Schumer and McCarthy agree stopgap spending bill necessary to avoid shutdown
Sen. Chuck Schumer, the majority leader, said Wednesday that he and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy had agreed that a bill to temporarily fund the government is necessary in order to stave off the possibility of an impending government shutdown Oct. 1 and keep the government funded through early December. But his comments were also an acknowledgment that Congress remains far from reaching any agreement on spending levels that would keep the government running on a longer-term basis. The temporary spending measure would give lawmakers more time to finalize a deal on 12 appropriations bills that still need to be passed to fund the government and avoid a shutdown.
Court sides with Catholic school that f ired unmarried pregnant teacher
The New Jersey Supreme Court sided Monday with a Catholic elementary school that fired an unmarried art teacher who was pregnant, ending a long legal battle at a time of fierce debate over religious freedom. The school, St. Theresa’s in Kenilworth, New Jersey, fired the teacher, Victoria Crisitello, in 2014, saying she had violated the school’s code of ethics by having premarital sex, according to court documents. Crisitello sued, citing the state’s Law Against Discrimination, which prohibits employment discrimination based on pregnancy and marital status. In its decision Monday, the Supreme Court found that the firing was protected under a religious exception to the anti-discrimination law.
$80 billion influx has helped customer service, IRS says
One year after the IRS received a huge influx of cash, the agency said it had increased its full-time staff to nearly 90,000, a level not seen in more than a decade. The IRS, which received an $80 billion infusion last year as part of the Inflation Reduction Act, is working to improve taxpayer services and crack down on tax evaders, according to Daniel Werfel, the IRS commissioner. But Republican lawmakers successfully clawed back $20 billion as part of an agreement over the nation’s debt limit, leaving the IRS with $60 billion to carry out its overhaul plans.
Former San Jose state trainer pleads guilty to groping athletes
A former athletic trainer at San Jose State University pleaded guilty Tuesday to unlawfully groping four women who had come to him for medical care, prosecutors said. Appearing in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Scott Shaw admitted to having violated the civil rights of the women, who were student athletes, between 2017 and 2020, federal prosecutors said in a statement. Shaw pleaded guilty nearly two weeks after a federal jury failed to reach a verdict on six counts. He faces a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a fine of up to $200,000 when he is sentenced Nov. 14.
Ukraine recaptures a small village as Russian forces retreat
Ukrainian forces have retaken the tiny village of Urozhaine, driven farther into the Mokri Yaly River Valley in the south of the country, after more than a week of battling Russian troops, as Ukraine pushed on with a grinding counteroffensive that has struggled to break through entrenched Russian lines. It is the first village known to have been recaptured by Ukraine’s forces since they reclaimed Staromaiorske in July. Retaking the village, which is in the Donetsk region, means Ukraine now holds positions on both banks of the river, opening up more options as its forces try to advance on Russian strongholds farther south.
Coup in Niger upends U.S. terrorism fight and could open a door for Russia
The military takeover in Niger has upended years of Western counterterrorism efforts in West Africa and now poses wrenching new challenges for the Biden administration’s fight against Islamic militants on the continent. U.S.-led efforts to degrade terrorist networks around the world have largely succeeded in longtime jihadi hot spots like Iraq, Syria and Yemen, but not so in Africa. Niger, an impoverished nation of 25 million people, has been the exception to that trend. It could also open the door to Russian influence in Niger in the form of the Kremlin-backed Wagner private military company, which has a presence in neighboring Mali, U.S. officials say.
Germany takes step toward legalizing marijuana
The German government approved a plan Wednesday to legalize some recreational marijuana use, paving the way to allow adults to legally buy and possess small amounts of cannabis. The legislation, which would allow adults to purchase and possess up to 25 grams of recreational cannabis for personal consumption through nonprofit social clubs, must still be approved by parliament. But the endorsement from the three-party coalition’s cabinet was a crucial step toward Germany becoming the first major European country to legalize marijuana. Under current German law, it is illegal to buy cannabis, but not to consume it.
Free cash in Ireland, at least for a moment, thanks to a bank glitch
Some customers at one of Ireland’s largest banks, for one feverish summer evening, happened upon what seemed to be a magical loophole: They could spend their cash and apparently save it, too. When a “technical issue” at Bank of Ireland cut some customers off from online banking services Tuesday, others found that it also allowed them to transfer or withdraw funds, without changing the reported balance. Services were restored overnight, but customers were warned that online services would be slow Wednesday as the bank caught up with processing payments. And bank representatives were clear that any money transferred from accounts was not free to keep.
The return of Tony Blair
A decade and a half after Tony Blair left Downing Street, one issue still defines the former British prime minister in the eyes of many Britons: his disastrous decision to join the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. But with the Labour opposition sensing rising power under the stewardship of its leader, Keir Starmer, Blair is suddenly, and rather remarkably, back in favor. For Starmer, embracing Blair sends a political message, underscoring Labour’s shift to the center. But the former prime minister also has charisma and communication skills that Starmer lacks, assets that could be useful as a general election approaches.
By wire sources