TN families petition SCOTUS to overturn state’s ban on gender-affirming care for trans minors – National & International News – WED 1Nov2023

Tennessee families petition Supreme Court to overturn state’s ban on gender-affirming care for trans minors.

House to vote on expelling NY Rep. George Santos.

Nearly 100 dead or missing after hurricane hits Acapulco.

NATIONAL NEWS

Tennessee families petition Supreme Court to overturn state’s ban on gender-affirming care for trans minors

Three families from Tennessee have filed a petition with the Supreme Court to strike down the state’s ban on hormone-treatments for transgender minors. The appeal comes after the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Tennessee’s ban as well as a similar ban in Kentucky. The families suing Kentucky have not yet filed a petition with the Supreme Court. 

The Tennessee families argue that the ban on gender-affirming care are unconstitutional for two reasons. Firstly, it denies medical care based on sex. Secondly, it denies parents the right to make decisions over their children’s healthcare. Across the country, nineteen states have passed laws either restricting or outright banning gender-affirming care for minors. Some of these laws have even restricted access for adults.

Disturbingly, Tennessee clinics that offer gender-affirming care have also been required to give medical information on all of their trans patients (including adults) to the state’s attorney general.

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House to vote on expelling NY Rep. George Santos

The House of Representatives will vote this afternoon on a motion to expel Rep. George Santos (R-NY) from Congress. Five of Santos’ fellow New York Republicans recently called for his ouster, but the announcement of a floor vote today caught many in Congress by surprise. Expulsion requires a supermajority vote, which means 80 Republicans would have to vote along with all House Democrats to expel Santos. Only five representatives have been expelled from Congress since 1861. 

Rep. Santos is facing dozens of federal charges related to fraud, lying to Congress, and campaign finance violations. He is set to face trial next year. In his 2022 campaign for office, Santos famously lied about his ethnic background, his education, and his business experience. Other allegations have also surfaced of Santos defrauding people (including a veteran who wanted a life-saving surgery for his dog), using numerous aliases to do so. 

It’s difficult to predict which way the vote will go. Santos’ antics both before and after his election have been a source of deep embarrassment for Republicans, especially his fellow New York Republicans, many of whom represent swing districts. However, expelling him will further diminish Republican’s already narrow majority in the House.

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Nearly 100 dead or missing after hurricane hits Acapulco

Hurricane Otis struck Acapulco last week as a Category 5, taking many by surprise. Over just 12 hours, Otis strengthened from a tropical storm to a Category 5. Days later, the most recent accounting shows that about 100 people died or are missing. The storm also wrought catastrophic damage within the resort city and especially in more rural areas of the state of Guerrero. 

Mexico’s military has taken charge of all relief efforts and are so far getting very poor marks. There has been little in the way of food and water aid coming in. Families have been forced to loot stores to survive, not because they don’t have money but because stores are closed. The storm’s high winds also ripped off the metal roofs that cover a majority of poor and middle-income homes in the area. The response has also been criticized for its focus on the relatively prosperous city of Acapulco while poor people in surrounding areas have largely had to fend for themselves.

Communication has also been limited. Reporters who have gone to the area have seen people congregating on high ground and even on top of ruined buildings in hopes of getting a cell phone signal.

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