Trump ordered that the term Homo sapiens be changed to Hetero sapiens. In history books and on websites, the airplane from which the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima will no longer be identified as the Enola Gay, but rather the Enola Straight. Trump also ordered billionaire Mark Cuban, who supported Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, to change his name to Mark American. If he does not do so, he will be charged with terrorism.   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

Judge Hendricks said he feels strongly about protecting people's right to vote: "There is no right that is more precious in a free country." The ACLU and other critics of proof-of-citizenship requirements say they suppress voter turnout — particularly among young and minority voters — far more than they combat fraud. ACLU attorney Sophia Lakin, who argued the case in Kansas, said the Kansas ruling is nationally significant. "It sets a very important tone going forward," she said.   read more

While Texas claims the guidance poses a safety risk to the public, "the coalitions brief again argues that no such harm has been demonstrated and that without this federal guidance, transgender people will be at risk..." New York heads the coalition that filed friend-of-court briefs. "At a time when so many are seeking to create rifts that separate Americans from one another, it is our responsibility to fight back and do all we can to bring this nation closer together," said Gov. Cuomo.   read more

Lousteau accomplished a great deal at a young age. By 2003, he was working in government, first as an adviser to the governor of Argentina’s central bank and beginning in 2005 as the Minister of Production in the province of Buenos Aires. In December 2007, Lousteau became the first finance minister in the administration of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. At age 37, he was the youngest person to hold that post in more than 50 years.   read more

This is the first time that a presidential candidate has openly asked a foreign power to meddle in the democratic process to his benefit. More than that, Trump seemed to be suggesting that Russia should violate U.S. law on his behalf. Were Russia to follow Trump’s suggestion, the foreign intervention into U.S. politics would be among the most severe of the past century. “This is unprecedented...[and] seems to be genuinely new in international relations,” said professor Musgrave.   read more

The proliferation of the clinics “looks like it is occurring on a nationwide industrial scale,” said biochemist Turner, “operating brazenly, out in the open. It leaps out of these cultural assumptions about hopes and dreams of stem cell treatment, but there is no science behind it.” Some advertise treatments that seem to flout regulations. Said Prof. Ogbogu: "These clinics are being run by very sophisticated people. They understand the laws very well and have been working around the laws.”   read more

The regulations take aim at the harassing debt agency: Collectors would be barred from contacting people more than six times a week. After a debtor dies, collectors would have to wait 30 days before going after family members. “This is about bringing better accuracy and accountability to a market that desperately needs it,” said CFPB's Cordray. The bureau receives more complaints about debt collection than any other issue — more than 7,000 a month — 40% about debts customers say they don't owe.   read more

Many communities have ended their red-light camera programs in recent years amid complaints that they are designed to raise money through tickets rather than to enhance safety. Some courts have sided with motorists against the programs. "Debates over automated enforcement often center on the hassle of getting a ticket and paying a fine," said IIHS's Adrian Lund. "It's important to remember that there are hundreds of people walking around who wouldn't be here if not for red-light cameras."   read more

The EPA has announced new limits to formaldehyde exposure, ending a battle of more than five years to regulate a toxic chemical commonly found throughout the home. Until now, the federal government has not regulated formaldehyde, a known carcinogen, in wood products. “We are carrying out important measures laid out by Congress to protect the public from harmful exposure of this widely used chemical found in homes and workplaces,” said EPA's Jim Jones.   read more

The FBI placed recording devices in a light fixture along the steps of both courthouses. The government then used the recordings during grand jury proceedings. Judge Phyllis Hamilton acknowledged the practice of placing recording devices on the courthouse steps to capture the conversations in a federal criminal fraud case was "unsettling," but said the four did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy when they engaged in discussions about the alleged fraud next to the FBI's microphones.   read more

“Being a donor does not get you a role in this administration,” said White House spokesman Eric Schultz, “nor does it preclude you from getting one." The practice of rewarding big donors with federal positions dates back to the times of the founding fathers. FEC's Bob Biersack said that “Big donors have always risen to the top of lists for appointment to plum ambassadorships and other boards and commissions around the federal landscape." Most of the people on the list gave huge sums to the DNC.   read more

Nearly two-thirds of respondents expressed support for stricter laws, with majorities favoring nationwide bans on the sale of semi-automatic assault weapons such as the AR-15 and on the sale of high-capacity magazines holding 10 or more bullets. By a 55% to 43% margin, respondents said laws that limit gun ownership do not infringe on the constitutional right to bear arms. But responses also revealed a partisan divide: 87% of Democrats support stricter gun laws compared with 41% of Republicans.   read more

The White House has reached an agreement with Costa Rica to serve as a temporary host site for the most vulnerable migrants from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras while they wait to be processed as refugees. The U.N. high commissioner for refugees has agreed to set up an unusual process for reviewing requests for people in their home countries to qualify as refugees and send them to Costa Rica if they are facing immediate danger.   read more

Some scholars liken the website's timeline to a work of propaganda. “It’s not a lie, but it’s disingenuous,” said professor Young. “It does not come to grips with the full reality of the war, the extent to which it was an illegal war and the extent to which the public was lied to about the war.” One of her qualms is that entries for the My Lai massacre and publication of the Pentagon Papers fail to mention attempts by military and political leaders to obscure information about the events.   read more