December, 13 2010, 02:53pm EDT
Anti-Health Care Lawsuit Succeeds in Virginia
A federal judge in Virginia has declared portions of the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional in a decision in the case brought by Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli.
Michael B. Keegan, President of People For the American Way, said:
WASHINGTON
A federal judge in Virginia has declared portions of the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional in a decision in the case brought by Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli.
Michael B. Keegan, President of People For the American Way, said:
"Tea Party activists like Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli have tried to twist the Constitution into a document that protects corporations and the powerful while neglecting the individual. The fight against the Affordable Care Act is one of the most prominent and troubling examples of this trend. While federal courts have rejected constitutional arguments against the ACA on two other occasions, Cuccinelli's victory in the courtroom of a Bush-appointed judge will provide ammunition to those who are determined to see reform fail.
"As the Senate remains gridlocked on judicial nominations, let this be a reminder of their importance. George W. Bush succeeded in packing the federal judiciary with far-right judges prepared to dramatically limit the role of the federal government in ensuring equality to all people. Bush's agenda for the courts had profound consequences, and must be not be perpetuated by inaction."
People For the American Way works to build a democratic society that implements the ideals of freedom, equality, opportunity and justice for all. We encourage civic participation, defend fundamental rights, and fight to dismantle systemic barriers to equitable opportunity. We fight against right-wing extremism and the injustice it fosters.
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United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres stressed the "urgent need" for Israel to "de-escalate violence on all fronts."
Dec 12, 2024
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said Thursday that he is "deeply concerned" by Israel's "recent and extensive violations of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity," including a ground invasion and airstrikes carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in the war-torn Mideastern nation.
Guterres "is particularly concerned over the hundreds of Israeli airstrikes on several locations in Syria" and has stressed the "urgent need to de-escalate violence on all fronts throughout the country," said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
Israel claims its invasion and bombardment of Syria—which come as the United States and Turkey have also violated Syrian sovereignty with air and ground attacks—are meant to create a security buffer along the countries' shared border in the wake of last week's fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and amid the IDF's ongoing assault on Gaza, which has killed or wounded more than 162,000 Palestinians and is the subject of an International Court of Justice genocide case.
While Israel argues that its invasion of Syria does not violate a 1974 armistice agreement between the two countries because the Assad dynasty no longer rules the neighboring nation, Dujarric said Guterres maintains that Israel must uphold its obligations under the deal, "including by ending all unauthorized presence in the area of separation and refraining from any action that would undermine the cease-fire and stability in Golan."
Israel conquered the western two-thirds of the Golan Heights in 1967 and has illegally occupied it ever since, annexing the seized lands in 1981.
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Dec 12, 2024
Addressing the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and conversations it has sparked about the country's for-profit system, longtime Medicare for All advocate Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday condemned the murder and stressed that getting to universal coverage will require a movement challenging corporate money in politics.
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Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.)—a co-sponsor of Sanders' Medicare for All Act—similarly toldHuffPost in a Tuesday interview, "The visceral response from people across this country who feel cheated, ripped off, and threatened by the vile practices of their insurance companies should be a warning to everyone in the healthcare system."
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Reporters Without Borders' (RSF) 2024 roundup, which was published Thursday, found that at least 54 journalists were killed on the job or in connection with their work this year, and 18 of them were killed by Israeli armed forces (16 in Palestine, and two in Lebanon).
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