The post ON the Beat | Beethoven on the Brain, on the Town appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.

LOS ANGELES (KEYT) – On Thursday, a federal judge dismissed the U.S. Department of Justice's lawsuit seeking access to Californian's private voter information.

"The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) seeks an unprecedented amount of personal information related to California voters from California’s unredacted voting rolls. The requested information includes the names, social security numbers, home addresses, voting history and other sensitive information of nearly 23 million Californians," wrote Federal district Judge David O. Carter in Thursday's decision to dismiss the federal government's request. "The government's request is unprecedented and illegal."

The U.S. Constitution states in Article I, Section 4 that decisions regarding, "the times, places, and manner of holding Elections" are delegated to Congress and managed by each state.

The Section does not mention any executive branch position, office, or department.

"State run elections mean that voters recognize their neighbors who staff polling stations, trust their Secretaries of State—whom they voted for—to keep their personally identifying information safe, and believe that they will not be targeted because of what they look like or who they vote for," explained Judge Carter in Thursday's dismissal. "The DOJ's request for the sensitive information of Californians stands to have a chilling effect on American citizens like political minority groups and working-class immigrants who may consider not registering to vote or skip casting a ballot because they are worried about how their information will be used."

Federal law does require states to maintain accurate voter rolls and allows people in most states to register to vote at their respective departments of motor vehicles.

"[T]he right to vote was won through generations of sacrifices from marginalized communities the American political system devalued, but who were determined to make the promise of democracy real," shared Judge Carter. "The pieces of legislation at issue in this litigation were not passed as an unrestricted means for the Executive to collect highly sensitive information about the American people. It is not for the Executive, or even this Court to authorize the use of civil rights legislation as a tool to forsake the privacy rights of millions of Americans. That power belongs solely to Congress."

On July 10, 2025, the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division demanded that California Secretary of State Shirley Weber turn over an electronic, unredacted copy of the state's voter registration list within 14 days citing the need to ensure compliance with the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act.

"[T]he Attorney General is uniquely charged by Congress with the enforcement of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), which were designed by Congress to ensure that states have proper and effective voter registration and voter list maintenance programs," argued the Justice Department in a press release about the nationwide lawsuits seeking voter information. "The Attorney General also has the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (CRA) at her disposal to demand the production, inspection, and analysis of the statewide voter registration lists."

On July 22, 2025, Secretary of State Weber responded that she would ident

LOS ANGELES (KEYT) – On Thursday, a federal judge dismissed the U.S. Department of Justice's lawsuit seeking access to Californian's private voter information.

"The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) seeks an unprecedented amount of personal information related to California voters from California’s unredacted voting rolls. The requested information includes the names, social security numbers, home addresses, voting history and other sensitive information of nearly 23 million Californians," wrote Federal district Judge David O. Carter in Thursday's decision to dismiss the federal government's request. "The government's request is unprecedented and illegal."

The U.S. Constitution states in Article I, Section 4 that decisions regarding, "the times, places, and manner of holding Elections" are delegated to Congress and managed by each state.

The Section does not mention any executive branch position, office, or department.

"State run elections mean that voters recognize their neighbors who staff polling stations, trust their Secretaries of State—whom they voted for—to keep their personally identifying information safe, and believe that they will not be targeted because of what they look like or who they vote for," explained Judge Carter in Thursday's dismissal. "The DOJ's request for the sensitive information of Californians stands to have a chilling effect on American citizens like political minority groups and working-class immigrants who may consider not registering to vote or skip casting a ballot because they are worried about how their information will be used."

Federal law does require states to maintain accurate voter rolls and allows people in most states to register to vote at their respective departments of motor vehicles.

"[T]he right to vote was won through generations of sacrifices from marginalized communities the American political system devalued, but who were determined to make the promise of democracy real," shared Judge Carter. "The pieces of legislation at issue in this litigation were not passed as an unrestricted means for the Executive to collect highly sensitive information about the American people. It is not for the Executive, or even this Court to authorize the use of civil rights legislation as a tool to forsake the privacy rights of millions of Americans. That power belongs solely to Congress."

On July 10, 2025, the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division demanded that California Secretary of State Shirley Weber turn over an electronic, unredacted copy of the state's voter registration list within 14 days citing the need to ensure compliance with the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act.

"[T]he Attorney General is uniquely charged by Congress with the enforcement of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), which were designed by Congress to ensure that states have proper and effective voter registration and voter list maintenance programs," argued the Justice Department in a press release about the nationwide lawsuits seeking voter information. "The Attorney General also has the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (CRA) at her disposal to demand the production, inspection, and analysis of the statewide voter registration lists."

On July 22, 2025, Secretary of State Weber responded that

By Haley Britzky, CNN

(CNN) — The National Guard mission in Washington, DC that has seen hundreds of troops patrol the streets of the US capital as well as undertake public service projects like trash collection and laying mulch has been extended through the end of 2026, according to two officials familiar with the matter.

The orders for the task force in Washington were expected to expire in February after they were extended for a second time in October. One official familiar with the matter said the new orders specifically run until December 31, though the second official specified that the orders could be amended to be shorter.

As of Thursday morning, there were 2,429 troops committed to the National Guard mission in DC – roughly 700 from the DC National Guard, with more than 1,700 troops from other parts of the country. Eleven states have contributed troops to the mission, including Florida, South Carolina, Mississippi, West Virginia, Georgia, and Alabama.

CNN reported last month that the Guard was preparing for a more permanent presence, and that conversations had already begun about keeping troops in the city this year for the America 250th anniversary celebration, which the White House has made a priority. One source familiar with the planning previously compared the potential long-term presence of the National Guard in DC to the New York National Guard’s anti-terrorism task force, which has had troops stationed at transit hubs in New York City since the September 11 terror attacks.

One of the sources familiar with the new orders said on Friday that the extension would provide more stability for troops who up until now have had their assignments extended a few months at a time. A longer-term extension that could be shortened if needed would give troops and their families more stability with expectations, the official said.

The extension comes roughly two months after two West Virginia National Guard troops in Washington were ambushed and shot just blocks from the White House. One of the soldiers, 20-year-old Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, died; the second, 24-year-old Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, survived a critical gunshot wound to the head. An update from the West Virginia National Guard in December said Wolfe had made “extraordinary progress” and could breath on his own and stand with assistance.

Another guardsman, Staff Sgt. Jacob Hill from Alabama, died while on the mission before Thanksgiving in what officials have described as an off-duty medical emergency; a source familiar previously told CNN Hill was found unresponsive in his room.

While some National Guardsmen who have spoken to CNN expressed a sense of duty for the mission, particularly in the wake of the shooting of the two West Virginia troops, others said they felt frustrated or bored. Family members who have spoken to CNN in the past have also acknowledged the personal sacrifice of troops who may earn more in their civilian jobs than they do on National Guard pay.

A source familiar with the mission previously told CNN military leadership is working with troops who are requesting to be taken off the mission for things like school or to get back to their civilian jobs. Several dozen troops so far have requested to be taken off the mission for various reasons, the source said.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

The post National Guard troops to stay in Washington DC through the end of 2026 appeared first on Read more

By Kevin Liptak, CNN

(CNN) — President Donald Trump said Friday he is considering applying new tariffs on countries that oppose his ambition of annexing Greenland.

“I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security. So I may do that,” Trump said during an event focused on health care at the White House.

The president made the remark as he recounted using tariffs to force other nations to cooperate on a plan to lower drug prices in the United States.

Trump’s push to control Greenland has prompted outrage among European nations, who fear the move could rupture longstanding transatlantic ties. Some have begun sending troops to the semiautonomous Arctic island that’s currently a territory of Denmark.

Representatives from Greenland and Denmark visited the White House this week for inconclusive meetings about Trump’s plans.

Trump has repeatedly turned to the threat of tariffs to achieve his foreign policy goals. Earlier this week, he threatened 25% tariffs, “effective immediately,” on countries that do business with Iran. But it’s not apparent those have been officially enacted, and the White House has not responded to multiple inquiries.

Trump’s ability to put in place sweeping country-specific tariffs could soon be limited, with the Supreme Court expected to issue a verdict in a landmark case. Regardless of how the justices rule, Trump will continue to have a plethora of ways to increase tariffs, but the alternatives are more limited than the approach he’s taken to single out countries.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Elisabeth Buchwald contributed to this report.

The post Trump considering new tariffs on countries that oppose his annexation plans for Greenland appeared first on News Channel 3-12.