Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) sent messages to all members of Congress terminating their positions, stating “Your performance has not been adequate to justify further employment.” All Democratic and independent members of Congress, as well as two Republicans, found themselves locked out of their offices after everything inside had been confiscated.   read more

"The Wisconsin experience demonstrates that a preoccupation with mostly phantom election fraud leads to real incidents of disenfranchisement, which undermine rather than enhance confidence in elections, particularly in minority communities," Judge Peterson said. "To put it bluntly, Wisconsin's strict version of voter ID law is a cure worse than the disease." The judge said the law's restriction for absentee voting discriminates on the basis of race.   read more

"Fraudulently altering engineering reports undermines the integrity of the entire FEMA claims process, which homeowners and families rely upon in a time of crisis," said Schneiderman. "Today's charges reveal a flagrant disregard for the well-being and safety of New Yorkers, and my office will not tolerate it." Pappalardo posted bail of $20,000 cash over a $40,000 bond. The 38-year-old faces up to seven years in prison if convicted on all charges.   read more

The VA does not offer Agent Orange benefits to vets who served on ships offshore or never set foot on Vietnamese soil. Instead, these vets must prove exposure on a case-by-case basis. The vets noted that the presence of Agent Orange in the waters off the coast of Vietnam was unmistakable. After churning up Agent Orange while traversing and anchoring offshore, unsophisticated methods of turning saltwater into potable water intensified the chemical, furthering their exposure, the veterans said.   read more

In 2014, NTSB urged FAA Administrator Michael Huerta to make balloon operators subject to FAA safety inspections. "The potential for a high number of fatalities in a single air tour balloon accident is of particular concern if air tour balloon operators continue to conduct operations under less stringent regulations and oversight," NTSB wrote. Huerta said it was unnecessary because the risks were too low. A hot air balloon carrying 16 people crashed Saturday in Central Texas, killing all aboard.   read more

"With surgical precision, North Carolina tried to eliminate voting practices disproportionately used by African-Americans. This ruling is a stinging rebuke of the state's attempt to undermine African-American voter participation, which had surged over the last decade," Ho said. Added attorney Riggs: "We applaud the appeals court for recognizing the discriminatory intent behind and effect wrought by the 2013 monster law." Attorney General Loretta Lynch said she was pleased with the ruling.   read more

A farmer discovered 22 plants in an unplanted field, and the wheat was developed to be resistant to the herbicide known as Roundup, created by seed giant Monsanto. Federal officials said they were working with the farmer to ensure that none of the modified wheat is sold. South Korea said Friday that it will inspect U.S. wheat imports for genetically modified wheat. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said it has asked the USDA for information on the unapproved wheat and inspection methods.   read more

New Jersey has the largest state-based student loan program in the country, with stringent terms that can lead to financial ruin. The agency says it has a policy to help families if the children who received the loans die. But internal emails show that staffers at HESAA have been instructed not to tell families that they may qualify for help unless they ask. In one case, HESAA insisted that a mother continue to pay off loans she cosigned with her son even after he was murdered.   read more

On one hand, the government was broadening a program for children fleeing three violence-racked countries there, allowing for more applicants to come to the U.S. as refugees. At the same time, it continued to deport young people from Central America who crossed the border and asked for protection — sending some of them back to those same countries. “Government is a big and complicated beast, and it can do contradictory things at the same time,” said Eve Stotland, legal director of The Door.   read more

Billionaire industrialist and conservative benefactor Charles Koch's expansive political network will not help Donald Trump win the presidency. That's the message from one of the Koch network's chief lieutenants. Koch has put the network's budget at roughly $750 million through the end of 2016. A significant portion was supposed to be directed at electing a Republican to the White House. It will instead go to helping Republican Senate candidates in at least five states.   read more

A study by the Department of Health and Human Services found that improper billing still appears to be “relatively commonplace” because “some Medicare providers unlawfully bill enrollees” after receiving payments from Medicare and Medicaid. In some cases, the study said, beneficiaries “curtail their use of needed services due to concerns about their ability to pay.” Federal officials have warned doctors that they may be fined or excluded from Medicare if they persist in these practices.   read more

"Each attempted to bury or cover up, downplay or hide info that contradicted their own narrative, their story ... (that) there's nothing wrong with Flint water, it's perfectly safe to use. In essence, these individuals concealed the truth and they were criminally wrong to do so," Schuette said at a news conference in the poor, predominantly black city of nearly 100,000. Elevated levels of the toxin were discovered in children. Lead contamination has been linked to learning disabilities.   read more

The Constitution emerged as a best-seller after Muslim-American lawyer Khizr Khan flashed a pocket Constitution and offered to lend it to Trump at the Democratic Convention. “Have you even read the Constitution?” he asked Trump. To rapturous cheers, Khan fiercely attacked the billionaire businessman. Trump, Khan argued, was imperiling America's ideals with his smears of Muslims, women, judges and other groups. He urged Muslims, immigrants and all patriots "to not take this election lightly."   read more

It's a toothy giant that can grow longer than a horse and heavier than a refrigerator, a fearsome-looking prehistoric fish. To many, it was a freak, a "trash fish" that threatened sportfish, something to be exterminated. But the once-reviled predator is now being seen as a valuable fish in its own right, and as a potentially potent weapon against a more threatening intruder: the invasive Asian carp. Efforts are now underway to reintroduce the alligator gar from Illinois to Tennessee.   read more

He led the Adriatic department, but thereafter was sent to Brussels as a counselor in the U.K.’s permanent mission to the EU. In 2004, Darroch was made EU adviser to Prime Minister Tony Blair and head of the Cabinet Office European Secretariat. He capped his association with EU in 2007, when he was named the U.K.’s permanent representative to that organization. He returned to London in 2012 as National Security Adviser to Prime Minister David Cameron, where he served until 2015.   read more

Smith, a Texas Republican who has received more than $687,000 in fossil fuel donations, made his hostility to the investigations known this month. Smith reportedly counts the oil and gas industry as his biggest lifetime donors and has used his science committee platform at every opportunity to try to discredit the scientific consensus on global warming. Smith called the ExxonMobil investigations "a form of extortion." Prosecutor Schneiderman called the subpoenas the work of "GOP extremists."   read more

Researchers studied carbon dioxide trapped naturally underground for about 100,000 years and found it has not corroded the cap rocks, which suggests that storing greenhouse gases underground could be a viable option. The carbon dioxide would have to remain buried for at least 10,000 years to avoid contributing to climate change. The findings are good news for those who have championed carbon capture and storage, despite ongoing hurdles that have forced pilot programs to be delayed or terminated.   read more