24 States Sue to Block New Postal Service Rules for Mail Voting Before Midterms

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24 States Sue to Block New Postal Service Rules for Mail Voting Ahead of Midterms (Maria)

The author writes, “A coalition of 24 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit Wednesday that seeks to block a new rule from the US Postal Service that imposes requirements for mail voting ahead of the November midterm elections. The final rule, published by the agency Friday, came in response to an executive order signed in March that seeks to tighten mail voting rules. The states argue in their lawsuit, filed in Massachusetts federal court, that the rule will prevent them from administering their mail voting programs for the midterm elections and risks disenfranchising voters.”

Hegseth Plots Jaw-Droppingly Ambitious Move That Will Anger Trump (Sean)

From The Daily Beast: “Former Fox News personality and all-around macho-man Pete Hegseth wants to be your next president, according to officials familiar with the self-proclaimed Secretary of War’s thinking. Those sources, who spoke anonymously in order to be frank about the Trump Cabinet member’s ambitions, told the Washington Post that Hegseth’s trip to Iowa on Monday suggests he may very well have his sights set on the White House. The Defense Secretary, 46, headed out to stump for GOP Rep. Zach Nunn in the battleground state, where presidential hopefuls have historically tested their mettle.”

Troops Fighting Against Iran and Alleged Drug Smugglers Say They Are Being Asked To Violate International Law (DonkeyHotey)

From MS NOW: “One service member is concerned the military blew up bridges in Iran that were not military targets. Another thinks Pentagon leaders are not doing enough to prevent civilian deaths during airstrikes inside Iran. Yet another asked questions about how the military knew it was not killing civilians when launching missiles at boats it believed were trafficking drugs. MS NOW spoke to five troops who want out of the military because what they saw in recent months challenged their moral beliefs.”

Illinois Prison Drove Desperate Men to Set Themselves on Fire (Laura)

From The Marshall Project: “The Joliet Treatment Center opened in 2017 with the promise of being a new kind of prison in Illinois, designed to provide intensive mental health treatment. But in the years leading up to [the summer of 2024], incarcerated men and civil rights lawyers who visited the facility said the conditions declined. Men were kept locked in their cells for long stretches, with nothing to do. They complained about a lack of medical care and mental health treatment, which the prison system is legally obligated to provide. Men reported that guards used excessive force. As the men grew more despondent, some became willing to do anything to draw attention to their troubles and resorted to setting their cells — or themselves — on fire.”

Where Is the US Climate Movement? (Dana)

The author writes, “In the United States, there is a pervasive sense that the once-ascendent climate movement is in disarray or has even disappeared. The prior decade saw the actions and ambitions of climate activism become household images, slogans, and policy goals. A few years later, as the second Trump administration guts environmental regulation, rejects proposed renewable energy projects, and accelerates the leasing of public lands for extraction, is there any ‘climate movement’ to speak of? There’s no need to write the litany of recent socio-ecological disasters that would seem to necessitate organized outrage – and yet, organized mobilization remains shockingly, despairingly absent. What was the climate movement, after all? What might explain its retreat? What new features might it exhibit upon re-emergence?”

At Least 25% of Former NFL Players Who Died Between 2016 and 2021 Had CTE (Reader Jim)

From NPR: “For years, as researchers have established a link between repeated impacts to the head and the degenerative brain disease known as CTE, one major question has loomed: Just how common is it — especially among high-risk groups, like professional football players? A new study from researchers at Mass General Brigham, published Tuesday in the prominent medical journal The BMJ, seeks to establish a more accurate baseline of CTE prevalence among retired NFL players who have died. Of football players who appeared in at least one NFL game in their careers and who died between 2016 and 2021, the study found that a minimum of around 25% had CTE upon their death.”