List of All Articles with Tag 'cs'

An Oklahoma school board has approved the creation of a publicly funded online Catholic school, teeing up a constitutional legal battle over whether taxpayers should foot the bill for religious schools. The nation’s first-ever religious charter school was approved by the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board on 5 June, authorising the St Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School to be run by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City and the Diocese of Tulsa – and supported by taxpayer dollars. Republican Governor Kevin Stitt, who has presided over a sweeping agenda against abortion access and transgender healthcare in the state, called the vote “a win for religious liberty and education freedom in our great state.” “Oklahomans support religious liberty for all and support an increasingly innovative educational system that expands choice,” he said in a statement. “Today, with the nation watching, our state showed that we will not stand for religious discrimination.” Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which led opposition in a recent US Supreme Court case involving whether a high school football coach can effectively force his student athletes to pray with him on the field, is preparing to take legal action in Oklahoma. “It’s hard to think of a clearer violation of the religious freedom of Oklahoma taxpayers and public-school families than the state establishing the nation’s first religious public charter school,” president and CEO Rachel Laser said in a statement. “This is a sea change for American democracy,” she added. The group and other civil rights organisations are expected “to take all possible legal action to fight this decision and defend the separation of church and state that’s promised in both the Oklahoma and US Constitutions,” Ms Laser said. Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond also warned the board a vote to support a publicly funded religious school would clearly violate the state’s Constitution and expose the state to costly litigation. “The approval of any publicly funded religious school is contrary to Oklahoma law and not in the best interest of taxpayers,” he said in a statement. “It’s extremely disappointing that board members violated their oath in order to fund religious schools with our tax dollars. In doing so, these members have exposed themselves and the state to potential legal action that could be costly.” The move from the Republican-appointed board on 5 June comes as GOP officials and right-wing institutions across the country push for taxpayer dollars to support religious schools, with a Supreme Court signalling a willingness to direct public funds towards such schools despite explicit First Amendment protections. “State and federal law are clear: Charter schools are public schools that must be secular and open to all students,” Ms Laser added. “ In a country built on the principle of separation of church and state, public schools must never be allowed to become Sunday schools.” This is a developing story Read More Tennessee drag ban is struck down by federal judge: ‘Unconstitutionally vague and substantially overbroad’ Bible banned from Utah school district for ‘vulgarity and violence’ in revenge for conservative attacks on literature Oklahoma’s Supreme Court struck down two abortion bans. But a 113-year-old law is severely restricting access

Former Harvard professor and prominent public intellectual Cornel West will mount a third party run for president, he said on Monday in a video posted on Twitter.

An employee at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence drained the resort's swimming pool last October and ended up flooding a room where computer servers containing surveillance video logs were kept, sources familiar with the matter told CNN.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's acting chief, Tae Johnson, is set to retire at the end of June, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Monday.

House Oversight Chairman James Comer on Monday said he will move ahead this week with efforts to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt, even after the bureau allowed top members of the committee to view an internal law enforcement document.

Top US State Department and National Security Council officials "had candid and productive discussions" with Chinese officials in Beijing on Monday "as part of ongoing efforts to maintain open lines of communication and build on recent high-level diplomacy between the two countries," according to a readout from the US State Department.

Former President Donald Trump, now a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, claimed in a television interview on Thursday that he not only purchased 75 million barrels of oil for the national Strategic Petroleum Reserve but did so for a remarkably low price.

The Biden administration on Monday announced a goal to produce 50 million metric tons of clean hydrogen fuel by 2050 -- a roadmap that, if successful, would cut around 10% of the country's planet-warming pollution by the same date.

Robert Philip Hanssen, who received payments of $1.4 million in cash and diamonds for the information he gave the Soviet Union and Russia, has died, the Federal Bureau of Prisons announced Monday.

Presidential candidate and anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F Kennedy Jr heaped praise on Twitter owner Elon Musk for defending free speech during a Twitter spaces event with the executive on Monday afternoon. Mr Kennedy, who has long promoted the discredited theory that vaccines play a role in causing autism, participated in a Twitter spaces event Monday and praised Mr Muk for his stewardship of the social media giant for supposedly stopping censorship of voices that dissent from orthodoxy. “I just want to tell you how much I admire you for that and how grateful I am on behalf of my country,” he said. “You would come here from another country and be a key instrument for rescuing American Democracy and freedom of speech.” The forum is the second such event that Mr Musk has hosted. Last month, Mr Musk hosted a Twitter spaces forum with Florida Gov Ron DeSantis as he announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for president in 2024. Mr Kennedy announced his candidacy to challenge President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination for president in 2024 in April. During the event he said that his fellow Democrats had misunderstood Mr Musk and had unfairly maligned him. “I was so surprised and delighted when you did that on your own and clearly you’ve been portrayed as somebody as this sinister agenda but you’re doing step after step that is not in your self-interest and that is clearly designed to protect freedom of speech,” he said. Throughout much of the forum, Mr Musk did not challenge Mr Kennedy, including on some of his more outlandish claims that former Fox News executive Roger Ailes prevented him from discussing people injured by vaccines on the cable news network. Read More Peta founder makes request in will to send a piece of her neck to the King RFK Jr gushes over Elon Musk as ‘hero’ of democracy in Twitter Spaces ‘love fest’ Elon Musk hosting event with anti-vax 2024 candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr on Twitter

Nikki Haley, the 2024 Republican presidential contender, linked the presence of transgender girls in sports to suicidal ideation among teenage girls in a CNN town hall Sunday night in Iowa.

Democrat presidential candidate and notable anti-vaccine advocate Robert F Kennedy Jr is set to join Elon Musk and David Sacks on Twitter Spaces on Monday (5 June) at 2pm for a conversation. “Set a reminder for my upcoming Spaces with Elon Musk and moderator David Sacks!” Mr Kennedy tweeted a day ahead of the event. Mr Kennedy will also be joined by Tulsi Gabbard, Balaji Srinivasan, Omeed Malik, Michael Shellenberger and Kelly Slater who will likely ask questions and keep the conversation flowing. The Twitter Spaces comes just weeks after Mr Musk and Mr Sacks hosted and moderated a similar audio listening event with presidential candidate Ron DeSantis where he launched his campaign. Notably, the Spaces was filled with technological glitches which Mr Sacks attributed to a high volume of listeners. Following the event, Mr Musk welcomed all candidates onto Twitter and said he would be open to hosting other candidates on Twitter Spaces. But some were unhappy with Mr Musk’s decision to host Mr Kennedy as he has been previously banned from social platforms for spreading misinformation.