WASHINGTON — Fresno County Superintendent of Schools Jim Yovino won a round in the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday in an equal pay case brought by a former math consultant. The Court unanimously threw out a lower court ruling in favor of Aileen Rizo, who sued in 2014 when she...
Will Everyone Be Counted In 2020 Census? California Hopes So.
Counting every person in the United States is the goal of the census. Why? For one, the population totals from the decennial census determine the number of seats each state has in the House of Representatives. Members of the House make and pass federal laws that impact the lives of...
Star Trek’s Interracial Kiss 50 Years Ago Heralded Change
WASHINGTON — It was the kiss heard around the galaxy. Fifty years ago — and only one year after the U.S. Supreme Court declared interracial marriage was legal — two of science fiction's most enduring characters, Captain James T. Kirk and Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, kissed each other on "Star Trek."...
Federal Judge: Florida Is ‘Laughing-Stock of the World’
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A federal judge slammed Florida on Thursday for repeatedly failing to anticipate election problems, and said the state law on recounts appears to violate the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that decided the presidency in 2000. "We have been the laughing-stock of the world, election after election, and...
Kavanaugh-Ford Hearing: A Dramatic Lesson on Gender Roles
NEW YORK — He let his anger flare repeatedly, interrupted his questioners and cried several times during his opening statement. She strived to remain calm and polite, despite her nervousness, and mostly held back her tears. Throughout their riveting, nationally televised testimony on Thursday, Christine Blasey Ford and Brett Kavanaugh...
Rediscovering America: A Quiz on the Supreme Court
The U.S. Supreme Court has played a large role in U.S. history, at times reflecting the mass sentiment of the era and at other times disregarding popular views to extend rights to our citizens. The court, which begins its next term Monday, Oct. 1, has been much in the news...
Former Arizona US Sen. Jon Kyl to Replace John McCain
PHOENIX — Prolonging the uncertainty over who will fill the late John McCain's U.S. Senate seat, the governor of Arizona on Tuesday announced the appointment of former Sen. Jon Kyl but said he has only committed to serve until the end of the year. "It's my hope that he serves...
Trump Cheers as Supreme Court Deals Big Setback to Labor Unions
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that government workers can't be forced to contribute to labor unions that represent them in collective bargaining, dealing a serious financial blow to organized labor. The court's conservative majority scrapped a 41-year-old decision that had allowed states to require that public employees pay...
Merced Assemblyman Wants Sports Gambling in California
SACRAMENTO — State lawmakers and tribes who run California casinos say voters would have to change the state's Constitution before legal sports betting could come to the nation's most populous state. Their comments followed the U.S. Supreme Court's decision Monday to strike down a 1992 federal law that barred gambling...
Why Unions & Democrats Are Scared to Death of the Janus Case
Last week the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Janus v. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. The case is little different from Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association on which the Court split 4-4 after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia two terms ago. At issue is whether...