Meta Platforms on Aug. 18 denied allegations by 29 states that it deliberately tried to get children addicted to its Facebook and Instagram platforms at a federal trial that began in California. Meta has estimated that it could face up … Continue reading Meta rejects claims it tried to addict children to Facebook, Instagram as landmark trial starts
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Aug. 17 to review a federal appeals court decision that upheld a Texas law requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. The U.S. Court … Continue reading Battle over Ten Commandments arrives at Supreme Court
A federal court on Aug. 17 blocked a Trump administration plan to move the proposed new FBI headquarters to the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington instead of a site in nearby Greenbelt, Maryland, that was chosen in 2023. Congress passed … Continue reading Federal judge halts move of FBI Headquarters to Ronald Reagan Building rather than Maryland
A federal appeals court on Aug. 17 declared Sigal Chattah’s appointment as top federal prosecutor in Nevada invalid and barred her from supervising criminal prosecutions. The case goes back to April 1, 2025, when President Donald Trump appointed Chattah as … Continue reading Ninth Circuit nixes Sigal Chattah’s appointment as top federal prosecutor in Nevada
The U.S. Supreme Court on Aug. 17 denied President Donald Trump’s request that the justices rehear an appeal related to the $5 million judgment against him for alleged sexual abuse and defamation in the E. Jean Carroll case. The new … Continue reading Supreme Court denies rehearing in $5 million abuse verdict against Trump
A state tax court in Maryland invalidated the nation’s first state tax on digital advertising and directed state officials to refund tax payments already collected from major tech companies. The legal dispute had been closely watched by other states that … Continue reading Maryland Court strikes down nation’s first state tax on digital advertising
Investigative journalist and author Matthew Vadum appeared on NewsX World in India on August 14, 2026 (August 15 in India) to discuss President Donald Trump’s recent comments on elevated gasoline prices and the escalating threat posed by Yemen’s Houthi rebels … Continue reading Vadum on NewsX World: Trump’s gas-price messaging and the Houthi threat to Bab al-Mandeb
A federal appeals court on Aug. 14 revived a Department of Justice (DOJ) subpoena seeking information from a Washington state provider of so-called transgender healthcare to minors, which a lower court blocked as politically motivated. A panel of the U.S. … Continue reading Ninth Circuit rules Trump admin may direct DOJ to investigate ‘gender-affirming care’ providers
The Trump administration on Aug. 14 asked the Supreme Court to let construction of the White House ballroom resume after lower courts ruled the project requires congressional approval. Construction on the project, which calls for building a 90,000-square-foot ballroom, began … Continue reading Trump admin asks Supreme Court to let it keep building White House ballroom
A federal appeals court on Aug. 13 dismissed a major challenge to President Donald Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act, ruling that the appeal had become moot after the government deported the three plaintiffs using ordinary immigration law. The … Continue reading Appeals court sidesteps ruling on legality of Trump’s Alien Enemies Act invocation
On August 13, 2026, investigative journalist Matthew Vadum appeared on the Egyptian channel QNews’ Think Tank program to discuss the 2026 U.S. midterm landscape. Hosted by Reham Morsi, the segment examined whether President Donald Trump’s grip on Republican primaries is … Continue reading On QNews Think Tank: progressive gains, Trump’s Endorsements, and a possible divided Congress
President Donald Trump again asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Aug. 12 to lift a lower court ruling that blocks key parts of his executive order restricting voting by mail ahead of the November midterm elections that will determine control … Continue reading Trump urges Supreme Court to unblock election integrity order
The U.S. Court of International Trade on Aug. 13 upheld the Trump administration’s authority to end the de minimis exemption that allowed Americans to avoid paying duty on packages worth $800 or less. The court held in a new order … Continue reading Trade Court upholds Trump’s shutdown of $800 de minimis duty exemption
A federal appeals court on Aug. 12 overturned a lower court ruling and restored nine provisions of Texas’s 2021 election law, largely because the challengers lacked standing under two federal laws. Standing means a party has to have a real … Continue reading Federal appeals court affirms Texas limits on mail voting and assistance
The Supreme Court late on Aug. 12 temporarily paused further action in federal district court in California in Apple’s long-running App Store dispute with Epic Games. Justice Elena Kagan granted a brief administrative stay that is set to expire at … Continue reading Supreme Court freezes lower court action in App Store lawsuit
The Supreme Court on Aug. 11 scheduled oral arguments for November in three high-stakes cases involving a religious liberty challenge to Colorado’s preschool funding rules, a lawsuit over inadequate prison medical care, and a separation of powers dispute involving Labor … Continue reading Supreme Court sets November arguments in religious liberty, prison medical care, and agency power cases
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other groups asked a federal judge on Aug. 11 to prevent President Donald Trump from enforcing his two new executive orders limiting birthright citizenship. The groups argue that the president is defying the … Continue reading Groups seek to block Trump’s new executive orders on birth tourism, birthright citizenship
A federal appeals court on Aug. 10 permitted thousands of lawsuits to proceed against major social media companies over allegations their products are designed to addict young users. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth … Continue reading Appeals court nixes Meta, TikTok bid to halt youth addiction lawsuits
Investigative journalist and author Matthew Vadum appeared on Egypt’s QNews on August 9, 2026, alongside Justin Thomas Russell, executive director of the Global Foreign Policy Center, to discuss tensions inside the “America First” coalition and a recent meeting in Maine … Continue reading Matthew Vadum on QNews: Maine ‘America First’ gathering is “political theater,” not a real movement
Journalist Matthew Vadum appeared on NewsX World on August 8, 2026 (August 9 in India), to discuss three major international developments: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s call to move beyond a state of “neither war nor peace,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s … Continue reading Vadum on NewsX World: Iran’s “neither war nor peace,” Ukraine’s energy strikes against Russia, and the Modi-Vance call