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Josh Dawsey December 15 at 4:53 PM President Trump made an unscheduled visit to Arlington National Cemetery on a rainy Saturday, following weeks of criticism for skipping ceremonial visits in the United States and abroad that other presidents have made and for his lack of meetings with U.S. troops in combat zones. The president spent 15 minutes at the storied Virginia cemetery, walking with two military officers dressed in camouflage…

When world leaders signed the Paris agreement in 2015, they said they would try to limit the rise in global temperatures to roughly 1.5 degrees Celsius, or 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit, above preindustrial levels to avoid climate-related disasters like widespread food shortages and mass coral die-offs. But with global fossil-fuel emissions still rising each year, the planet is now quite likely to cross that temperature threshold within 35 years. “The real…

U.S. Border Patrol next to the the border wall dividing Nogales, Ariz., and Nogales Mexico. Susan Schulman/Barcroft Media via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Susan Schulman/Barcroft Media via Getty Images U.S. Border Patrol next to the the border wall dividing Nogales, Ariz., and Nogales Mexico. Susan Schulman/Barcroft Media via Getty Images I do not doubt that U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents did all they could to try to…

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A federal judge in Texas ruled on Friday the entire Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional due to a recent change in federal tax law. The ruling came a day before the December 15 deadline to sign up for 2019 health coverage through the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace. People can still sign up for coverage through Saturday.  “Court’s decision does not affect this season’s open enrollment,” reads a notice on HealthCare.gov, where…

Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former personal attorney, arrives at federal court for his sentencing hearing on Wednesday in New York City. He was sentenced to three years in prison. Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former personal attorney, arrives at federal court for his sentencing hearing on Wednesday in New York City. He was sentenced to three years in prison….

A federal district court judge in Texas has threatened the future of the Affordable Care Act. Judge Reed C. O’Connor struck down the law, siding with a group of 18 Republican state attorneys general and two GOP governors who brought the case. O’Connor said the tax bill passed by Congress in December 2017 effectively rendered the entire health law unconstitutional. That tax measure eliminated the penalty for not having insurance….

Image copyright Google Maps Image caption Father Don LaCuesta used the funeral at Our Lady of Mount Carmel church in Temperance, Michigan to condemn suicide Parents of a teenage boy who took his own life have complained after their Catholic priest criticised him at the funeral for killing himself. Father Don LaCuesta in the service questioned whether Maison Hullibarger, 18, would enter heaven, horrifying his parents and family. The Archdiocese…

A federal judge in Texas on Friday struck down the Affordable Care Act, throwing a new round of uncertainty into the fate of the law just one day before the deadline to sign up for coverage for next year. U.S. District Court Judge Reed O’Connor ruled that the law’s individual mandate is unconstitutional, and that because the mandate cannot be separated from the rest of the law, the rest of the…

Katie Mettler December 14 at 8:23 PM When Maison Hullibarger died by suicide on Dec. 4, his parents — devout Catholics — began planning a funeral that would celebrate their 18-year-old son’s life. He was a brother to five siblings, an athlete and teammate, a strong criminal justice student at the University of Toledo, and a passionate fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers. And because the priest at their Temperance, Mich.,…

“Today’s ruling is an assault on 133 million Americans with pre-existing conditions, on the 20 million Americans who rely on the A.C.A.’s consumer protections for health care, on America’s faithful progress toward affordable health care for all Americans,” Mr. Becerra said in a statement. “The A.C.A. has already survived more than 70 unsuccessful repeal attempts and withstood scrutiny in the Supreme Court.” Attorney General Ken Paxton of Texas, who initiated…

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Mick Mulvaney, the director of the Office of Management and Budget and until three days ago also the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is adding acting White House chief of staff to his plate. Mulvaney, one of the few establishment fiscal wonks of the Trump administration, has been in high demand in a White House bleeding mainstream political operatives. The selection of Mulvaney for a job that no…

Nick Miroff December 14 at 10:38 PM Twenty-seven hours before she died at an El Paso children’s hospital, 7-year-old Jakelin Caal walked across the U.S. border with her father and 161 other migrants outside Antelope Wells, N.M. It was 9:15 p.m. on Dec. 6, and the small, remote U.S. border crossing was closed for the night. There were four Border Patrol agents on duty, and no medical staff. The migrants skirted barriers…

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Scott Walker, the Republican governor of Wisconsin, signed the bill on Friday Wisconsin’s outgoing Republican governor has signed bills to strip powers from his Democratic successor. The measures curb the authority of incoming Democratic Governor Tony Evers, who won last month’s election. Democrats say the legislation is a naked power grab, but Republicans argue it will balance the legislative and executive branches of state government….

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) on Friday vetoed a measure that would require voters to show certain forms of identification at the polls. In a statement, Cooper said he vetoed the measure because it was “a solution in search of a problem.” “The fundamental flaw in the bill is its sinister and cynical origins,” Cooper said. “It was designed to suppress the rights of minority, poor and elderly voters….

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