OUR PICKSDon’t Be Fooled by the AI Apocalypse | Calls for Privacy Reforms After FBI Surveillance ‘Abuses’ | Undermining COVID Vaccination Efforts, and more
· Homeland Security Officials Warn of Rising Threats Following Recent Hamas Aattack
Mayorkas’ speech highlighted the rapidly evolving global threat landscape and the potential consequences for the United States and its communities
· Courts, State Officials Hesitate to Keep Trump Off 2024 Ballots
Legal scholars and nonpartisan groups argue he engaged in ‘insurrection’ and should be disqualified
· How Lawmakers in Texas and Florida Undermine COVID Vaccination Efforts
Fierce opposition to measures like masking and business closures early in the pandemic fueled a mistrust of the CDC and other scientific institutions and often falls along party lines
· House Sidesteps Effort to Impeach Homeland Security Chief Over Border Policy
Greene had sought to force a floor vote on a resolution to oust Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas
· Don’t Be Fooled by the AI Apocalypse
A guide to understanding which fears are real and which aren’t
· US Congress Report Calls for Privacy Reforms After FBI Surveillance ‘Abuses’
New report by an oversight committee in the US House of Representatives says the FBI has routinely violated rules governing FISA’s Section 702 surveillance program and must be reined in
Homeland Security Officials Warn of Rising Threats Following Recent Hamas Aattack (Zvika Klein, Jerusalem Post)
In testimony to the US House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday, officials from the US Department of Homeland Security and the FBI warned about increased security threats following the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7.
Their testimony highlighted the rapidly evolving global threat landscape and the potential consequences for the United States and its communities.
Courts, State Officials Hesitate to Keep Trump Off 2024 Ballots (Matt Vasilogambros, Stateline)
Some scholars say a little-known, Civil War-era provision in the U.S. Constitution should prohibit former President Donald Trump from appearing on state ballots in next year’s presidential election. But it seems increasingly unlikely that he will be disqualified.
Courts in Colorado, Michigan, New Jersey and elsewhere are considering whether Trump engaged in insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, and should, therefore, be kept off the 2024 primary and general election presidential ballots. But two months before the first primary, it’s a question with no clear consensus among legal scholars, and one that state election officials have been hesitant to weigh and that courts have been reluctant to entertain.
How Lawmakers in Texas and Florida Undermine COVID Vaccination Efforts (Amy Maxmen, Stateline)
A rule added to Texas’ budget that went into effect Sept. 1 forbids health departments and other organizations funded by the state government to advertise, recommend or even list COVID-19 vaccines alone. “Clinics may inform patients that COVID-19 vaccinations are available,” the rule allows, “if it is not being singled out from other vaccines.”
Texas isn’t the only state curtailing the public conversation about COVID-19 vaccines. Tennessee’s health department homepage, for example, features the flu, vaping and cancer screening but leaves out COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines. Florida is an extreme case, where the health department has issued guidance against COVID-19 vaccines that runs counter to scientific studies and advice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
