Latest News
Judge Orders Trump Administration to Stop Controversial Promotional Ads
A federal judge this week ordered an end to television ads funded by the U.S. government that promote President Donald Trump.
U.S. District Judge Jennifer Rochon in New York was responding to lawsuits filed by advocacy groups and Democrats.
“Plaintiffs have demonstrated that they are likely to succeed on the merits, will suffer irreparable harm in the absence of an injunction, the balance of the equities tips in their favor, and an injunction serves the public interest,” Rochon wrote in her ruling.
The Democratic National Committee and other plaintiffs argued the spending violates federal restrictions on using public funds for partisan propaganda and campaign activity.
Most of the $20 million in Homeland Security Department funds allocated for the ads had been spent when the judge issued the order.
Defense Tries to Suppress Confession of Alleged U.S. Capital Pipe Bomber
Attorneys for the man accused of placing pipe bombs outside the Democratic and Republican national committee headquarters before the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol are trying to suppress his confession with new allegations of misconduct by the FBI.
Their motion filed late last month argues the FBI used psychologically coercive interrogation techniques.
They say Brian J. Cole Jr.'s autism made him vulnerable to threatening influences, meaning the confession should be excluded at trial.
Prosecutors say they have evidence to support legitimate use of his confession. The trial is scheduled to begin Feb. 16.
Cole was arrested nearly five years after the unexploded bombs were planted. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted use of weapons of mass destruction and committing an act of terrorism while armed.
Disney Co. Attorneys Say Federal Communications Commission is Seeking Revenge
Attorneys for Walt Disney Co. argued in federal court in Washington, D.C., last week that it is unfairly being targeted for revenge by the Trump administration because of broadcasts by its ABC television network subsidiary.
The company is seeking a court order to stop the Federal Communications Commission from conducting early reviews of broadcast licenses for eight stations owned by ABC.
If the FCC removes the licenses, it could shut down the stations and hurt earnings for both ABC and Disney Co.
President Donald Trump has criticized ABC for its news coverage and for comments by its talk show hosts.
After Trump berated ABC in April, the FCC announced it would review the licenses of the eight stations affiliated with Disney Co.
Legal Briefs
Maryland Appeals Court Says Methodist Church Must Resolve its Own Dispute
A Maryland appellate court last week upheld a ruling favoring the Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church in a dispute with 37 congregations seeking to leave the denomination but retain their properties.
The dissident local congregations sued the conference, its board of trustees and Bishop LaTrelle Easterling over conditions placed on their departure.
They included a requirement that they pay 50 percent of the assessed value of the real estate they want to retain.
The dispute arose over divided opinions within the United Methodist Church over issues of sexuality, including church policies on same sex relationships and the ordination and marriage of LGBTQ people.
The United Methodist Church allows same-sex marriages following major policy changes approved at its 2024 General Conference that took effect last year. It also allows LGBTQ people to be ordained as clergy.
The 37 congregations argued that the Baltimore-Washington Conference improperly used its control over property held in trust for each denomination to impede their departure. They also alleged conference officials engaged in constructive fraud, breached fiduciary duties and mismanaged clergy pension funds.
The churches sued in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court. The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of the Baltimore-Washington Conference.
The ruling said First Amendment protections for religious autonomy barred judicial resolution of key questions.
D.C. in Brief
D.C. Elections Board Overturns Fine Against D.C. Mayoral Candidate
The District of Columbia Board of Elections last week overturned a $16,000 fine against Democratic mayoral nominee Janeese Lewis George and her campaign.
The Elections Board said there was insufficient evidence to prove Lewis George illegally coordinated with labor unions and a union-funded political committee supporting her candidacy.
The decision reversed a June ruling by the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance, which had concluded that Lewis George's campaign violated campaign finance laws through its relationships with labor organizations and Safe & Affordable DC, an independent expenditure committee that spent money supporting her campaign.
The Elections Board also overturned a separate $4,000 fine against the committee.
Lewis George, a D.C. Council member representing Ward 4, is the Democratic nominee to succeed Mayor Muriel Bowser, who is not running for a fourth term.
The campaign finance office's investigation focused in part on arrangements under which five union employees worked for Lewis George's campaign while remaining on union payrolls. The employees included campaign manager Adam Yalowitz and campaign spokesperson Amanda Michelle Gomez, according to the agency's original findings.
Investigators questioned whether safeguards intended to separate campaign operations from independent political spending by unions and others were sufficient to prevent prohibited coordination.
Lewis George's campaign argued that the employees worked under written agreements designed to prevent coordination. The campaign challenged the campaign finance office's classification of certain campaign expenses as illegal.
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