Ruling on Mississippi abortion law may fuel Supreme Court expansion fight – National & International News – MON 24May2021

Dems: abortion blow would fuel Supreme Court expansion. Many students opt out of standardized tests. Belarus hijacks plane to arrest dissident journalist.

NATIONAL NEWS

Dems: abortion blow would fuel Supreme Court expansion 

This year, the Supreme Court will hear a case that women’s rights advocates fear could seriously curtail access to abortion in many states. The court will rule on a Mississippi law that would make abortions illegal after 15 weeks. If the court rules in the state’s favor, this will open the way for other conservative states to pass similar legislation. 

The overwhelming conservative majority in the nation’s highest court already has Democrats worried. News of the case has revived discussion about a Democratic-led push to reform the Supreme Court. One of the reforms under consideration would expand the number of justices from 9 to 13. Another reform would abolish lifetime appointments for justices in hopes of diffusing political tensions surrounding the court. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) has said that if the court rules to uphold the Mississippi law, it would “inevitably fuel and drive an effort to expand the Supreme Court if this activist majority betrays fundamental constitutional principles”. Blumenthal says that rather than expanding the court, Democrats may consider reforms that would require a certain number of votes to override old precedents.

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Many students opt out of standardized tests

With millions of children now back in classrooms, the Education Department is hoping to get some idea of just how far behind America’s kids are after a year of remote learning. Most parents and teachers have acknowledged that most children have fallen behind in many key subjects. In order to make the transition to the new normal a little easier, several school districts have relaxed testing requirements. In some cities, children will have to opt in to take part in testing. Others are testing in fewer subjects or only asking some students to test.

Many parents have decided to opt out of testing to remove unnecessary stress on their children as they readjust. States are looking for ways to curb stress while getting some meaningful data. Robin Lake of the Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington says this is likely to yield a “highly imperfect set of data”. Nevertheless, Lake insists that it is necessary to monitor how much ground has been lost and what progress is being made towards regaining it. Lake says, “This is something our country will have to commit to tracking and learning about for at least the next few years, and maybe the next decade”.

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Belarus “hijacks” plane to arrest dissident journalist

Since its last round of elections in August, Belarus has been in a state of political crisis. President Alexander Lukashenko has defied repeated calls to step down amid allegations the elections that handed him a sixth term were rigged. Lukashenko has been in office since 1994. The leader of the main opposition party has already fled the country, and Lukashenko has led a brutal crack down on opposition protests. In the months since, citizens, politicians and journalists have been arrested.

Yesterday, Belarussian Journalist Roman Protasevich, 26, boarded a Ryan Air flight in Athens bound for Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital. As the plane entered Belarussian airspace, President Lukashenko reportedly gave the order to force it to land. A fighter jet was scrambled to force the plane to land in Minsk, Belarus’ capital, claiming a bomb threat. Fellow passengers said that Protasevich seemed to know immediately what was happening. He fearfully told witnesses that if the plane landed, he would be facing the death penalty. 

The White House and EU leaders were quick to express outrage at a “shocking act”. Lithuania’s president urged the EU to impose fresh sanctions, adding to those already imposed during the protest crackdown.

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