Ukraine in December, prior to Republicans taking control of the House of Representatives.Approval of the funding is expected to be an uphill battle in the House, where McCarthy has promised he would not bring a supplemental Ukraine funding bill to the floor. Many conservatives have been vocally opposed to giving Ukraine more money without more accountability.RFK JR’S CAMPAIGN RENEWS SECRET SERVICE PROTECTION DEMAND AFTER FBI KILLED MAN WHO ALLEGEDLY THREATENED BIDEN President Joe Biden gives his remarks as Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky stands on the side during G7 Declaration of Joint Support for Ukraine during the high level NATO summit in Litexpo Conference Centre in Vilnius, Lithuania on July 12, 2023. (Dominika Zarzycka/NurPhoto via Getty Images)Last month, 70 House Republicans voted for an amendment in the annual defense bill that would cut off all funding to Ukraine. It ultimately failed.The request also comes as mass illegal crossings have continued to surge on Texas’ border with Mexico, with all sectors either at overcapacity or about to hit the maximum number of immigrants they can hold.A U.S. Customs and Border Protection source told Fox News on Thursday that there are currently 19,400 migrants in Border Patrol custody, nationwide.CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS Fox News Elizabeth Elkind, Bill Melugin and Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
Federal judge in Colorado blocks law raising age requirement for gun purchases
A federal judge in Colorado on Monday temporarily blocked a state law that raised the legal age requirement for purchasing a firearm to 21.Chief U.S. District Judge Phillip A. Brimmer ruled in favor of the gun rights group, Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, who had filed a lawsuit against Gov. Jared Polis. The state law, SB23-169, was one of several sweeping gun reform measures approved by the state legislature and signed by Gov. Polis in the spring. It sought to prohibit people under the age of 21 from purchasing a gun, with exceptions for active members of the U.S. armed forces, peace officers, and people certified by the Peace Officer Standards and Training board. RMGO argued in their lawsuit that law was unconstitutional. The group said if people are allowed to vote when they turn 18, they should be allowed to purchase a gun. ARMED WOMAN SHOOTS ROAD RAGE ‘AGGRESSOR’ TRYING TO FORCE HIS WAY INTO HER CAR: DA Gov. Jared Polis explains about his supplemental budget at Carriage House of Governors Mansion in Denver, Colorado on Thursday, January 3, 2023. (Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)”Since the day this legislation was introduced, we knew it was unconstitutional,” said RMGO executive director Taylor Rhodes in a written statement. “Under the Golden Dome, at the unveiling of this proposal, RMGO warned the bill sponsors this would quickly be struck down by a federal judge. Today, our crystal ball became a reality.” DEMOCRATS DEMAND 1,000% EXCISE TAX ON ‘ASSUALT WEAPONS,’ HIGH-CAPACITY MAGAZINESA spokesman for Gov. Polis’ office said federal law has for more than half a century required Coloradans to be 21 years old to purchase a pistol, but a loophole allowed kids under 21 to legally buy a rifle instead. “This law closes that loophole and the Governor hopes that the courts agree with him that the law is fully consistent with our Second Amendment rights,” the spokesperson said. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP”The Governor is working towards his goal of making Colorado one of the ten safest states in the country – and the same age requirements for pistols and rifles would help support responsible gun ownership.”