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Politics

Power outage disrupts Cannes film festival

The southeastern part of France, including the city of Cannes, suffered a power outage on Saturday, temporarily disrupting the international film festival. About 160,000 households…

mingooland · · 1 min read
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Politics

Trump administration withdraws request to pause order preventing government from reducing federal workforce 

<img src="https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-loaded/v1/6gUqXz5Tu0DdQIZcqMVcnnn9ye8UNv30" border=0 width="1" height="1" alt="Trump administration withdraws request to pause order preventing government from reducing federal workforce " title="Trump administration withdraws request to pause order preventing government from reducing federal workforce "> <p>The Trump administration on Friday night withdrew its request to pause an order by a federal judge in San Francisco that blocked the federal government from implementing large-scale reductions in the federal workforce. In <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/24/24A1106/359608/20250523173446803_LETTER%2024A1106.pdf">a two-paragraph letter</a>, U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the justices that Senior U.S. District Judge Susan Illston had issued a new order, known as a preliminary injunction, to replace an earlier order that they had asked the justices last week to pause. The government has now gone to a federal appeals court, Sauer explained, asking it to put Illston’s new order on hold.</p> <span id="more-528778"></span> <p>If the appeals court denies the government’s request, the Trump administration could return to the Supreme Court, once again asking the justices to weigh in. </p> <p>The case arose after President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing federal agencies to “promptly undertake preparations to initiate large-scale reductions in force (RIFs), consistent with applicable law.” </p> <p>A group of challengers – including labor unions, advocacy groups, and local governments – filed a lawsuit, seeking to block the implementation of both Trump’s executive order and a memorandum from the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management containing instructions for federal agencies to carry out Trump’s order. </p> <p>On May 9, Illston issued a temporary restraining order that barred the Trump administration from moving forward with any RIFs. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit fast-tracked the government’s request to put Illston’s order on hold while its appeal continues. </p> <p>But before the briefing was complete in the court of appeals, the Trump administration <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/24/24A1106/358981/20250516121951847_Trump_v_AFGE_Stay_Appl.pdf">came to the Supreme Court</a>, asking the justices to step in. Sauer told the justices that Illston’s order had “caused mass confusion throughout the Executive Branch.” He added that because federal law prohibits the plaintiffs from bringing a direct challenge to the RIFs in federal courts, they should not be allowed to use Illston’s order to do an “end-run” around that bar. </p> <p>With Illston’s original order no longer in place and a request pending in the 9th Circuit to pause her new order while it appeals, the Trump administration on Friday withdrew its request to put the original order on hold. But the government could return to the Supreme Court with a similar request if the 9th Circuit ultimately rejects its plea. </p> <p></p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/2025/05/trump-administration-withdraws-request-to-pause-order-preventing-government-from-reducing-federal-workforce/">Trump administration withdraws request to pause order preventing government from reducing federal workforce </a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com">SCOTUSblog</a>.</p>

mingooland · · 3 min read
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Politics

Watchdog urges court to deny DOGE request to pause order for information in FOIA suit

<img src="https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-loaded/v1/alF-ATMzOyvWA8eA9tgrwnn9ye8UNv30" border=0 width="1" height="1" alt="Watchdog urges court to deny DOGE request to pause order for information in FOIA suit" title="Watchdog urges court to deny DOGE request to pause order for information in FOIA suit"> <p>A government watchdog group on Friday urged the Supreme Court to deny the Trump administration’s request to pause an order by a federal judge in Washington, D.C., that would require the Department of Government Efficiency to provide information in a lawsuit filed under the Freedom of Information Act. Lawyers for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington told the justices that, under the guise of seeking to put the “narrowly-tailored” order on hold, the government was actually asking the court to weigh in on whether DOGE is in fact a government agency subject to FOIA – the question, CREW said, at the center of the dispute. </p> <span id="more-528774"></span> <p>President Donald Trump created DOGE shortly after taking office on Jan. 20. Although it is not a cabinet-level department, it has been broadly involved in the Trump administration’s efforts to reduce the size of the federal government. </p> <p>On Jan. 24, CREW filed a request under FOIA for, among other things, communications between Amy Gleason, the DOGE administrator, and DOGE staff. Just under a month later, CREW went to federal court in Washington, seeking documents that it wanted before Congress passed a bill to provide funding for the federal government. </p> <p>As part of its lawsuit, CREW sought to fast-track discovery – the process of exchanging information before trial – to determine whether DOGE is an “agency.” Its requests included a list of current and former DOGE employees, a list of the employees and positions for which DOGE had recommended termination, and a deposition of Gleason. </p> <p>The federal judge overseeing CREW’s lawsuit, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper, granted most of CREW’s discovery requests, including its bid to depose Gleason, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected the government’s plea to put Cooper’s order on hold and halt discovery. </p> <p><a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/2025/05/trump-asks-high-court-to-pause-another-suit-against-doge/">U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer came to the Supreme Court on Wednesday</a>, asking the justices to intervene. Sauer told the court that requiring DOGE to respond to CREW’s discovery requests “clearly violates the separation of powers” and “will significantly distract” from DOGE’s “mission of identifying and eliminating fraud, waste, and abuse in the federal government.” </p> <p>In its filing on Friday, <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/24/24A1122/359521/20250523114320079_24A1122%20-%20Response%20in%20Opposition%20to%20Stay%20Application.pdf">CREW countered</a> that even putting aside the fact that the government has effectively asked the court to rule on the merits of the dispute – that is, whether DOGE is an agency subject to FOIA – Cooper’s order should still remain in place. It contended that the government is ultimately unlikely to prevail (an important criterion when the courts consider whether to grant temporary relief) because the determination whether an entity is an “agency” for purposes of FOIA is a fact-specific inquiry “for which courts have ‘previously endorsed limited discovery.’” </p> <p>Nor, CREW added, will the government be permanently harmed if discovery is allowed to move forward. Indeed, CREW suggested, “the government can raise the full array of objections and privileges available to it in the normal course of discovery.” The Trump administration has the right to file a reply to CREW’s brief. After that, the court could act on the government’s request at any time. </p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/2025/05/watchdog-urges-court-to-deny-doge-request-to-pause-order-for-information-in-foia-suit/">Watchdog urges court to deny DOGE request to pause order for information in FOIA suit</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com">SCOTUSblog</a>.</p>

mingooland · · 3 min read
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Politics

The morning read for Friday, May 23

<img src="https://api.follow.it/track-rss-story-loaded/v1/NKe5nWlyp5ypm3xPYVr723n9ye8UNv30" border=0 width="1" height="1" alt="The morning read for Friday, May 23" title="The morning read for Friday, May 23"> <p>Each weekday, we select a short list of news articles and commentary related to the Supreme Court. Here’s the Friday morning read:</p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li><a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/05/22/nx-s1-5366714/supreme-court-nlrb-mspb">Supreme Court allows Trump to fire members of independent agency boards — for now</a> (Nina Totenberg, NPR)</li> <li><a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/supreme-court-upholds-oklahoma-decision-blow-religious-charter-schools">Supreme Court upholds Oklahoma decision, in blow to religious charter schools </a>(Breanne Deppisch, Bill Mears, and Shannon Bream, Fox News) </li> <li><a href="https://www.newsweek.com/hidden-provision-trump-bill-court-2075769">‘Hidden’ Provision in Trump’s Big Bill Could Disarm US Supreme Court</a> (Khaleda Rahman, Newsweek)</li> <li><a href="https://www.vox.com/scotus/414008/supreme-court-religious-public-charter-school-oklahoma-drummond">The religious right just suffered a rare setback in the Supreme Court, in Oklahoma v. Drummond</a> (Ian Millhiser, Vox)</li> <li><a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/key-supreme-court-cases-to-watch-in-2025">The Major Supreme Court Decisions to Watch This Summer</a> (Laura Mannweiler, U.S. News & World Report) </li> </ul> <p></p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/2025/05/the-morning-read-for-friday-may-23/">The morning read for Friday, May 23</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com">SCOTUSblog</a>.</p>

mingooland · · 1 min read
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